Yinchuan, 4 April (Zhongxin Net) -- Title: Wang Youde, a hero in sand control: Life does not stop and sand control does not stop

China News Network reporter Li Peishan

"Once a year, the wind blows from spring to winter, there are no birds in the sky, and there is no grass on the ground." This is the true portrayal of Baijitan, Lingwu City, Yinchuan, Ningxia in the forties and fifties of the 20th century. Today, standing in the 148.<> million acre nature reserve overlooking the sand dunes of Baijitan Beach, clumps of sandy plants are dotted with lush patches of lemon sticks and shrubs. There are also large wheatgrass squares that condense the wisdom of the Baiqitan people, like a huge golden net, binding the once terrifying "sand devil".

Wang Youde carried out desertification control work (data map). Photo courtesy of Ningxia Lingwu Baijitan National Nature Reserve Management Bureau

On the undulating sand dunes in the reserve, there is a road of more than 380 kilometers mixed with stones and sand that winds from north to south, winding deep into the heart of the sandy area. This road has witnessed the green seeds of hope continuously sown by the people of Baijitan. This road is also the road of scientific exploration of sand control by Wang Youde, the "model of the people" and "hero of sand control".

From the sand forcing people to retreat, to the people entering the sand and retreating, Wang Youde personally experienced this "protracted war".

If you want to survive, you must control the sand

"My family lives in Majiatan Town, Lingwu City, on the edge of the Maowusu Desert, and when I was a child, my living conditions were very poor, and I relied on digging a large amount of vegetation such as sand artemisia, lemon sticks, and sand holly to solve survival problems such as heating and cooking. And the result of such indiscriminate reclamation is desertification. Wang Youde clearly remembers that every time there was a strong wind, the yellow sand would "climb" on the roof and join the desert below. There was no way to survive, and half of the village moved away. ”

Since then, Wang Youde has known that sand control is the only option for the people here to survive.

In 1953, the Baijitan Sand Control Forest Farm was officially established east of the Yellow River and on the southwestern edge of the Maowusu Desert, which became a barrier to prevent the desert from advancing towards Yinchuan, the capital of Ningxia, and the Yellow River. The people of Baijitan thus opened the curtain on sand prevention and control.

After joining the work in 1972, Wang Youde worked successively in the well drilling team and Beishawo Forest Farm, and in 1985 was officially appointed as the secretary and director of Baijitan Sand Prevention Forest Farm.

Ningxia Baijitan Forest Farm. Photo courtesy of Ningxia Lingwu Baijitan National Nature Reserve Management Bureau

"The working and living conditions were very difficult, and the dormitory of the adobe house could see the stars at night. Employees have no money to buy grain, so they can only eat coarse grains such as sand rice and artemisia seeds to survive. Because there is no running water, excessive drinking of brackish water has caused many employees to deform, but they do not have the money to see a doctor. Forty years ago, there was not a single college student or secondary school student on the forest farm. Wang Youde said.

Because of poverty, the forest farm is discouraged and the workforce is unstable. But at that time, it was necessary to build forests, protect forests, and raise people. In order to reverse the passive situation, Wang Youde decided to start with the ideological problems and life problems of employees.

Remove the safe and smash the iron rice bowl

"Reform is very difficult. At first, most people didn't believe me, some people insulted in person, some wrote anonymous letters to make false accusations, and some people put kitchen knives under my pillow to threaten. But the more so, the more you have to resist the pressure. At that time, Wang Youdeli put forward the reform measures of "removing the safe and smashing the iron rice bowl", first, reducing non-production personnel and streamlining logistics management personnel; The second is to abolish the wage scale of front-line workers in production and implement ergonomic wages; The third is to decompose and contract the whole forestry production task into the hands of the workers to complete it themselves, so that the workers can "do their own work and earn their own money", completely changing the past "afforestation and nurturing rely on migrant workers, forest farm workers only bring workers" only pay attention to quantity rather than quality and efficiency.

These measures had an effect that year, with 152% of the completion of the plan for desertification control and afforestation, and the survival rate increased by 22% compared with before the reform, which also made the forest farm workers have a change of thinking and gradually began to accept the reform and recognize the reform.

