From Sand-Threatened to Sand-Adaptive: Zhongwei’s 70-Year Sand Control Story Inspires an Exemplary Path Towards a Green Future

For generations, the shifting sands of the Tengger Desert, which sprawls across Inner Mongolia, Gansu, and Ningxia, have been an ecological scourge for northwestern China. Nowhere was this felt more than in Zhongwei City, which sits at the desert's southeastern exit and has long suffered from the threat of sandstorms. But through generations of relentless effort, Zhongwei now tells a different story, one of harmonious coexistence between humans and sand, transforming the city into a globally recognized miracle of desertification control.

Through generations of relentless effort, Zhongwei now tells a different story, one of harmonious coexistence between humans and sand, transforming the city into a globally recognized miracle of desertification control. Photo by Bastille Post

In the 1950s, sand posed an imminent threat to Zhongwei, coming within about five kilometers of the city's western edge and endangering surrounding farmland, roads, and even the course of the Yellow River. In 1956, to ensure the smooth completion of the Baotou-Lanzhou Railway, China's first desert railway, the nation's first professional desertification control forest farm, the Zhongwei Sand-Fixation Forest Farm, was established. That same year, the Shapotou Desert Research and Experiment Station of the Chinese Academy of Sciences was founded, marking the beginning of systematic, science-led efforts to combat desertification.

For years, sand has posed an imminent threat to Zhongwei. Photo by Bastille Post

Wheat Straw Checkerboards Bring Sand Control Miracle

After countless failed attempts, researchers invented a deceptively simple yet revolutionary technique: the wheat straw checkerboard. Workers drive wheat straw into the sand using shovels, forming square grids that leave 15 to 20 centimeters above the surface. These humble straw squares effectively reduce surface wind speed, anchoring the unruly shifting dunes. Within the grids, drought-resistant plants such as Artemisia desertorum and Astragalus adsurgens take root, gradually turning patchy greenery into a continuous shield.

Wheat straw checkerboard, Photo by Bastille Post

Consequently, along both sides of the Baotou-Lanzhou Railway, a green belt roughly 800 meters wide was created, ensuring the smooth flow of this vital transport artery. Witnessing the success of this sand control method, the international community has since incorporated it into global practices to control desertification, putting Zhongwei on the world stage.

Nevertheless, traditional wheat straw checkerboards weather within two to three years and require labor-intensive replacement. To address the inefficiency of purely manual operation, Zhongwei has continued to innovate its sand control solutions. For instance, the brush‑like rope‑type checkerboard, developed by a research team from the Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, uses mechanized straw ropes laid directly on the sand, relying on wind action to naturally fix the sand in place. With this solution, sand control efficiency increases by about 60%, while the checkerboard's lifespan extends to over six years, with reduced costs.

Sand control technologies are constantly being updated in Zhongwei, Photo by Bastille Post

Another sand control solution, artificial cyanobacteria crusting, can form biological soil crusts in roughly two to three years by cultivating dominant cyanobacteria, a process that naturally used to take 10 to 20 years. Able to increase sand fixation efficiency by two to three times, this technique has already been applied to the Yellow River "U‑shaped bend" treatment project.

Moreover, high‑tech deployment, including drones, sand‑barrier laying machines, and electric seedling planters, is now widely used to improve efficiency across sandy areas.

Sand control technologies are constantly being updated in Zhongwei, Photo by Bastille Post

Innovative Three‑Dimensional Control Model with PV Power

Zhongwei has also harnessed its abundant solar and thermal resources to pioneer a three‑dimensional desertification control model: straw checkerboards beneath photovoltaic (PV) panels.

In the photovoltaic industrial park on the southeastern edge of the Tengger Desert, rows of panels do double duty — generating clean electricity while reducing surface wind speed and water evaporation. Beneath them, straw checkerboards hold the sand, while drought‑resistant grasses are planted alongside moderate amounts of shrubs, creating an integrated ecosystem of "power generation on top, restoration underneath, and planting in between." At the 16th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (2024), this model was promoted globally as an example of "Chinese wisdom" and the "Zhongwei experience."

Rows of panels, Photo source: CCTV News

On June 30, 2025, the Tengger Desert sand‑fixing and edge‑locking project in Ningxia was fully completed. In Changliushui Village, Shapotou District of Zhongwei City, workers drove the last meter of straw checkerboard into the sand, marking the official completion of a sand‑fixing belt stretching approximately 153 kilometers long and 10 to 38 kilometers wide. This "green Great Wall" consists of five integrated belts: a firebreak, an irrigation and afforestation belt, a grass barrier belt, a front‑line sand‑blocking belt, as well as a sand‑sealing and grass‑cultivating belt. Together, they form a critical ecological barrier in the upper reaches of the Yellow River, helping Ningxia effectively "lock" the Tengger Desert within its borders.

