The story of an old town is sinking in the sand

The faint sand dunes that stood behind the ancient city of Dunhuang were like giant waves rushing in, and they were indeed patting Ma Wangzhen's onion garden.

Pointing at the dead tree, half buried in sand, planted many years ago to block the dunes still far away, but now close to the house, Ma, 60, said: "It goes very fast, faster than anything I can do to stop it. "

Ma is among the pioneers in the fight against the invasion of a fierce enemy: desertification.

An ancient oasis in poor Gansu province along the Silk Road, Dunhuang is in danger due to the swallowing of sand from the Kumtag desert, at a speed of 4 meters a year. The town's miserable situation clearly reflects the risk of desertification and difficult choices for millions of people living in northern and western China.

About 1 million square miles are considered desert land in the most recent government survey in 2004, increasing more than 50% in the past decade and challenging the food needs of 1, 3 billion Chinese people. .

People are working on cotton fields in Dunhuang (Photo: AFP)

This situation occurs after centuries of unsustainable farming and grazing, as well as over-exploitation of the small available water. The government has also attempted to prevent desert expansion through reforestation and other measures. However, a warmer and hotter climate due to the warming of the earth makes the situation tense.

Once a friendly oasis for Silk Road tourists due to the abundance of ancient groundwater, Dunhuang is now drying up.

The town's water level has dropped by 11.8 meters since 1975 and continues to fall as demand for a growing urban area. The rivers and lakes in the region have shrunk by 80% in the past 30 years while the dunes are getting closer.

The desert is encroaching on farmers' fields in Dunhuang. (Photo: AFP)

" This is a very complicated issue showing that we have neglected too many environmental issues in the past, " said Mayor Sun Yulong. "Now, changes are happening. That's how the natural mother punishes us."

Sandstorms - with greater frequency and intensity - also accelerated the damage of murals in the Mogao cave of Dunhuang, one of China's major historical sites.

Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao recently called for efforts to prevent Dunhuang from becoming a "second Loulan", implying a different place on the Silk Road further west, also deserted by the desert last century.

(Photo: AFP)

The impacts on residents here have also become harsh. Standing in the middle of a meager cotton field, 64-year-old Dai Nianzuo said water restriction had severely reduced production. Income of 3,000 yuan (about 400 USD) every year drops to only 1,200 yuan.

Ma, the cultivator, wants to turn this predicament into an advantage by turning his land into a tourist attraction. However, the government also limited such activities.

(Photo: AFP)

Thuan An