A bird's-eye view of Anji county, Huzhou city, Zhejiang province, where President Xi Jinping proposed a new development method. HUANG ZONGZHI/XINHUA

China's Zhejiang province was recognized with a Champions of the Earth Award, the UN's highest environmental honor, on Wednesday.

Zhejiang's Green Rural Revival Program won in the Inspiration and Action category, one of five categories at the awards, "for the transformation of a once-heavily polluted area of rivers and streams", according to the website of the United Nations Environment Program.

"This exceptionally successful eco-restoration program shows the transformative power of economic and environmental development together," said the website.