On November 28th, the Forestry and Grassland Bureau of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region released this news, which made Deng Xiaobo, the Secretary of the Party Group of the Forestry and Grassland Bureau in Hotan Prefecture, who participated in the work, feel deeply moved: "Being free from sandstorms is the beautiful aspiration of the local people. Now, the long cherished wish of locking the border and fixing sand has been realized!" In June 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping presided over a symposium on strengthening comprehensive desertification prevention and control and promoting the construction of key ecological projects such as the "Three North", emphasizing that "the Party Central Committee attaches great importance to desertification prevention and control work, and regards desertification prevention and control as the main task of desertification prevention and control." "We must make every effort to do a good job in the Hexi Corridor. The Taklamakan Desert Edge Blockade Battle. The Taklamakan Desert, covering an area of 337600 square kilometers, lies between the Tianshan and Kunlun Mountains. It is approximately 1000 kilometers long from east to west and 400 kilometers wide from north to south, making it the largest mobile desert in China and the second largest in the world. 3046 kilometers is the length of a circle around the Taklamakan Desert. Over the past 40 years, relying on the construction of the "three north" shelter forest system project, 2761 kilometers of green sand blocking protective belt has been formed around the Taklimakan Desert. As of the end of 2023, there are still 285 kilometers of blank space left. After arduous struggle, the task of locking the blank area was successfully completed on November 28th. Build a complete green barrier on the edge of the Taklamakan Desert. The blank area border locking task involves 6 counties in 3 prefectures of Xinjiang, namely Qiemo County in Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, Pishan County, Cele County, Yutian County, and Minfeng County in Hotan Prefecture, and Yecheng County in Kashgar Prefecture. Among them, the Hotan area has the largest task volume, requiring a total of 220 kilometers to be completed. Surrounded by sand on three sides, this area was once the most severely affected and difficult to control by sandstorms in southern Xinjiang. During the crucial period when the task of locking the border in the blank area is about to be completed, the reporter walked into the Hotan area to explore how to make long-term efforts and fully fight against the edge of the Taklamakan Desert, witnessing the new miracle of China's sand prevention and control in the new era. Planting green and binding sand for a long time, and continuously building the "Three North" shelter forest system project for more than 40 years. At the foot of Kunlun Mountain and the bank of Niya River, there are only high sky clouds, but no dust blocking the sun. Strolling through the streets of Minfeng County, the neat road stretches forward, the wind blows down the leaves, and the ground is covered in golden color. Outside the county town, on the edge of the Taklamakan Desert, the construction site for sand control is in full swing. Drawing lines, laying grass, pressing grass, compacting... The workers are busy laying grass squares in the desert. Looking from afar, the paved grass squares are like golden nets, binding the flowing sand dunes; Up close, within the grass grid, shuttle buses and red willows sway in the wind. In the past, it wasn't like that. There is a local saying that goes, "Two taels of soil a day, not enough to eat during the day, and need to be replenished at night." Kahar Maitiruzi, a resident of Minfeng County, recalled that in spring, strong winds would sweep through the sand and dust, sometimes forming a "sand wall" dozens of meters high, blocking the sky and the sun. Wind and sand not only affect daily life, but also disrupt agricultural production. Ai He Maitijiang Osman, a villager from Fanrong Village, Andier Township, Minfeng County, planted 30 acres of sweet melons and 15 acres of red dates. "One year, my jujube seedlings were hit by a sandstorm, and more than half of them died. There was almost no harvest that year." In history, Minfeng County retreated southward along the banks of the Niya River repeatedly to escape the threat of sandstorms. Cele County was forced to relocate three times due to sandstorms. In the early 1980s, quicksand approached only 1.5 kilometers away from Cele County. Defending our homeland is urgent. But it is very difficult to tie down the 'Yellow Dragon'. The Taklamakan Desert has a large area, strong winds, and a large shortage of water resources Wang Zhenxi, Director of the Ecological Protection and Restoration Department of the Forestry and Grassland Bureau of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, introduced that the area of the Taklamakan Desert is equivalent to the sum of the areas of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Fujian provinces; The wind speed in the desert