Desertification in northwest China's Shaanxi Province is increasing by 3,900 hectares a year, posing a serious threat to the sustainable development in the province, despite massive afforestation projects.

Shaanxi has always had a fragile environment because of dry weather, soil erosion and over farming. It has 1.45 million ha of sandy land, and desertification is endangering 200,000 ha of farmland and 600,000 ha of grassland, putting the livelihoods of more than 1.4 million people at risk.

Over the past years, as many as 28,500 ha of sandy land have been cultivated for agriculture, leading to further desertification.

Substantial efforts in afforestation, but desertification has outpaced it.

Experts said that to halt desertification, stronger efforts were needed to protect the existing vegetation, while farming and herding activities must be carried out in a sustainable manner.

The Shaanxi provincial government has mapped out a plan to combat desertification, which has a forest cover target in the province of 23.5 percent by 2005, and at 26.7 percent by 2010 when the total forest and grass cover will reach 40 percent.

(Xinhua News Agency June 30, 2003)