How can afforestation change China?

On the Chinese land

There are countless great projects

There is a special type of project

They have no fixed location

From the depths of the Northwest Desert

To the southeast coast

They can be seen everywhere

(Vineyards and forests in the Turpan Desert, photographer @飞翔)

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Their "parts" are not made of steel

But the grass and trees are weaker than steel

(Birch forest on the hillside of National Highway 332 from Genhe City to Ergun City, Inner Mongolia, photographer @张德刚)

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They have caused a lot of controversy

It can be said that they are not perfect and not yet completed

Actually

They are never "finished"

It takes one generation after another.

Continuous exploration, practice and improvement

You may have heard of many of their names.

Three North Shelterbelt Project

Natural forest protection project

Beijing-Tianjin Sand Source Control Project

The project of returning farmland to forest and grazing land to grassland

......

In a nutshell

We

Land greening

As a brief summary

Calculated based on statistical data

1949

Forest coverage in my country

Only 8.6%-12.5%

According to the ninth national forest resources inventory

As of the end of 2018

my country's forest coverage rate reached 22.96%

That is, the forest area is 2.2 million square kilometers

70 years

my country's net increase in forest area

Enough to cover the entire Xinjiang

China is also the world's

Countries with the largest and fastest growth in forest resources

(Forest distribution in China in 2020, map by @Gong Xiangjie/Planet Research Institute)

▼

In addition to afforestation

Every year we

Tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of grassland

Planting, improving or fencing

Trees and grass

Together they form the green of China

(Grassland after grazing in Qilian Mountains, Qinghai, photographer @沈龙泉)

▼

now

We live in a

China has more green trees and flowers

This is inseparable

Ongoing land greening projects

We can't help but ask

How did it all start?

How do we do it?

01

Earth

Tens of millions of years

Uplift of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Changed the environment in East Asia

Due to terrain barriers

A large area of ​​drought has appeared in inland northwest China

This formed a large desert

Sandy desert

For the desert

Desert area in my country

Up to 588,000 square kilometers

6.1% of land area

(Kumtag Desert, photographer @Jiang Tao)

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Rocky and gravelly desert

Gobi

Distributed in the upper reaches of the desert

Born with the desert

The Gobi Desert in my country covers an area of ​​928,000 square kilometers.

9.6% of land area

(Black Mountain Gobi, photographer @刘白)

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Millions to hundreds of thousands of years

The global climate changes from wet to dry, cold to warm

Leading to the semi-arid and semi-humid areas in northern China

The birth of Maowusu and Hunshandake

The four major sandy areas of Horqin and Hulunbuir

(Mao Us Desert, photographer @陈剑峰)

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Ten thousand years

Climate Fluctuations

Overlay with human activities

This has led to an increase in the speed and scope of surface desertification.

(Sai Limu Lake in Xinjiang, desertified meadow, photographer @李滨)

▼

Over the past century

Excessive cultivation, grazing, and logging by humans

Leading to massive deforestation

Large amounts of grassland converted to farmland

(Logging in Heilongjiang, photographer @李贵云)

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When New China was founded

Our ancestors faced

It's a tired land

It has many ecological problems

First is

Desertification and sandification

According to the fifth national desertification and sandification monitoring

Desertification in China

2.61 million square kilometers

27.2% of land area

The desertified land is 1.7212 million square kilometers.

(Distribution of deserts in China, map by @Gong Xiangjie/Planet Research Institute)

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Grasslands and land degradation

Soil turns to sand

With the help of wind

Caused a violent sandstorm

Erosion of farmland and pastures

Burying railways and roads

(Sandstorm at Taoer River Dam in Taonan, Jilin Province, photographer @邱会宁)

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Secondly

Surface lacking vegetation

Under the erosion of wind and water

cause

Soil erosion

According to the 2018

Dynamic monitoring results of soil and water loss

Current area of ​​soil erosion in my country

2.7369 million square kilometers

28.4% of land area

(Spatial distribution of soil erosion in China, mapped by @Gong Xiangjie/Planet Research Institute)

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Barren hillsides in North and Northwest China

Seasonal concentrated rainfall

Washed into thousands of gullies

It is difficult for plants to take root

People's lives and travel are extremely inconvenient

Economic development is hindered

(Soil erosion landform on the Loess Plateau, photographer @任世明)

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Sediment loss from the middle and upper reaches of the Yellow River

Leading to siltation of downstream rivers

Causing severe flood disasters

(The Yellow River bed sediment in Jiyuan section of the Yellow River, photographer @邓国晖)

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In addition

Soil salinization

Desertification

Biodiversity is declining

And so on

These will threaten human survival and development.

