A ssection of the Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644 AD) Great Wall in Beibao Village, Qingshuihe County, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. (Photo: China.org)

Smart surveillance cameras are monitoring a 1 kilometer stretch of the Great Wall in  North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region to prevent neighboring mining companies from dumping waste. 

A 1.18 kilometer section of Qin Dynasty (221BC-206BC) wall near the northern Chinese city of Wuhai has been equipped with rotatable automatic focusing cameras, the Xinhua News Agency reported. 

Solar panels charge and power the cameras to transmit 4G signals, the report said. 

Mining plants in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region have previously dumped waste and trash near the wall, the report said. 

Built before the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the Inner Mongolian Great Wall is mostly rammed earth and can be easily damaged by weathering and erosion, Liu Zheng, a member of the China Cultural Relics Academy, told the Global Times on Sunday. 

Surveillance cameras can make up for a shortfall in historic preservation staff, Liu said. 

He recommended drones be added too. 

The Inner Mongolia government will continue to try to protect key portions of the Great Wall and hopes to solve damage and dumping problems within five years, Xinhua said. 

About one-third of the Great Wall is within Inner Mongolia - 7,570 kilometers - longer than any other regions in the country, China News Service reported, citing the regional cultural heritage bureau. 

The Great Wall is about 21,000 kilometers long and spans 15 provinces and regions including Beijing, Tianjin and North China's Hebei Province, according to the bureau.