Kubuqi Desert

The Kubuqi Desert (simplified Chinese: 库布齐沙漠; traditional Chinese: 庫布齊沙漠; pinyin: Kùbùqí Shāmò) is a desert within the Ordos Basin in northwestern China, under the administration of the Inner Mongolian prefecture of Ordos City. Located between the Hetao plains and the Loess Plateau, it is part of the Ordos Desert along with the neighboring Mu Us Desert to its south, and is the 7th largest desert in China^[1][2] with an area of 18,600 km² (7,200 sq mi).^[3]

Desertification

The area had gone through desertification due to centuries of overgrazing.^[3]

Restoration

Starting in 1988, the Elion Resources Group and the Government of Beijing worked to reverse desertification and restore the environment. By 2017, one third of the desert has had greenery restored.^[3][4][5]

Economic value

GigaWatt scale powerplants are being built in the desert, using solar panels and wind turbines.^[6][7] 455 gigawatts of wind and solar are planned.^[8] In contrast, the North American grid had 1213 GW total in 2022.^[9]

References

1. "Revitalising China's Kubuqi Desert". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
2. "Korea Forest Service to Host Global Forest Meetings in June". 비즈니스코리아 - BusinessKorea (in Korean). 30 May 2019. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
3. "What We Can Learn From the Greening of China's Kubuqi Desert". Time. Retrieved 30 May 2019.
4. "Review of the Kubuqi Ecological Restoration Project: A Desert Green Economy Pilot Initiative". United Nations Environment Programme. 2015.
5. "WAM". wam.ae.
6. "China transforms extreme frontier to energy hub". www.independent.co.uk. 7 July 2023.
7. "Former teacher tackles desertification in China's Inner Mongolia". The Japan Times. 27 July 2023.
8. "China's Remote Deserts Are Hiding an Energy Revolution". Bloomberg News. 26 November 2023.
9. "Electric Power Annual". EIA. 7 November 2022.

40.688°N 108.070°E / 40.688; 108.070