(Xihaigu, a mountainous area in southern Ningxia, photographer @刘广辉)

▼

Facing severe ecological problems

Facing hundreds of millions of poor people

An important measure implemented by New China

Land greening

This battle to green the motherland

Starting from the toughest place

02

Sand Sea Pioneer

From Hulunbuir in the northeast

Going south along the Greater Khingan Range

Via Yanshan, northern Shaanxi, southern Gansu and Ningxia

To the southeast of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

An invisible line

400 mm isohyet

Separate the dry and wet worlds

(400 mm isohyet, drawn by @Gong Xiangjie/Planet Research Institute)

▼

West and north of this line

Arid and semi-arid areas

It is also home to the raging sandstorms.

The "first echelon" of national greening

Windbreak and sand fixation forest

Here to appear

1954

To open up the railway transportation line between North China and Northwest China

People began to plan a route from Baotou, Inner Mongolia

Railway to Lanzhou, Gansu

Baotou-Lanzhou Railway

However

This railway must cross the Tengger Desert six times

More than 40 kilometers of railway tracks

Direct exposure to the desert

Especially in Shapotou section of Ningxia

Sand dunes up to 10-30 meters high

Looking down at the "thin" rails

(Baolan Railway, photographer @刘伟钐)

▼

Protecting the railway from sand erosion

Became the top priority

But the ever-moving sand dunes

Leave no place for vegetation

How to fix sand?

As early as the early days of the founding of New China

The Chinese Academy of Sciences is located in the heart of Shapotou

Desert Research Station

With the assistance of Soviet experts

Through several years of experimental research

Finally found the secret of sand fixation

"Grass Grid"

(The grass grids on both sides of the Taklimakan-Daryabuyi Desert Highway, photographer @小强先森)

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First, wheat straw

or other plant stems

Folded in half and inserted into the desert, half buried and half exposed

Planted in 1m x 1m squares

Forming a network

Sand carried by the wind

Stacking in a grid

Slowed down the movement of the entire dune

(The principle of the grass grid sand barrier. Since most of the sand carried by the wind moves near the surface, the short grass grid can intercept a large part of the sand. Map by @罗梓涵/Planetary Research Institute)

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Inside the grass square

Sand and water gather more easily

Under the action of microorganisms

A layer of "biological crust" gradually forms on the surface of the sand dunes

It has accelerated the transition from water-deficient and nutrient-deficient quicksand to

The transition to fixed surfaces

Artificially planted sand plants

And grass seeds drifting in the wind

Start to sprout and grow

(Grass Grid Principle 2, drawn by @Luo Zihan/Planet Research Institute)

▼

that's all

Between the squares

Not only the sand is fixed

The surface is gradually turning green

Grass grid sand fixation technology

Rapidly spread to the entire arid region

From the Qinghai-Tibet Railway

To the Taklimakan Desert Highway

Even along the canals and pipelines

You can see their tenacious figures

But grass grid

And similar earth grids and stone grids

Just the first step to prevent wind and sand

To fundamentally transform desertification and sandy land

We also need to plant trees and grass

We need another type of vegetation

shrub

Haloxylon ammodendron, Tamarix chinensis, Ceratoides quinoa

White thorn, sea buckthorn, salix psammophila, Caragana korshinskii

The above-ground parts of these desert plants are not very attractive.

But it has an extremely developed root system

Drought, cold and salt resistant

Highly adaptable

(Haloxylon ammodendron in the Gurbantunggut Desert, photographer @吴静)

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But how to stay above the quicksand

What about planting these shrubs?

