Potatoes chip in to restrict desert growth

Fact Box

? With more than 2.6 million square kilometers of sandy and desertified land, China is one of the countries most subject to severe desertification.

? According to the 2015 national survey on desertification, nearly one-third of the country's total territorial land is desertified, while about 17 percent of the land area is sandy.

? Desertification is the process by which fertile land degrades into arid, semiarid and subhumid areas. The main cause of desertification is the overexploitation and inappropriate use of land through deforestation, overgrazing and substandard irrigation practices.

? In 1996, China joined The United Nation's Convention to Combat Desertification. As a result of decades of work, the area of desertified land in the country has shrunk by nearly 2,000 sq km every year since.

? President Xi Jinping has constantly stressed the adoption of "a holistic approach" to the conservation of mountains, rivers, forests, farmland, lakes and grassland.

? Last year, deserts were brought into China's development picture by being included in the annual Government Work Report for the first time as a crucial part of the country's plans for environmental protection.

? During last year's two sessions-the meetings of the top legislative and political advisory bodies-Xi stressed that top-level design and comprehensive measures would be needed to manage the country's mountains, rivers, forests, farmland, lakes, grassland and deserts.

? So far, the government has introduced 53 model projects to fight desertification and also established 120 national stony desert parks.

? Afforestation plays a crucial role in the anti-desertification battle. Last year alone, 3.6 million hectares of forests were planted, more than double the area of Beijing, according to a National Land Greening Communique released recently by the National Afforestation Committee.

? Greening projects have helped prevent the expansion of more than 1.4 million hectares of sandy and desert land and restored more than 3 million hectares of grassland, the communique said.

NATIONAL FORESTRY AND GRASSLAND ADMINISTRATION