{"id":60064227,"date":"2024-12-05T15:22:16","date_gmt":"2024-12-05T15:22:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/?post_type=news_digest&p=60064227"},"modified":"2024-12-05T15:32:26","modified_gmt":"2024-12-05T15:32:26","slug":"china-completes-3000-kilometre-desert-green-belt","status":"publish","type":"news_digest","link":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/en\/digest\/china-completes-3000-kilometre-desert-green-belt\/","title":{"rendered":"China completes 3,000-kilometre desert green belt"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On November 28, workers planted the final 100 metres of trees along the southern edge of the Taklamakan Desert, completing a 3,046-kilometre \u201cgreen belt\u201d encircling China\u2019s largest desert, Xinhua<\/a> reports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Taklamakan Desert, covering an area of 337,600 square kilometres \u2013 roughly the size of Finland \u2013 is the second-largest shifting sand desert in the world, behind the Sahara.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without human intervention, deserts tend to expand over time unless countered by significant increases in precipitation, noted Ecogov<\/a>, a media outlet of China\u2019s Ministry of Natural Resources. In 2018, research showed that the Sahara has expanded by 10%<\/a> over the last century.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

China\u2019s initiative to curb desert expansion by planting trees began in 1978 with the Three-North Shelterbelt<\/a> project, commonly referred to as the \u201cGreat Green Wall\u201d. It aims to plant just over 35 million hectares of trees by 2050 to combat desertification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the Global Times<\/a>, afforestation efforts over the past decade have significantly reduced land desertification, leading to a decline in the frequency and severity of sand and dust storms in northern China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, a 2015 study by Chinese scientists found that tree planting contributed less than 3% to changes in vegetation cover observed in the regions with the largest deserts, The Economist<\/a> reported. Rainfall fluctuations accounted for about one-third, while controls on grazing and agriculture were other major factors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

North-west China has been particularly sensitive to climate change in recent decades, experiencing increased warming and precipitation. This summer, the Taklamakan Desert was hit by floods<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

China is not alone in its afforestation efforts. The African Union launched its own Great Green Wall Initiative<\/a> in 2007, aiming to restore 100 million hectares of degraded land. In June, Lin Jian, a spokesperson for China\u2019s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said<\/a> that the country has been working with Africa, the Middle East and Mongolia to combat desertification, and that such collaboration has \u201cmade more countries greener\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read Dialogue Earth\u2019s previous <\/em>analysis<\/em><\/a> of China and Mongolia\u2019s cooperation in combatting sandstorms.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On November 28, the final trees were planted along the southern edge of Taklamakan Desert, completing a \u201cgreen belt\u201d encircling China\u2019s largest desert<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":60006649,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_has_post_settings":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[761,50039902,764],"tags":[519,532,580],"country":[],"digest-collection":[50039911],"class_list":["post-60064227","news_digest","type-news_digest","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-climate","category-forests","category-nature","tag-climate-impacts","tag-desertification","tag-policy"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nChina completes 3,000-kilometre desert green belt | Dialogue Earth<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"On November 28, the final trees were planted along the southern edge of Taklamakan Desert, completing a \u201cgreen belt\u201d encircling China\u2019s largest desert\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, 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