Money grown on trees

Sustainable management

In neighboring Hebei province, the Saihanba Mechanized Forest Farm, bordering the Hunshandake Sandyland on the Inner Mongolia Plateau, offers another example of how ecological restoration drives economic opportunity.

Once a barren wasteland, the Saihanba Mechanized Forest Farm is now the largest man-made forest in the world, spanning 93,000 hectares with a forest coverage rate of 82 percent. It is also an important project of the shelterbelt program in the northern region.

As a State-owned forest farm, Saihanba serves as a national pilot site for carbon sequestration projects. The forest absorbs about 860,300 metric tons of carbon dioxide and releases 598,400 tons of oxygen each year. In 2018, the forest farm completed its first carbon credit transaction at the Beijing Environment Exchange.

By the end of last year, the forest farm had accumulated 2.43 million metric tons of verified carbon sequestration, selling 357,000 tons of carbon credits and earning 14.88 million yuan — turning its "carbon stock" into a true "green bank".

The forest farm's afforestation activities provide more than 4,000 local people with nearby employment opportunities each year, benefiting over 3,200 previously impoverished people.

In addition to managing fire risks and maintaining forest health, the Saihanba forest farm has utilized its ecological beauty to develop ecotourism. Nearby villages have seen a boom in rural tourism and family-run guesthouses, generating over 600 million yuan in annual income, benefiting more than 40,000 residents, and lifting 22,000 impoverished people out of poverty.

The forest farm has used its technical expertise in cultivating landscaping seedlings to help nearby villages and towns develop ecological seedling bases covering more than 293 hectares, with a total seedling value exceeding 700 million yuan.

Having witnessed remarkable improvements in his hometown, Liu, the farmer at the Ma'anshan Forest Farm, said, "In the future, I plan to take part in the forest farm's experimental projects to learn new techniques and cultivate more high-value-added products, so I can increase my family's income and make our life even better."

Zhang, the ranger, said: "I see hope in this forest. I hope every tree here grows tall, wildlife thrives, and our under-forest industry continues to flourish."

Contact the writers at lishangyi@chinadaily.com.cn