IFLSCIENCE - China has a new Great Wall, but this one isn't built of stone and mortar to repel marauding invaders from the north. Instead, the “Great Green Wall” is a vast belt of trees and shrubs lining the bottom of its northern deserts, designed to halt the steady creep of desertification. New research suggests this massive megaproject is already functioning as a vital carbon sink, helping to stabilize the local environment.
Located in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, the Taklamakan Desert is one of the driest places on Earth and the largest desert in the country. It’s sometimes called the “Sea of Death” and “The Place of No Return” because of its desolate landscape, defined by towering dunes and a scarcity of wildlife.
Since 1978, China has spearheaded an unprecedented afforestation campaign along its southern edge, planting greenery to prevent the desert from swallowing up surrounding farmland. It would also double up as a natural barrier against sandstorms, some of which are so gusty they reach Beijing. It's one part of China's Three-North Shelterbelt Forest Program, a massive initiative to hold back the expansion of the Gobi Desert and other arid areas through afforestation.
In 2024, the government announced the completion of a 3,046-kilometre (1,892-mile) green belt around the desert through the planting of billions of trees and shrubs. While some critics questioned whether the Taklamakan Afforestation Project would deliver meaningful environmental benefits, new research led by scientists at the University of California, Riverside, suggests it is already making a measurable impact on both the local ecosystem and the global carbon cycle.