can reach level 8 or above, and the area of flowing sand dunes is about 258400 square kilometers; Over the years, the average annual precipitation has been less than 80 millimeters, resulting in extreme drought. In 1978, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China made a strategic decision to build large-scale protective forests in key areas affected by sandstorms and soil erosion in the northwest, north, and northeast of China. For more than 40 years, relying on the construction of the "Three North" shelter forest system project, cadres and masses of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang have braved the mission, braved hardships, and built green barriers for a long time. The forest coverage rate in Xinjiang has increased from 1.03% in 1978 to 5.06% currently; In the past 30 years, the area of artificial oases in Xinjiang has increased from 65000 square kilometers to the current 100000 square kilometers, an increase of about 54%; The results of the sixth national survey on desertification and desertification show that the desertified land in Xinjiang has decreased by 1956 square kilometers and the desertified land has decreased by 242.82 square kilometers, achieving a "double reduction". However, the remaining desertified land that needs to be treated has a higher degree of desertification and poorer site conditions. The edge of the Taklamakan Desert is the "hard bone" among the "hard bones". Regarding the successful interception of the Taklamakan Desert edge, Xinjiang has introduced a special plan to deploy and promote policies, funds, technology, and other factors to tilt towards sand prevention and control; Layout 7 key governance projects and 12 sub projects, involving 46 counties (cities, districts) in 7 prefectures and cities including Hotan, Kashgar, and Bayingolin Mongol Autonomous Prefecture, with a comprehensive governance scale of 32.658 million mu and a total investment of 12.355 billion yuan, which will continue until 2030. By afforestation, grass planting, engineering sand fixation, and other methods, we implement border control in the desert edge area, build protective forest and grass belts, and prevent desert expansion; Implement tackling projects in the source areas of sandstorms to reduce their harm; Implementing a campaign of annihilation in areas with missing strip forests and empty spaces for sand prevention and control within the oasis, promoting overall ecological environment improvement, and ultimately achieving the governance goals of 'windproof, sand blocking, and dust control' Wang Zhenxi said. Continuously tackling challenges, planting greenery and binding sand, the edge of the Taklamakan Desert has changed - "In the county park, there are fewer sandstorms and more flowers. When everyone has free time, they come here to sing and dance, it's very lively," said Kahar Maitiruzi. The sandstorm has subsided, and Ai and Maitijiang Osman's family no longer have to worry about a harvest. "We earned 112000 yuan this year!" We adapted to local conditions, combined with the causes of sandstorms and meteorological, hydrological and other conditions, and explored various sand control modes. The sand under our feet is fine and soft, and our pace is fast. At the scene of desert control at the edge of the Taklimakan Desert, Zeng Fanjiang, while inspecting, warned: "When laying drip irrigation belts, we must control the spacing, or we will waste both water and seedlings." As the head of the Qile Desert Research Station of the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and a member of the expert advisory group of the Xinjiang "Three North" project, Zeng Fanjiang often traveled between the desert control site, the experimental field and the office, "It is not as simple as planting trees to control desertification in the Taklimakan Desert." In July 1997, Zeng Fanjiang, who was 31 years old at the time, set out from Urumqi, Xinjiang, rode more than 1600 kilometers by car to the Qile Desert The research station becomes the first graduate student on the station. The research station is located in Topaairik Village, which is the closest village to the desert in Cele County and has long suffered from sandstorms. In earlier years, every spring, villagers would carry agricultural tools such as cantuman and plant a row of jujube trees on the edge of the desert. However, after a sandstorm, very few trees survived. What should be planted for desertification control? This problem has long troubled the local people. Choosing suitable sand fixing plants is one of the topics that the research station has been studying. After years of exploration, Zeng Fanjiang and his colleagues selected perennial plants such as jujube, camel thorn, and tamarisk from over 100 desert plants as sand fixing plants. However, the vast desert is not so easily subdued. In the first two years of trial planting, after a strong wind in early spring, many newly planted plants were buried by quicksand. Choosing the right tree species requires finding the right methods. Later, Zeng Fanjiang and other researchers led the local people to explore