The effect of prevention and control of desertification work in southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region is obvious since the work has been started in year 2009. During the 6 years, 1256 km² land has been forested and a 3.74 million yuan RMB budget from the central government in China’s capital Beijing has been implemented. The trend of wilderness and desertification lands’ expansion in T.A.R. has been effectively contained.

Qinghai-Tibet plateau is one of the areas in the world with the most serious condition of desertification because of its severe natural conditions such as high altitude, cold weather, lack of forest vegetation, etc. Currently, total area of desertification land has reached 216,186 km² and wilderness land has expanded to 432,698 km² in Tibet. The land desertification and soil erosion are comparatively severe, and ecosystem in the whole region is very fragile. Therefore, situation of land desertification governance is grim in Tibet.

Lei Guilong, director of T.A.R. Forestry Department, introduced that the region has laid out clear goals in the desertification land management work focus right after the issuing of China’s 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015), and prominent effect has been achieved through measures of policies (special finance on prevention and control of desertification), biological control (building ecological safe shelter zone) as well as carrying out projects construction (protection forest constructing).

In year 2013, a pilot project with special subsidies on forbidden reserves of desertification land has been carried out in Ngari’s Gar County and Shigatse’s Tingkye County. Up to now, protected and fenced area of desertification land in total has exceeded 200 km² in the 2 counties.

According to the result comparing between the 3rd and 4th National Wilderness and Desertification Lands Monitoring, 789 km² wilderness lands and 657 km² desertification lands have already disappeared. Days of the wind and sand weather which affect airplane rising and landing in Shannan’s Gongkar Airport has decrease to 20 in a year from 60 in a year in the past.

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