BEIJING, May 26 -- China's National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA) and other authorities have jointly issued a special plan for the protection and utilization of cultural relics unearthed in the Three Gorges area on the Yangtze River.

The plan, scheduled for the period from 2023 to 2035, focuses on the protection of the relics and their dependent ecological and cultural environments, according to the NCHA on Friday.

It designates a protection area of 57,500 square kilometers covering 26 districts and counties of southwest China's Chongqing Municipality and central China's Hubei Province, where the Three Gorges winds through.

The project is aimed at carrying forward culture related to the Yangtze River, promoting the protection and utilization of cultural relics, and facilitating the high-quality development of the Three Gorges area, the NCHA said.

It is expected that by 2025, greater efforts will be channeled to the restoration of the unearthed cultural relics, and important relics will be put under holistic protection and effective utilization, according to the document.

By 2035, notable progress will be achieved in this regard, with a sustainable mechanism being established for the protection and utilization of cultural relics, relics deeply integrated with tourism and coordinated with ecological preservation, and the appeal and influence of relics-related culture being enhanced.

The plan also sets out key tasks, such as improving the archaeological work in the Three Gorges area and employing new methods to exhibit and use the cultural relics.