Decades of sustained effort have shifted Zhongwei's desertification status from "severely harmful" to "mildly controllable." The ecosystem is now on a positive trajectory. Photo by Bastille Post

Decades of sustained effort have shifted Zhongwei's desertification status from "severely harmful" to "mildly controllable." The ecosystem is now on a positive trajectory: the number of natural plant species in the Tengger Desert control area has increased from 25 to over 450, while wild animal species have grown from more than 250 to over 300. Forest coverage has risen from 6.8% to 9.43%, and comprehensive grassland vegetation cover has increased from 45% to 59%. Moreover, herds of the goitered gazelle, a national second‑class protected wild animal, now roam the area, offering clear evidence of the city's strengthening ecosystem stability.

Turning Sand into Gold: Developing Desert Economy

Desertification control in Zhongwei isn't just about prevention; it's also about sustainable development. Of the city's 1.88 million mu (approximately 123,333 hectares) of desertified land, 1.7 million mu (nearly 113,333 hectares) have been successfully brought under control. The remaining 180,000 mu (about 12,000 hectares) have been designated as a "desert tourism resort area", realizing the diversified development of the desert economy.

On the tourism front, the Shapotou Scenic Area attracts visitors with its dramatic desert and Yellow River landscapes, stargazing experiences, and newly built desert hotels and campsites. In 2024, the Zhongwei Desert and Yellow River (Shapotou) Tourist Resort was approved as a national‑level tourist resort, becoming China's first desert‑themed resort at that tier. That same year, Zhongwei received 18.5 million tourists, generating 11 billion RMB in tourism revenue, both figures up more than 20% year‑on‑year.

The desert‑themed resort in Zhongwei, Photo by Bastille Post

In the realm of new energy, the Tengger Desert 3‑million‑kilowatt photovoltaic project, the first national‑level Gobi Desert energy base at the 10‑gigawatt scale, approved jointly by the National Development and Reform Commission and the National Energy Administration, is now fully operational. Through the "Ningxia to Hunan" power transmission project, Ningxia sends approximately 36 billion kilowatt‑hours of electricity to Hunan annually, some of which comes from this desert new energy base. The region has also completed 145,000 mu (about 9,333 hectares) of photovoltaic desertification control projects.

The desert‑themed resort in Zhongwei, Photo by Bastille Post

The desert‑themed resort in Zhongwei, Photo by Bastille Post

On the computing power front, Zhongwei has also emerged as one of China's top ten data center clusters, attracting more than 20 data companies, including the four major telecom operators, Centrin Data, Zhonglian Zero Carbon, and Tencent AI Infra. It has built the world's first comprehensive remote sensing satellite calibration field, China's first commercial satellite telemetry and command center, and the nation's first "10,000‑card‑level" intelligent computing base.

Additionally, leveraging the sandy area's light and heat conditions, Zhongwei has developed forestry and fruit industries centered on goji berries and apples. By the end of 2025, the area of specialty economic forests had reached 2.545 million mu (approximately 169,667 hectares), with an output value of roughly 3.62 billion RMB.

The desert‑themed resort in Zhongwei, Photo by Bastille Post

Challenges Ahead: Consolidating the Gains

The completion of the sand‑fixing and edge‑locking project does not mark the end of the fight with sand. Consolidating these hard‑won gains will require continued effort from the people of Zhongwei.

During the 15th Five‑Year Plan period, Zhongwei has set binding ecological targets: forest coverage to reach 10.67%, the share of non‑fossil energy consumption to hit 29%, and the soil and water conservation rate to stand at 76.2%.

In the future, Zhongwei will continue its work along the Yellow River's "U‑shaped bend", strengthen joint prevention and control with Gansu and Inner Mongolia, consolidate the achievements of the Tengger Desert edge‑locking project, and vigorously develop green industries such as photovoltaic desertification control and ecotourism. The city aims to complete planned desertification control on 2.25 million mu (nearly 143,333 hectares) by 2027, making the green Great Wall even stronger.