Water-bearing sand in the desert

Often tens of centimeters or even deeper below the surface dry sand

Therefore, when planting saplings

Deep planting requires the use of a hole digger

After the seedlings are planted

Can't sit back and relax

Aquifer water

It is far from meeting the normal growth of newly planted seedlings.

to this end

People use a water-saving irrigation technology

Drip irrigation

That is, using the small holes in the pipe

Delivers water and nutrients directly to plant roots

Minimize evaporation and leakage losses

In some areas with relatively sufficient water

You can plant trees

Tianshan, Qilian Mountains and other mountains

A large amount of glaciers and snow

Melted ice and snow merge into inland rivers such as the Tarim River and the Heihe River

Crossing the desert and nourishing the oasis

Along the banks of rivers and around lakes

Poplars in rows and poplars in patches

These taller trees

It has become a barrier against wind and sand

(Poplar forests on both sides of the road, photographer @王毅)

▼

Or digging flood diversion ditches

Using seasonal flood water for irrigation

Also in the desert

Create an environment that supports tree growth

Combination of trees, shrubs and grasses

Forming a system with shelterbelts as the main

The outermost layer is composed of grass and shrubs

Forming the first line of defense

In the middle are shrubs and trees

A second line of defense

The interior of the oasis is connected by a forest network

The third line of defense

Nested layers

Protect farmland, pastures, roads and towns

(Shelterbelt system, map by Luo Zihan/Planet Research Institute)

▼

Various windbreak and sand-fixing forests

In the vast arid and semi-arid regions of China

Surrounded by green fortresses

(Please watch in horizontal mode, Salawusu ruins in Wushen Banner, Inner Mongolia, afforestation in Maowusu Desert, photographer @朱金华)

▼

But the battle against wind and sand is not over yet

On both sides of the 400 mm isohyet

Shelterbelt to be upgraded

Becoming a larger system

03

Green Great Wall

400 mm isohyet

Carrying a lot of meaning

It is the dividing line between the arid zone and the monsoon zone.

It is the dividing line between forest and grassland

It is the dividing line between farming and nomadism

It is also the dividing line between population density and sparseness.

(Comparison of population density on both sides of the 400 mm isohyet, map by @Gong Xiangjie/Planet Research Institute)

▼

Farmland villages and towns in Northeast, North and Northwest China

Exposed to the wind and sand line

Especially in the north of the North China Plain

Only 180 kilometers away from Beijing

A huge source of sand

Hunshandake Sandy Land

Continuously transporting sand to the south

(Hunshandake Sandland, photographer @陈剑峰)

▼

For this purpose, in 1962

At the border between Chengde, Hebei and Inner Mongolia

A state-owned forest farm was officially established

Name

Saihanba Mechanical Forest Farm

Saihanba in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties

Once had a vast sea of ​​forests

But when forestry experts came to investigate in 1961

But it is already full of flying sand and rolling stones, with no grass growing.

After many days of investigation

In the Hongsongwa in the northeast of Saihanba

Found a larch

This lonely pine tree

It is proof of environmental degradation

It is also the hope for ecological restoration

But to plant trees here

The first problem we face is

Low temperature

The average annual temperature in Saihanba is only -1.2℃

The lowest temperature was as low as -43.3℃

(Saihanba in winter, photographer @叶家骐)

▼

Low temperature, strong wind

and drought

Let the saplings brought in from other places

The survival rate after planting is less than 8%

The key to solving the problem

In self-breeding

Carefully selected from seeds

Adopting new seedling raising technology

Improve the quality of seedlings

When the cold winter comes

Bury the grown saplings under the ice and snow

Plant quickly when spring comes

Improve the survival rate of seedlings

(Please watch in horizontal mode, artificial planting in Saihanba Forest Farm, photographer @王龙)

▼

The planting of seedlings

For the first time, tractors from Poland were used.

and tree-planting machines from the Soviet Union

The first mechanical tree planting

Greatly improved the efficiency of afforestation

(Mechanical tree planting at Saihanba Forest Farm, photographer @王龙)

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Early Saihanba

Mostly plant trees in relatively flat areas

As technology improves

People began to tackle the more difficult rocky steep slopes

These rocky hillsides

High mountains, steep slopes and poor soil

Planting trees here

It takes more manpower and time

(Afforestation on the steep rocky slopes of Saihanba Forest Farm, photographer @王龙)

▼

final

From a small slope

To the entire hillside

These "hard bones" of Saihanba have also been solved

(Please watch in horizontal mode, the results of afforestation on the rocky hillside of Saihanba, photographer @王龙)

▼

Today's Saihanba

There are 1.12 million mu of artificial forests

Forests stop quicksand from spreading

The number of days with strong winds above level 6 has also been greatly reduced.

