Photo taken on Sept 19 show one section of the Kubuqi trans-desert highway. [Photo by Sun Wanming/chinadaily.com.cn]

Government's anti-desertification efforts

In the 1990s, the Ordos government was asked to prioritize the development of vegetation construction, while giving full play to the leading national and local ecological projects, with efforts to research and develop various sand control technologies.

In this effort, the government decided to divide the desert into two by building a 100-km highway across the desert, and encircle it with trees and grass, and then tackling the sand patch by patch. The Elion Resources Group took the lead in constructing the first Kubuqi trans-desert highway in 1997. To date, five highways have been built, stretching 343 kilometers, connecting Kubuqi to the outside world.

Along either side of the highways, the land is supplied with electricity and water to grow trees, grass and herbs. Also, a 242-kilometer ecological greenbelt was built through artificial planting and large-scale aerial seeding to protect the desert's central oasis.