Camels have become an icon of Zhongwei's desert economy. Photo by Bastille Post

Camels have become an icon of Zhongwei's desert economy. Photo by Bastille Post

From sand‑threatened to sand‑adaptive, Zhongwei's journey is more than a local success story. It reflects a profound transformation in the relationship between humanity and nature. The city, once relentlessly encroached upon by sand, has not only built an ecological security barrier for China, but also offered a replicable, scalable "Chinese solution" to the rest of the world in pursuit of a greener future.

From sand‑threatened to sand‑adaptive, Zhongwei's journey is more than a local success story. It reflects a profound transformation in the relationship between humanity and nature. Photo by Bastille Post

Compared with oil, coal has long been regarded as "cheap, inefficient, and highly polluting." But based on technological breakthroughs achieved through the tireless efforts of researchers, a world-leading coal-to-oil demonstration production base, the largest of its kind globally, in the Gobi Desert of eastern Ningxia, is now redefining China's energy landscape and building a crucial shield for China's energy security.

Ningdong Energy and Chemical Industry Base, Photo by Bastille Post

Recently, a group of about 20 Hong Kong media chief writers and column commentators visited Ningxia to get a firsthand look at the region's latest developments across multiple fronts, including industrial growth, historical culture, ecological protection, and rural revitalization.

Their first stop was the Ningdong Energy and Chemical Industry Base, where giant gasifiers, pipelines, and chemical plant equipment stretch for dozens of kilometers across what was once barren desert. Today, the site has become a major hub of China's modern coal chemical industry, producing not just diesel, aviation fuel, and chemical raw materials, but also a "breakthrough in energy development" more than two decades in the making.

Ningdong Energy and Chemical Industry Base has now ranked among the top 10 in the Comprehensive Evaluation of High-Quality Development of Chemical Industrial Parks in China for eight consecutive years. In 2025, its total industrial output value exceeded 200 billion RMB, making it the first chemical industrial park in Western China to reach that milestone.

Previous National Dilemma: "Rich in Coal, Poor in Oil"

For years, China's energy structure has suffered from a fundamental weakness: it is "rich in coal, poor in oil, and short on gas." A guide at the Ningdong base pointed out that most of China's oil extraction is concentrated around the Malacca Strait and border regions such as Xinjiang. "In the event of a crisis such as war, extraction capacity would drop dramatically," the guide said.

With growing global instability and some countries attempting to restrict China's energy imports in recent years, the importance of energy self-sufficiency has become increasingly clear. "That's why we must find ways to turn coal into a strategic resource that can replace oil," the guide added.

Ningdong Energy and Chemical Industry Base, Photo by Bastille Post

Since China has abundant coal reserves, Ningxia, where coal accounts for more than 90% of the energy mix, is a typical coal-dependent region; a technological goal of "turning coal into oil" was placed on the national strategic agenda.

In 1999, Ningxia officially launched preliminary research into coal-to-oil technology. In 2004, the National Development and Reform Commission selected Shenhua Ningxia Coal Industry Group through a competitive bidding process to lead an indirect coal liquefaction demonstration project.

From Foreign Restrictions to Homegrown R&D

At the time, China lacked almost all of the core technologies needed for coal-to-oil production.

There are two main technical routes: direct liquefaction and indirect liquefaction. Direct liquefaction produces a higher oil yield but requires extremely high-quality coal, making it unsuitable for the Ningdong coal type. Indirect liquefaction first gasifies coal into carbon monoxide and hydrogen, then synthesizes those gases into oil.

Light white mineral oil produced by the Ningdong base, Photo by Bastille Post

However, the world's most advanced indirect liquefaction technology was then controlled by foreign corporations such as Germany's Siemens and South Africa's Sasol. Though China entered negotiations with Sasol to acquire the technology, the terms offered were prohibitively harsh. Beyond high patent fees, Sasol demanded land reserves for production, tax breaks, and even exclusive sales rights over the coal-to-oil products. "If we had accepted, the sales rights would still be in their hands, though we produce oil," the guide said. "They would still have a stranglehold on us."

The failed negotiations ultimately convinced the producers that they had no choice but to master the core technology themselves.

10,000 Modifications Gave Birth to "Shenhua-Ningxia Furnace"

The real technical breakthrough came in 2011, with the successful development of the "Aerospace Swirl Dry Pulverized Coal Gasifier", a joint effort by China Coal Technology & Engineering Group and Shenhua Ningxia Coal Industry Group, which marked the first time China had mastered the core equipment technology for large-scale coal-to-oil production. Later known as the "Shenhua-Ningxia Furnace," the system serves as the "heart" of the coal-to-oil industrial chain, converting pulverized coal into high-purity carbon monoxide and hydrogen.