(Linhai in Saihanba Forest Farm, photographer @王龙)

▼

Besides this

People are still in farmland, villages and cities

Created various types of shelterbelts

First is

Farmland shelterbelt

Around the fields

Perpendicular to the main wind direction

Or along roads and ditches

Planting trees in rows to form forest belts

Several forest belts intersect to form a shelterbelt network

(Please watch horizontally, farmland forest network in the main wheat producing area of ​​Jiyuan, Henan, photographer @邓国晖)

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The forest network reduces wind speed

Improved local temperature and humidity

Create a microenvironment suitable for crop growth

Farmland Forest Network in Northeast China

Can increase corn yield by 10%

Similar to farmland shelterbelt

On the grassland,

Grassland protection forest

To protect the pasture

The "field" and "mesh" shaped forest network planted

Or to protect livestock

Planted islands of trees

Known as "Green Island" or "Tree Umbrella"

(The windbreak birch forest belt on the grassland in Wulanbutong, Inner Mongolia, photographer @王宁)

▼

In villages, towns, cities and industrial and mining areas

There are shelter belts created to improve the environment

And the trees along the road

Public green space, parks, etc.

Various types of shelterbelts

Forming the Taihang Mountain Greening Project

Beijing-Tianjin Sand Source Control Project

Let green cover Yanshan, Taihang, Yinshan and Daqingshan

The ecological environment has been improved

(Artificial forests on both sides of Yugong Canal at the foot of Taihang Mountain, photographer @邓国晖)

▼

But beyond ecological issues

We also face the problem of economic development

Shortage of wood, fuel, fodder, etc.

Often leads to deforestation

Therefore, shelterbelts should not only have ecological functions

It also carries out economic functions

This is

Economical ecological engineering

For example, in the Badain Jaran Desert

When Haloxylon ammodendron grows

Cistanche deserticola

Cistanche deserticola is a traditional Chinese medicine

Can bring economic benefits

Double benefits of ecology and economy

This further ensures

Sustainable Development of Shelterbelts

(Relationship between Haloxylon ammodendron and Cistanche deserticola, map by @Luo Zihan/Planetary Research Institute)

▼

There are also timber forests for producing wood

Firewood forest for fuel production

Economic forests that produce fruits, oils, medicinal materials, etc.

Shelterbelts throughout Northeast, North and Northwest China

In 1978

Converge into a complete system project

Three North Shelterbelt Project

It is no longer a separate forest farm

Instead, it covers from Heilongjiang to Xinjiang

A system covering 4.06 million square kilometers

within its scope

There are snow-capped peaks, glaciers, and deserts.

Vast grasslands and farmlands

Altitude from 5000m to 100m

From monsoon climate to plateau climate

Plant species adapted to different environments

More than 3,500 species

It is a well-deserved "super project"

(Please watch in horizontal mode, Three North Shelterbelt Plan, map by @Gong Xiangjie/Planet Research Institute)

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From 1978 to 2017

Afforestation area of ​​the Three North Shelterbelt Project over the years

A total of 460,000 square kilometers

The area of ​​soil erosion has been reduced by 67%

At the same time, it also reversed the trend of increasing desertification.

Between 2000 and 2017

The desertified area was reduced by 18,000 square kilometers

(Ningxia Lingwu Baijitan National Nature Reserve, the former sandbar has become an oasis, photographer @魏蒙)

▼

Three Norths Project

It also opened up China

“Era of Ecological Engineering”

More ecological projects

Successively launched nationwide

Bringing more green to China

04

Rivers, Lakes, and Seas

So far

Our gaze

Only swept across western and northern China

South of the 400 mm isohyet

It is a vast monsoon region

There is relatively abundant rainfall here

But it also faces special difficulties

First, the terrain

There are mountains and hills here.

