Xinjiang diverts floodwater to revive forests impacted by drought
Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region plans to divert 510 million cubic meters of floodwater this year to replenish the water supply of the populus euphratica forests in the Tarim River Basin.
Last year, Xinjiang replenished this water supply by more than 1.1 billion cubic meters, which was 197 percent of its planned replenishment. According to the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, an approximate total forest area of 2.72 million mu (about 181,333 hectares) was irrigated via flood diversion activities, and vegetation coverage in the irrigated forest area increased 4.3 percent year on year.
The populus euphratica forests along the Tarim River, China's longest inland river, cover more than 10 million mu and make up the plant species' largest natural forest area, creating an important ecological barrier in southern Xinjiang.
Though the species is highly tolerant to drought, swathes of populus euphratica trees have died since the 1950s due to the overexploitation of water resources along the Tarim River, leading to a decline in water levels.
In 2019, Xinjiang launched a restoration project to revive the dying forests and enhance their natural restoration capabilities through flood diversion work.
Related articles
- Cancer-stricken King Charles will be feeling fresh heartache after a former IRA commander confessed2024-05-21
Russia begins withdrawing peacekeeping forces from Karabakh, now under full Azerbaijan control
MOSCOW (AP) — President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman said Wednesday that Russian forces are being with2024-05-21Amy Schumer looks thinner in a T
Amy Schumer was seen shooting her next comedy Kinda Pregnant in New York City on Monday. The Trainwr2024-05-21Jamelia reveals the REAL reason for her sudden exit from Hollyoaks
Jamelia has revealed the real reason behind her sudden exit from Hollyoaks, as the soap is set to ax2024-05-21Bella Hadid goes braless in a thigh
She is one of America's most recognisable fashion models.And Bella Hadid continued to show why she i2024-05-21UN report points to yawning gap of inequality in sexual and reproductive health worldwide
GENEVA (AP) — A new study says an African woman is roughly 130 times more likely to die from pregnan2024-05-21
atest comment