North China's Shanxi province has made significant progress in combating desertification since 2016. 

Most of Shanxi's desertified land is located in its northern and northwestern parts, spanning approximately 300 kilometers east to west and 230 kilometers north to south. It borders Inner Mongolia and the sandy regions along the Great Wall in Hebei province. 

To prevent the destruction of forest and grass vegetation, illegal occupation of forest land, and promote economic forestry, Shanxi has implemented a series of policies. Key initiatives include desertification control along the Great Wall, Hongtao Mountain, Yellow River and in Sanggan River basin, as well as the legal protection of forest resources in sandy regions. 

Shanxi has allocated over 100 million yuan ($13.86 million) annually for desertification control and restoration projects during the 13th Five-Year Plan period (2016-2020), with an additional 8 million yuan for management fees. 

According to the ecological and geological features of local desertified land, Shanxi issued a special plan for ecological protection and the high-quality development of forests and grasslands in the Yellow River basin in 2022. The plan clarifies the ecological restoration of windbreaks and sand fixation in the northwest region, focuses on sand fixation, soil and water conservation in the counties of Hequ, Pianguan, and Baode, as well as the construction of windbreak forest systems along the eastern bank of the Yellow River. 

To ensure efficient water use and drought-resistant afforestation, Shanxi has adopted various water-saving techniques, and summarized 26 types of management models for sandy areas, mountains, rivers, forests, farmland, lakes, and grasslands. 

The province has established 10 teams in promoting scientific and technological innovation in forestry and grassland industries and trained over 10,000 people, with the professional skills of desertification control teams continuously improved. 

Through various afforestation and desertification control projects, over 7,540 square kilometers of desertified land have been restored and the vegetation coverage and air quality in sandy areas have been significantly enhanced. 

Apart from desertification control, the province has also fully considered people's economic benefits. 

It has encouraged enterprises and individuals to participate in the development of sand-related industries, and promoted the cluster development of agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, processing, storage, packaging, and transportation in sandy areas. 

Relying on desert resources, for instance, Shanxi has built ecotourism bases along the ancient Great Wall, Yanmen Pass, and in the whole region of Youyu county, and embarked on the construction of 12 national desert parks since 2015. 

"The unique desert ecotourism brought by desert parks enriches the classification of theme parks while their tourism revenues can be used for ecological protection and infrastructure development in sandy areas, promoting the coordinated development of ecology and the tourism industry," said Gao Junchen, director of the desertification control and eco-restoration department of the Shanxi Provincial Forestry and Grassland Engineering Station. 

Next, Shanxi will further integrate the protection and comprehensive management of mountains, rivers, forests, farmland, grasslands, and sandy areas, while exploring sustainable development models for desertification control.