20-second journey from then to now: Arxan's one-million-mu planted forest

Arxan, at the southwestern foot of the Greater Khingan Mountains in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, once suffered from decades of excessive logging, leading to a sharp decline in forest resources and a steadily worsening ecological environment.

In 2012, Arxan completely halted commercial logging in its natural forests, shifting its development model from logging to protection.

Over the past decade, through ecological restoration projects including natural forest conservation, mountain closure for forest regeneration, and afforestation, Arxan has protected more than 10 million mu (0.67 million hectares) of natural forests, restored over 1 million mu through natural regeneration, and established more than 300,000 mu of planted forests.

Today, Arxan's forest coverage has reached 81.2 percent, while its green vegetation coverage stands at 95 percent.

From exploitation to conservation, striking contrasts across time bear witness to Arxan's remarkable transformation from logging forests to restoring and protecting them. Over one million mu of planted forests are now bringing lush greenery back to the land.