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Insect Attacks on China's Forest Spreading
Insect attacks on China's forests are currently spreading, according to the Ministry of Forestry.
In the first half of this year, forests in Shandong saw their worst attack by insects in more than ten years. About 8.04 trillion mu of forest has been damaged. Large-scale damage by pests have also hit Qinghai, the cradle of the Yellow River and Yangtze River, and continue to spread. Meanwhile, the insect epidemic affecting pine trees in the Hubei Province is merely 108 kilometers apart from Wulingyuan Scenic spot, threatening the world famous natural scenic spot.
Authorities say the severe pest disaster is due to:
First, historically speaking, the constant pest disaster has not been effectively controlled. For example, pine moths cover an area of 20 to 40 million mu. Poplar longicorns still run rampant in the "Three North" areas and continue to spread.
Second, some neonatal pests are gradually turning into a major threat. For example, cypress sawflies that are rampant in the Three Gorges hinterland has pushed the 65 kilometer cypress forest to the brink of ruin. New destructive moths pest have overrun Shanxi, Shandong and Henan Provinces, causing three million mu of forest to be destroyed.
Third, some pests come from overseas and spread around. For example, the so-called "Pine tree Cancer" epidemic was caused by a pine wireworm spread over six provinces and cities within a decade. It covered more than 1.1 million mu, killed numerous pine trees and posed a major threat to 500 million mu of pine trees in the South.
Statistics show that the area affected by forest pests increases 100% each decade in China. During the "Eighth Five" Plan, the areas affected reached 120 million mu per year, and equaled 214-times the area destroyed by fire. In 1998, more than 400 million trees died due to insects and pest, accounting for 6% of the annual forestation area.
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