2015年CRI China Needs More Efforts in Curbing Desertification Despite Its Progress

 

The State Forestry¹ Administration has released new analysis, showing that as of the end of 2014, desertification has declined in China by just over 12-thousand square kilometers. 

However, there is still some 2.6-million square kilometers of desert still covering northern China, representing around 27-percent of the country's land-mass. 

State Forestry Administration deputy-Director Zhang Jianlong says strides are being made in certain areas, including greater Beijing, which has seen desertification reduced by almost 12-percent over the past 6-years. 

"Compared with the fourth monitoring mission conducted in 2009, the conditions around Beijing have greatly improved when it comes to the overall control of desertification. We've managed to reduce desertification, as well as rehabilitate² large portions of the capital region into useable soil." 

One of the ways authorities have been attempting to reverse desertification is by establishing new tree-lines to block the winds from the Gobi Desert blowing sand into the Beijing area.

Zhang Jianlong says the next 5-years are going to present an even larger challenge for the Forestry Administration. 

"During the period of the 13th 'Five-Year Plan', we've been tasked with controlling 100-thousand square kilometers of sandy land. This will require us dealing³ with 20-thousand square kilometers of desert per year. It's going to be a big challenge. "

He says the biggest challenge is getting farmers in China's northern grazing lands to buy-into the system. 

"The problem we have with reclaiming⁴ desert lands is compounded by over-grazing and the over-use of water resources. Over the past five years, the proportion of cultivated land in deserted⁵ areas has increased by 3.6 percent. However, the proportion of cultivated land that has turned into desert has grown by 8.76 percent."

Analysis by the State Forestry Administration shows China lost 1.73 million square kilometers of useable soil to desertification over the past 5-decades.

This is roughly 18-percent of the country's total land area. However, the battle to regain⁶ arable⁷ land in China is a long-term goal.

The so-called Great Green Wall project was launched in 1978. 

It involves the creation of a tree belt some 45-hundred kilometers in length running from the western reaches of Xinjiang to eastern points of Heilongjiang. 

The project itself is due to be finished by 2050.

Once complete, Chinese authorities say it will be the biggest man-made carbon sponge on the planet. 

For CRI, this is Li Jianhua.

1 forestry   

n.森林学；林业

参考例句：

• At present, the Chinese forestry is being at a significant transforming period. 当前, 我国的林业正处于一个重大的转折时期。
• Anhua is one of the key forestry counties in Hunan province. 安化县是湖南省重点林区县之一。

2 rehabilitate   

vt.改造(罪犯)，修复；vi.复兴，(罪犯)经受改造

参考例句：

• There was no money to rehabilitate the tower.没有资金修复那座塔。
• He used exercise programmes to rehabilitate the patients.他采用体育锻炼疗法使患者恢复健康。

3 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

4 reclaiming   

v.开拓( reclaim的现在分词 )；要求收回；从废料中回收（有用的材料）；挽救

参考例句：

• People here are reclaiming land from the sea. 这儿的人们正在填海拓地。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• How could such a man need reclaiming? 这么一个了不起的人怎么还需要别人拯救呢？ 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

5 deserted   

adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的

参考例句：

• The deserted village was filled with a deathly silence.这个荒废的村庄死一般的寂静。
• The enemy chieftain was opposed and deserted by his followers.敌人头目众叛亲离。

6 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

7 arable   

adj.可耕的，适合种植的

参考例句：

• The terrain changed quickly from arable land to desert.那个地带很快就从耕地变成了沙漠。
• Do you know how much arable land has been desolated?你知道什么每年有多少土地荒漠化吗？