[Well-off China] Desert Crab Raising New Road for Inner Mongolia Herdsmen to Get Rich
Looking at the crabs swimming around in the water, the 52-year-old Narenmandahu was extremely happy.
This herder was born in Bayinwendul Gacha, Hohmudu Town, Hangjin Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. He used to be a well-known big cattle farmer in the area, but now he has become a “big crab farmer”.
The place where Narenmandahu raises crabs is located on the edge of the Kubuqi Desert and the "Jiziwan" of the Yellow River.
There are many ways to get rich in the desert, but raising crabs to get rich is a very challenging thing.
What is unforgettable for Narenmandahu is that when he was young, the place where he lived was often filled with yellow sand, and drought and little rain became the norm.
As a herder, the family guards more than 8,000 mu of pasture, but often has no money in their pockets.
The turning point occurred in the "Diverting the Yellow River into the Sand" project launched by local officials in recent years. Starting in 2015, local officials proposed to introduce harmful water from the Yellow River to the Kubuqi Desert to provide ecological water resources for the Kubuqi Desert. .
According to reports, since 2016, Hangjinqi has built one flood diversion gate, 38 kilometers of diversion canals, and a total of 245 million cubic meters of water from the Yellow River.
Nearly 100 square kilometers of wetland is formed in the Kubuqi Desert. There are more than 20 kinds of plants that naturally recover and grow, and more than 10 kinds of water birds inhabit for a long time.
The "Diverting Yellow River into the Sand" project has effectively alleviated the shortage of ecological water resources in the desert. In the next step, the government will form a 5 km wide "green barrier" on the northern edge of the Kubuqi Desert to drive local people to become rich.
Reporter Ma Zhiyuan Li Aiping
Editor in charge: [Li Ji]