China invents giant 'net' to help cover deserts with trees, making the world admire

Deserts are natural landscapes that are naturally formed in geological history. The age of a desert can be tens of thousands to tens of millions of years. Meanwhile, desertification is the degradation of vegetation due to humans using natural resources in an unreasonable or excessive way. This desertification affects all aspects, from production to daily life.

Yilalt , a local resident of Ulan Buh, said the green areas that used to be used for growing licorice were now covered by sand. In just 10-20 years, the sand dunes had advanced nearly 500 meters.

Agriculture in this area is developed along the Yellow River and the Ulan Buh Desert is located upstream of this river. When the northwest wind blows, the desert is pushed down into the agricultural area in the form of windblown sand. This greatly affects the cultivation.

If the desert sands move faster over a longer distance, they will fly down to the river, causing sedimentation of the Yellow River. This will seriously affect the development of water resources along the river, and may even cause floods and other disasters.

What is happening in Ulan Bhuh is just a part of the desertification. In China, desertification covers more than 2 million square kilometers. So to stop this situation, China needs the cooperation of many people. So what exactly should China do?

Biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA) sand barriers are the secret behind China's remarkable achievements in sand control.

Yu Yi is the inventor of biodegradable polylactic acid (PLA) sand barrier technology, which is the secret behind China's remarkable achievements in sand control.

Unlike traditional barriers, he said this one is completely biodegradable and can now be mass produced. It adheres to the sand surface and has a very good structure.

The absorbable surgical suture-like fibers of this polylactic acid sand barrier are biodegradable, low waste, low pollution and harmless. Stacking them together makes the barrier stronger because they have a certain weight on their own.

The biodegradable polylactic acid barrier also helps protect solar panels from the effects of shifting sand.

This new barrier technology uses sand itself as its core, which offers several advantages over traditional barriers. These new barriers are easier to transport. They are also easier to assemble. They are more durable and more environmentally friendly. They make desertification control easier to industrialize and scale up.

The North China Experimental Forestry Center of the Chinese Academy of Forestry has promoted the deployment of this technology in Inner Mongolia. It is hoped that this technology will be deployed in places where desertification control is needed.

Mr. Wang Tiekun is in charge of the sand barrier installation project in the Ulan Buh Desert. He said they chose this location because of the lack of rain and water. The harsh environment will help them see how the polylactic acid sand barrier works.

After 3-4 years of installing barriers combined with planting calligonum , green carpets have appeared, preventing sand encroachment. This gives confidence in preventing and controlling sand.

And this confidence has been justified. China used to face severe desertification. In fact, it was one of the worst affected countries in the world. But now it has become the first country to achieve land degradation neutrality, a goal recognized by the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification.