China Hopes 'Straw Checkerboards' Will Keep Desert at Bay

Key Points:

• For over 50 years, Chinese workers have used the "straw checkerboards" technique to stabilize sand dunes and plant saplings, forming a grid that helps combat desertification in northern China.
• The Three-North Protective Forest Program, or "Green Great Wall," launched in 1978, has transformed nearly half of China from advancing desertification to increasing greenery, with forests now covering 200,000 square miles.
• Since 2000, desertified land in northern China has decreased by about 10%, with severely desertified areas dropping over 40%, aided by state investment, scientific planning, and increased rainfall in some regions.
• The program's success is attributed to sustained frontline efforts, government support, and environmental factors, but scientists warn that continued work over decades is necessary to maintain these gains.
• Similar anti-desertification efforts include a 2007 African project aimed at planting trees to halt the Sahara Desert's expansion.