Afforestation on steep slopes

Extensive manual land preparation is required

Slope Engineering

For gentle slopes

Dig out steps along the contour lines

Similar to terraced fields

Horizontal terrace preparation

(Horizontal terrace land preparation, map by @Luo Zihan/Planet Research Institute)

▼

In areas with steeper slopes

In order to ensure the slope runoff

Maximizes flow to plant roots

The slope needs to be tilted inwards

Reverse slope terrace land preparation

(Reverse slope terrace land preparation, map by @Luo Zihan/Planet Research Institute)

▼

or on a slope

Dig out semicircular tree pits

The pits are arranged in a "品" shape.

From the air, it looks like fish scales

Therefore, it is also called fish scale pit land preparation.

(Land preparation of Fish Scale Pit, map by @Luo Zihan/Planet Research Institute)

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From the mountains of the north

To the hills of the south

The reservoir and riverbank

Large-scale land preparation

Build green stairs

(Hill greening in Shangli County, Jiangxi Province, photographer @胡寒)

▼

The most representative

It is found in the middle and upper reaches of rivers.

Soil and Water Conservation Forest

On the Loess Plateau

The vegetation coverage increased dramatically

From 32% in 1999

By 2013, 59%

The most obvious increase was in Yan'an

81% in 2017

In contrast

It is the reduction of soil erosion

Average annual sediment load of the Yellow River

From 1.3 billion tons/year in the 1970s

Dropped to less than 300 million tons/year

(Greening of the Loess Plateau in Shaanxi, photographer @射虎)

▼

According to the second and third rocky desertification monitoring

From 2011 to 2016

The rocky desertification area in my country's karst regions

16% reduction

Guizhou has the largest rocky desertification area

Also reduced the most

A total reduction of 18.3%

(Forest greening and mountain roads in Dujiang Town, Sandu, Guizhou, photographer @Lu Wen)

▼

At the source of the river

is

Water conservation forest

From the main flow-generating areas of the Yellow River

Qilian Mountains, Yin Mountains, Qinling Mountains

To the Greater and Lesser Khingan Mountains and Changbai Mountain in the northeast

(Daxinganling Forest, photographer @郑菲元)

▼

The largest coverage area

The middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River

Jinsha River, Yalong River, Min River

As well as the Han River, Jialing River, Wu River, etc.

Forests on both sides of the river

(Tiger Leaping Gorge, Jinsha River, photographer @杜鹏飞)

▼

Throughout the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River

Soil and water conservation forests and water source conservation forests

Forming another large-scale forestry ecological project

Yangtze River Middle and Upper Reaches Shelterbelt Project

(Scope of the shelterbelt in the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River, map by @Gong Xiangjie/Planet Research Institute)

▼

also

Pearl River, Huaihe River, Taihu Lake, Liaohe River Basin

A shelterbelt system has also been built

As we go down the river

To the coastal areas

Facing new problems

Disasters caused by storm surges

Sandstorm Hazards in Sandy Coastal Areas

and soil erosion in the coastal mountainous areas.

So we need

Coastal shelterbelt

The most unique

The southern coast

Mangroves

Mangroves are not a type of tree

Rather, it is a variety of adaptations to coastal salinization

A general term for plants that grow in windy and wavey environments

In the southeast coast of China

Artificially planted mangroves form a barrier

Reduces the erosion of land by wind and waves

(Please watch in horizontal mode, coastal mangroves in Shuidong Town, Dianbai District, Maoming, Guangdong, photographer @吕文)

▼

From the Great River

To the lakes and coasts

Numerous ecological projects

Formed a huge protective net

Let green cover the whole of China

(Spatial distribution of China's forestry ecological projects, map by Gong Xiangjie/Planet Research Institute)

▼

However, many ecological projects

Not perfect

But there are many problems

How do we face problems from the past?

How can we move towards a better future?

05

Past and Future

Since 1978

Since the implementation of the Three North Shelterbelt Project

Afforestation faces many controversies

First is

Planting trees in areas not suitable for tree planting

West of the 400 mm isohyet

Most areas are not suitable for tree growth.

However, in order to quickly achieve the effect of wind and sand control

We have planted a lot of poplar trees in the northwest

Poplars grow fast, but they also consume a lot of water

Excessive consumption of groundwater leads to a drop in groundwater levels

And I also didn't have any water to replenish

Die one by one

Early plantations

After planting, the plants often lack follow-up care.

