China kick-started Sunday a national campaign to get energy-saving advice from industrial workers in an effort to reduce emissions and waste.

The campaign, which runs till December this year, was jointly initiated by the country's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the All China Federation of Trade Unions.

China aimed to reduce energy consumption per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) by 20 percent in 2010 compared to 2005 levels, according to the country's 11th five-year plan (2006-2010).

However, Minister of Industry and Information Technology Li Yizhong said Sunday it was an "extremely heavy task" given the current circumstances for the country to achieve this goal, even though between 2006 and 2009 reductions of 14.38 percent had been achieved.

Li said industrial workers were at the front line of production, and they knew a lot about how to further reduce emissions and save energy.

The campaign encourages companies to seek advice from workers and publish articles on constructive ideas and achievements. Rewards will be given to workers or companies that make substantial progress in energy saving.