A group of experts participating in the Foreign Experts' Tour in Ningxia arrived in Zhongwei city, Ningxia Hui autonomous region, on Monday to learn about the area's history and achievements in desertification control and the Ningxia experience of reconciling with the desert.
They learned to make straw checkerboard barriers in the desert using shovels to insert straw into the sandy soil to form a checkerboard pattern.
The straw checkerboard technique is a traditional and effective method of desert control, representing the wisdom gained from the long-term struggle between the people of Ningxia and the climate. Planting sand-resistant vegetation such as tamarisk and flower sticks in the checkerboard pattern can effectively trap sand and promote grass growth, which is the most primitive and enduring sand fixation method in the region.
"It is my first time in a desert, and the climate here is very different from my hometown," said Evangelia Avramidou, an expert from Greece. "I felt very gratified when I saw local residents continuously working for the environment."
The experts also visited the Shapotou Desert Research and Experiment Station of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
Established in 1955, the station has made significant achievements in desertification control, such as establishing artificial vegetation protection belts under non-irrigation conditions.
The station serves as a research point for the UNESCO Man and the Biosphere Programme, providing a valuable training and research base for international desertification control studies.
The experts remarked that as climate issues become increasingly prominent worldwide, ecological restoration and improvement research is becoming more important.
They expressed hope that Ningxia's desert control efforts will continue, leaving a more beautiful natural environment for future generations.