The "Shenhua-Ningxia Furnace" system serves as the "heart" of the coal-to-oil industrial chain, converting pulverized coal into high-purity carbon monoxide and hydrogen. Photo by Bastille Post

Nevertheless, technological breakthroughs alone do not guarantee industrial success.

From the initial development of the technology in 2011 to the first production of qualified oil products at the end of 2016, a full five years were spent on engineering and refinement. The R&D team completed more than 10,000 technical modifications. The nozzle of the equipment alone took years of repeated R&D. "Having the technology is one thing," the guide explained. "Achieving stable operation is another."

In September 2013, construction officially began on a 4-million-ton indirect coal liquefaction demonstration project with a total investment of 55 billion RMB. On December 28, 2016, the entire production process was successfully completed, and qualified oil products rolled off the line, making it the world's first and largest single-unit coal-to-oil production facility.

Taixi coal is the dominant type in the Ningdong coalfield. Photo by Bastille Post

In 2017, the "Shenhua-Ningxia Furnace" won the China Patent Gold Award. In 2020, the project received the First Prize of the State Science and Technology Progress Award. More symbolically, the technology has now begun to be exported overseas. China is even selling related technical solutions to the U.S. for an estimated $200 million per unit.

More Than Just "Making Oil": A Complete Strategic Industrial Chain

The public often thinks of coal-to-oil as simply "turning coal into gasoline." But the true strategic value of the Ningdong base lies in its complete modern coal chemical industry chain. Utilizing the carbon monoxide and hydrogen produced from coal gasification, the Ningdong base has expanded into five major product categories and 88 product clusters, forming an integrated modern coal chemical system.

The products of the Ningdong base, Photo by Bastille Post

Beyond oil products, the carbon monoxide and hydrogen produced from coal gasification can also produce high-value products such as olefins, polypropylene, aramid fibers, high-end lubricants, fragrances, and pharmaceutical materials. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, the base shifted significant production capacity to polypropylene melt-blown materials, the core filter layer of medical masks.

Polypropylene produced by the Ningdong base, Photo by Bastille Post

A recent incident in Japan further illustrates the importance of chemical products to everyday industries. When the closure of the Strait of Hormuz disrupted natural gas supplies for naphtha production, Calbee potato chip packaging reportedly turned white and black.

Naphtha produced by the Ningdong base, Photo by Bastille Post

Even more noteworthy is that some of the aviation kerosene used in China's aerospace industry now comes from Ningdong's coal-to-oil products. Last year, the Long March 12 rocket used Ningdong-produced coal-to-aviation-fuel for the first time. Its cetane number is far higher than that of ordinary fuel, comparable even to the finest petroleum products.

Some of the aviation kerosene used in China's aerospace industry now comes from Ningdong's coal-to-oil products. Photo by Bastille Post

In addition, the national flag materials displayed by the Chang'e-5 and Chang'e-6 lunar probes used aramid fibers produced in Ningdong base, the materials capable of withstanding the moon's extreme temperature swings, from +150°C to -150°C. The lightweight honeycomb structural materials used in high-speed rail and the C919 large passenger aircraft are also closely linked to Ningdong's industrial chain.

In other words, coal-to-oil technology is not just about energy substitution; it is about the overall upgrading of China's aerospace, high-end manufacturing, new materials, and even defense industries.

"Peacetime-Wartime Integration": The Greatest Strategic Value

At the national level, Ningdong base's most notable feature is its "peacetime-wartime integration" capability. In normal times, it operates as a large-scale chemical industrial base. In a crisis, it can quickly transform into a strategic fuel supply.

Since coal is China's most stable and abundant energy resource, if it can be continuously converted into liquid fuel, it means that China can maintain its industrial and military energy security even under extreme circumstances, which is a key reason why the Chinese government has continued to promote coal-to-oil projects despite the enormous investments involved.

Ningdong Energy and Chemical Industry Base, Photo by Bastille Post

Currently, the Ningdong coal-to-oil project converts approximately 24 million tons of coal annually, producing about 4 million tons of oil and chemical products. In recent years, the project has even remained profitable regardless of high international oil prices, 

From a barren desert to a world-class energy and chemical base, the Ningdong base's transformation has taken more than two decades. The true significance of this technological breakthrough lies not merely in "turning coal into oil" but in China's independent mastery of core technologies and its strengthened energy security.

Ningdong Energy and Chemical Industry Base has become one of the world's famous chemical industry parks. Photo by Bastille Post