Or the problem of single tree species in afforestation

The forest conservation rate is low

(Zhangbei County, Hebei Province, degraded artificial forest, photographer @Cong Richun)

▼

Traveled many winding roads

We are also making changes

Make greening more scientific

Higher quality of afforestation

If we pay more attention to species diversity

Combination of trees, shrubs and grasses

Multiple tree species

Multi-forest classmates

Most importantly

From afforestation

Turning to ecological restoration

pass

Natural forest protection project

Returning farmland to forest and grazing land to grassland

Living in an area unsuitable for human habitation

People in areas of land degradation and water scarcity

Relocate to an area with sufficient water resources

Areas with better land quality

Ecological migration

Leave the earth to rest

Slowly restore the original ecology

Establish

Nature reserves, forest parks, various natural parks

And more comprehensive national parks

(Jiangsu Huanghai National Forest Park, photographer @Sun Huajin)

▼

71 years

From the grass grid of the Northwest Desert

To the greenery that spreads across China

We have come a long way

Achieved considerable success

But it is undeniable that

China Today

Still a country lacking green forests

Forest coverage in my country

Still lower than the global average of 30.7%

Forest area per capita

Less than 1/3 of the world's average

Per capita forest stock

Only 1/6 of the world's average

We also have large areas of quicksand

Waiting for governance

In the country's 14th Five-Year Plan

Ecological engineering will be upgraded

The national territory is divided into "three zones and four belts"

Similar to "returning farmland to forest and returning pasture to grassland"

Ecological compensation projects

Will replace simple afforestation as the main focus

(2021-2035 Forestry Ecological Engineering Development Pattern, Map by @Gong Xiangjie/Planet Research Institute)

▼

Tree planting tools

It is no longer just shovels, pickaxes, and digging machines.

Instead, it adds big data, 5G devices, and drones.

Artificial intelligence, aerospace technology and other high-tech

What is certain is that by the planned year 2035

We will have a greener future

But in the end

Under these grand ecological projects

I want to pay tribute to countless individuals

They may be

A couple who have been working in the forest for many years

He is a farmer who has been fighting against desertification for three generations.

They are immigrants who took the initiative to leave the mountains.

They are herders who voluntarily left the grassland

Urban residents who plant trees online

It is the forest workers who carry saplings up the mountain.

......

It is these ordinary people

Tiny Actions

Forming China's green torrent

The last

I also want to pay tribute

Dedicated to us

Every blade of grass, every bush, every tree

From an engineering perspective

They may just be "parts"

But for the people who planted them

They are lives like us.

A species that exists side by side with humans

Thank you

Please continue with us

Walking side by side

This article was created by

Written by: Cheng Bing Ji

Photos: Michelle Reis, Yu Kuan

Design: Luo Zihan

Map: Gong Xiangjie

Proofreading: Wang Chaoyang, Yunwukongcheng

Expert review (in no particular order):

Lu Qi, Research Fellow at Desertification Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Forestry

Researcher Liu Bingru from Northern University for Nationalities/Ningxia University

Zhu Jiaojun, Research Fellow at the Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences

【Main references】

[1] Wang Zhiguo et al. Forestry Ecological Engineering[M]. China Forestry Publishing House, 2000.

[2] Ministry of Ecology and Environment of the People’s Republic of China. 2019 China Ecological Environment Bulletin[R]. 2019.

[3] State Forestry Administration. Brief Introduction of Desertification and Sandification in China[R]. 2015.

[4] National Forestry and Grassland Administration. Overview of China’s Forest Resources[R]. 2019.

[5] State Forestry Administration. Technical Guidelines for Afforestation and Greening in Arid Areas[Z]. 2016.

[6] State Forestry Administration. Selection of technical models for afforestation and greening in arid areas[Z]. 2016.

[7] Zhu Jiaojun, Zheng Xiao. Thoughts and prospects on the construction of the Three North Shelterbelt System: Based on the comprehensive evaluation results of 40 years of construction[J]. Journal of Ecology. 2019.

[8] Yan Changzhen, Wang Jianhua. China's 1:100,000 desert (sand land) distribution dataset, National Glacier and Frozen Soil and Desert Data Center

Source: Planet Research Institute

A group of National Geographic fans, focusing on exploring the extreme world