Heilongjiang province’s first law to protect the region’s intangible cultural heritage will take effect on Oct 1.

The law is seen as an important step forward in the province’s efforts to preserve its cultural heritage, which it has been undertaking since 2004.

The new statute contains 43 articles in six chapters establishing rules for general issues related to intangible cultural heritage; the transmission and inheritance of cultural artifacts; the protection and use of articles embodying the region’s intangible cultural heritage; legal liability; and other supplementary issues.

It also calls for an investigation into how other regions have dealt with issues related to the protection of intangible cultural heritage.

Several of the measures are expected to be particularly crucial to improving Heilongjiang’s ability to protect its cultural heritage. The coordination between departments involved in protection work has been clarified and strengthened, and, for the first time, cadres at all levels of government will be trained in intangible cultural heritage protection.

Initiatives to raise public awareness of cultural heritage issues will also be promoted.

Another important step is the creation of guidelines regulating the collection, display, inheritance and transmission of cultural artifacts. These guidelines will also make the inheritance process for cultural artifacts much simpler.

The law will also encourage the promotion of brands and new cultural tourism projects to help make appreciation of Heilongjiang’s intangible cultural heritage part of everyday life.