Lhasa, the capital of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, is transforming its barren mountain slopes into vibrant green landscapes through a decade-long ecological greening project.
As part of this initiative, hundreds of local residents have been climbing to altitudes over 4,000 meters, trudging up steep trails to plant trees.
"At first, everything relied entirely on manual labor. Then we used mule caravans. Since last year, we have gradually started using drones," said Ma Dawu, Project Manager at the Xizang Wanduo Construction Engineering Company.
The mountains around Lhasa were all rocky, yielding little space for trees. But their commitment to reshape the local landscape was unwavering.
"When we first started, the challenges were immense. The mountains around Lhasa are all rocky and barren. Just digging planting pits was a huge task. The ground was full of stones, and even with machines, one person could only dig two or three slightly larger pits a day. It was exhausting," said Ma.
Ma's project area is divided into 11 zones, with each zone assigned to around 11 to 13 people. After trees were planted, maintenance work turned out to be an even more tedious hardship.
"Planting trees at altitudes of 3,000 to 4,000 meters is not easy. We climb mountains every single day. We do maintenance work in the mornings and evenings because if we do not take good care of the trees, all our hard work would go to waste. To ensure higher survival rates, we focus on proper care across all of Lhasa. That is how the city becomes greener and more beautiful with each passing year," said Mi Jiu, Team Leader at the Xizang Wanduo Construction Engineering Company.
Today, Lhasa's urban greening rate has risen to 39 percent, according to data from the local authority. And their goal is to complete the greening initiative within 10 years, raising the forest coverage rate to 36 percent by 2030.
"To date, 65 protected nurseries have been established. In 2025, we plan to complete afforestation of 13,300 hectares, along with supporting infrastructure projects such as water, electricity, and roads," said Tong Jige from Lhasa's Northern and Southern Mountains Project Greening Command Office.
Decade-long greening project in Lhasa turns rocky mountains into forests
