BEIJING - The massive earthquake and ensuing tsunami that slammed into Japan's northeast coast has triggered alarm bells in China, where work is being undertaken to develop a marine economy.

In April 2010, the State Council designated three regional ocean economic zones, in Shandong, Zhejiang and Guangdong provinces, as pilot zones for the development of China's marine economy.

Song Junji, an official in charge of establishing the Shandong Peninsula Ocean Economic Zone, said the zones should be equipped with early warning and emergency response systems.

"To ensure the safety of people and their properties, it is imperative that we improve our ability to be warned quickly of impending disasters and improve our emergency responses, both locally and throughout the country," said Song, who is also deputy director with the Shandong development and reform commission.

China, with its 3 million square kilometers of offshore waters and 32,000 kilometers of coastline, has abundant marine resources.

Tsunamis are not as common here as in Japan and other countries, but oceanic disasters are still frequent. Hence the need for strong early warning and emergency response systems, Song said.

About 1,500 tons of oil were spilled into China's northeast coastal waters after an explosion hit pipelines near Dalian Port in Liaoning province in July 2010.

About two years before, an outbreak of a strain of algae called enteromorpha prolifera, present in waters off East China's Qingdao city, had disrupted the Olympics sailing competition, harmed the ecosystem and caused losses to the fishing and tourism industries.

But it is still unclear why the algae blooms occurred and how they spread. Finding a solution to such problems likely won't be possible without the use of further studies, said Li Naisheng, director of the Qingdao-based National Oceanographic Center.

He Zhiguo, an associate professor at the Zhejiang University, said the risks of oceanic disasters should be estimated while the marine economy is being developed, and a priority should be placed on establishing an early warning system.

He said China should train more oceanic scientists and experts to carry out research and studies on oceanic disasters.

And the government should do more to inform the public of the existence of such problems, he said.

"The responsibility of battling oceanic disasters lies with everyone rather than the government alone," He said.

His advice echoed comments made by the country's top officials of oceanic management.

Liu Cigui, director of the State Oceanic Administration, told Xinhua in a recent interview that China had drawn lessons from Japan's response to the latest earthquake and tsunami.

Liu said the administration issued an emergency response not long after the recent earthquake and tsunami had struck Japan and has since kept a close eye on the situation.

"Governments at all levels in the coastal regions must pay attention to oceanic disasters and take proper precautions when building infrastructure," Liu said.

"Further, a coordinated mechanism that calls on various departments to deal with oceanic disasters should be established," Liu added.

According to figures released by the State Oceanic Administration, China added 40 marine monitoring stations from 2005 to the end of 2010, bringing the total to 106. From having one radar-detecting station at the start of the same period, the country now has 38.

China has also begun using devices such as submerged buoys and floating buoys to monitor for oceanic disasters.

"A multi-level oceanic disaster forecast and alleviation system has been put in place in China," Wang Hong, deputy director of the State Oceanic Administration, told a working seminar in Nanning, capital of the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, on Wednesday.

Xinhua