Desert Control Successful in TibetThe Tibet Autonomous Region has invested 90 million yuan in improving 20,000 hectares of sandy land and covered 53,300 hectares of land with trees in three river valleys.As one of the most serious regions suffering from desertification in China, Tibet has 20 million hectares of sandy fields, one-sixth of its total area. The regional government has set up four desert control demonstration zones at Xigaze, Quxu, Zhanang and Ngari counties. Local people planted trees by air seeding, building windbreaks and growing trees in fenced areas. Economic crops such as wheat, highland barley and vegetables have also been grown in the demonstration zones, yielding handsome profits. The output per hectare of watermelon is as high as 61,500 kilograms. China has 2.62 million square kilometers of desert, or 27 percent of its total territory. The country strives to curb desertification by 2010 or perhaps within 30 years. |
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