Environmental Degradation in the Drylands of China: Potential Impacts and Possible Remediation Measures: A Review

Research Paper (postgraduate) from the year 2007 in the subject Environmental Sciences, grade: B, Natural Resources Institute - University of Greenwich at Medway, language: English, abstract: China is one of the most affected countries in the world in terms of extent and economic impact of environmental degradation. Desertification is the most severe environmental land degradation problems facing China, commonly caused by wind erosion. Wind erosion occurs widely in arid, semiarid and dry sub-humid zones of northern China, where precipitation is rare and vegetation is sparse. In China desertified land covers an area of 3.3 million km2, accounting for 34% of the total land territory or 79% of the entire arid lands in China. Annual direct economic loss caused by desertification is approximately $6,500,000,000. The best way to control this problem in China are: (1) rehabilitation of tree plantation for complete desertification control, (2) improvement of the economic development system through: (i) economize in the use of resources; (ii) moderate exploitation of the resources; and (iii) environmental protection; and (3) providing measures that should be suited to local conditions such as irrigation system and forage farming system.