the "Celle Model" of scientific sand prevention and control in Celle County: ditch and river embankments intercept quicksand at the forefront, low shrubs and grasses follow closely to fix sand on site, and artificial shrubbery and narrow strip multi band windbreak forests provide dual interception of sandstorms. This model has been widely used in this year's lock-in desertification control, helping more regions move from "sand into and people out" to "green into and out of". However, the causes of sandstorms and meteorological, hydrological, and other conditions vary in different regions, and the "Celle model" cannot be applied to all areas along the edge of the Taklamakan Desert. Measures for controlling desertification need to be adjusted according to local conditions. Zeng Fanjiang said that through scientific research demonstrations and gradual promotion, they have prioritized the use of biological desertification control models that restore vegetation and conserve water sources in areas with better water resource conditions; In areas with relatively scarce water resources and far from oases, photovoltaic sand control mode is mainly used; In places where water resources are not available and photovoltaic installation conditions cannot meet the requirements, engineering sand fixation methods such as laying grass grids and setting up high vertical sand barriers are mainly used. Starting from the Cele Desert Research Station, more than 100 kilometers east, the comprehensive demonstration area for sand prevention and control in Yudong, Yutian County is right in front of us. Looking around, following the slope of the sand dune, layers of "terraced fields" have been carefully opened up, with red willows and shuttle trees planted on the flat ground and grass squares covering the slopes. There are many tall sand dunes in the desert here. 'Terraced field' sand control combines engineering sand fixation and biological sand control, which can significantly reduce the cost of sand control. This is a manifestation of adapting to local conditions Zeng Fanjiang said. At the end of March this year, Jia Cunpeng, Secretary of the Party Group of Yutian County Forestry and Grassland Bureau, received a task to control the two sand dunes on the north side of the industrial park in the county town. They brought in 15 tractors, 5 loaders, and 5 excavators and worked continuously for 3 days without achieving significant results. Two sand dunes, one 22 meters high and the other 26 meters high, if they are all flattened and then greened, the cost is difficult to estimate Jia Cunpeng said, "We consulted experts and adopted the 'terraced field' sand control mode. In just one month, we completed the treatment of two sand dunes with a total area of 4000 acres, and the cost of treatment per acre decreased from 10000 yuan to 1800 yuan." Following Jia Cunpeng, the reporter walked up the sand dunes. After treatment, the sand dunes were densely covered with drip irrigation belts, and a large sedimentation tank was built on the top of the sand dunes, which stored half of the water inside. At night, when electricity consumption is low, groundwater is extracted and stored in a sedimentation tank. During the day, water is supplied through self pressure, and the water is accurately delivered to the roots of plants along drip irrigation belts. This can reduce electricity consumption by half and improve water resource utilization efficiency, "said Jia Cunpeng. The desert area in Yutian County that is suitable for using the "terraced field" desertification control mode is about 30000 mu, and currently 11000 mu has been treated. The reporter saw that on the terraced fields, red willows, shuttle buses, white thorns and other plants were growing well. We will turn more sand dunes into 'green terraced fields', "Jia Cunpeng is full of confidence. In early November, large-scale bulldozers shuttled back and forth to level the sand in the Houheba Desert interception area of Minfeng County, mobilizing the participation of the masses, attracting enterprises to join, and mobilizing the enthusiasm of all parties for sand control. Pointing to a piece of sandy land that he had contracted, Maimitimin Gapar, a villager from Fufuke Village in Niya Town, Minfeng County, spoke with anticipation: "When the ground is ready, I will first plant red willows and Haloxylon ammodendron. In a few years, when the land is completely improved, I will plant traditional Chinese medicinal herbs such as Banlangen." Houheba is the source of sandstorms in Minfeng County, only 8 kilometers north of the county town, facing the county town across the Niya River, with a desert area of 200000 acres. For a long time, when the wind blows in Houheba, Minfeng County is covered in sandstorms. After the start of the siege on the edge of the Taklamakan Desert, this area became the main battlefield for border control and desertification control in Minfeng County. In July of this year, Fufuke Village held a meeting to mobilize villagers to contract sandy land and control sand in Houheba. At that time, many villagers dared not accept, Mai