国内英语资讯:China Focus: China turns Kubuqi Desert from dust into wealth_时事

国内英语资讯:China Focus: China turns Kubuqi Desert from dust into wealth

HOHHOT, Sept. 12 -- United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) has praised China's work in greening one of its most formidable deserts.

More than 6,250 square kilometers of the Kubuqi desert has been reclaimed in the last 30 years, said a UNEP report.

Covering over 18,000 square kilometers, Kubuqi Desert lies in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Only 800 kilometers from Beijing, it used to be a significant source of dust storms in the capital.

The report, "Eco-Restoration and Wealth Creation," was released at the 13th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) on Monday. It is the first UNCCD report to specifically assess wealth created by desert restoration.

In the Kubuqi, 14.5 million tonnes of carbon was removed from the atmosphere, said the report. The project has created an estimated wealth of 24.4 billion yuan (3.7 billion U.S. dollars) in terms of water conservation, and the accumulated production of oxygen is 18.3 million tonnes, valued at 6.8 billion yuan.

Referring to the "Kubuqi model," UNEP executive director Erik Solheim said that instead of looking at desertification as a problem, it has been viewed as an opportunity for economic development and poverty alleviation.

Restored ecosystems increase biodiversity. It is estimated that the project had a value of 349 million yuan in biodiversity conservation.

In total, the Kubuqi project has created over 500 billion yuan, said the report. The project also took over 100,000 local people out of poverty and created over one million jobs.