Sand Control Project Launched in NW China
COPYRIGHT 2001 XINHUA NEWS AGENCY
December 10, 2001
YINCHUAN, December 10 - A Sino-Japanese project on building shelter-forest at the middle reaches of the Yellow River, China's second longest, commenced recently in northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.
This was the first free economic aid granted by Japan on ecological protection in China. Under the project, which is to cost an investment of 675 million Japanese yen, trees will be planted on 4,281 hectares of land in Yanchi and Taole counties and Lingwu City in Ningxia during the 2001-2003 period to prevent sand encroachment.
The sandstorms often haunt arid and semi-arid central Asian areas. Strong sunshine often causes rapid temperature rise on the ground surface which lead to sand flow when cold air fronts from Siberia arrive.
Ningxia is located in an arid and semi-arid area. At least several sandstorms hit the region, bringing thousands of tons of soil into the Yellow River.
Over the past decade, the region cooperated with Japan on many occasions to stop the expansion of desertification and achieved tangible results.