The grass grid sand control technology shines (data map). Photo courtesy of Ningxia Lingwu Baijitan National Nature Reserve Management Bureau

In order to make the benefits of the forest farm better and better, and in order to make the forest farm have more funds for forest protection and afforestation, Wang Youde decided to deepen it again on the basis of the previous reform, increase the transformation of the operation mechanism, further enhance its own hematopoietic function, and maximize the enthusiasm of employees for sand prevention and control. Baijitan Forest Farm has successively diverted water to control sand in the Beisha Woh and Daquan Desert, and developed 7000,5000 mu of land, including more than 2000,23 mu of fruit forests, 160,<> mu of nurseries, and more than <>,<> fruit trees and shelterbelts; Relieve employment pressure, solve the employment of more than <> employees, the former desert has become a food field for employees' survival, orchards have become a "cash cow" for employees, and nurseries have become a "green bank" for employees.

Guarding the main business of sand control, looking for a "good recipe" for development

While improving the lives of employees, Wang Youde has never forgotten that the first priority is forest protection and afforestation. "Through years of practice in desertification control and afforestation, I believe that only by adhering to scientific and comprehensive desertification control can we achieve sustainable development of desertification control." He said.

Comparison chart of before and after sand control in Baijitan Forest Farm, Ningxia. Photo courtesy of Ningxia Lingwu Baijitan National Nature Reserve Management Bureau

Since 2000, Baijitan Forest Farm has changed from the passive afforestation mode of single seedling planting and relying on the sky in the past to the current comprehensive sand control mode combining engineering measures and biological measures, and three-season afforestation, focusing on summarizing and popularizing five technologies and measures, including grass checkered sand barrier control, rainy season cave sowing afforestation, rainy season artificial simulated fly-seeding afforestation, nutrient bag afforestation, and delayed afforestation in autumn and winter. "These measures overcome the adverse factors of drought and lack of rain, wind erosion and sand burial, and ensure the success of afforestation at one time. With the help of scientific methods, the vegetation coverage of the forest farm reached 5%, the forward speed of sand dunes was significantly reduced, and the amount of sand transport was reduced to 29%. Wang Youde said.

In the end, Wang Youde and his colleagues successfully explored a "five-in-one" comprehensive sand control model: first, a grass grid was set up in the desert hinterland to create a large area of windbreak and sand fixation forest dominated by shrubs, forming the first ecological line of defense; The second is to build a large-scale backbone shelter belt with multiple tree species, high density, wide forest belt, combination of arbor and shrub, and mixed coniferous and broad around trunk canals, highways and orchards to form the second ecological barrier; Third, under the protection of two ecological barriers, the internal water is diverted to pull sand to cultivate fields, cultivate fruit forests and nurseries, and most of the employees develop the forestry industry, the seedling industry, every family has 20 acres of gardens, 10 acres of gardens, becoming the pillar industry of employees, from which they have benefited; The fourth is to plant livestock and grass in the open fields, develop animal husbandry, and increase the income of employees; Fifth, while the development of the breeding industry, form livestock manure to the field, enhance the development of forest and grass stamina, and realize the circular development industrial system of the breeding industry feeding back the forest and grass industry. At the same time, we require each person to tie <>,<> grass squares a year, dig <>,<> tree pits, plant <>,<> trees, complete a <>-mu afforestation area for sand control, and achieve an income of <>,<> yuan from sand control, that is, the "six ones" goal task.

The "five-in-one" comprehensive sand control model of Baijitan has been identified as a key promotion model by the State Council in the Several Opinions on Further Promoting Ningxia's Economic and Social Development. At present, the "five-in-one" model has been further deepened to eco-tourism, and Baijitan has been identified as a national ecological civilization education base.

In addition, Baijitan Forest Farm has also widely used the technical achievements of years of research in sand control afforestation, introduced more than 30 species of sand control, carried out research on the experimental mode of agroforestry in desertification areas, planted the ecological characteristics of typical sandy plants such as lemon sticks, flower sticks, yangchai, sand willow, shuttle, sand crown jujube and other typical sandy plants and the research of seedling afforestation technology in the Maowusu sandy land, and also carried out scientific research projects such as afforestation technology of rare and endangered plant sand holly, and won a number of provincial and ministerial science and technology progress awards.

Today, the number of wild animals in Baijitan Nature Reserve has increased from 115 to 129 species, and the number of plant species has increased from 306 to 311, and the local ecological environment has been greatly improved. The 148.41 million mu desert now has a forest coverage rate of more than 20%, successfully forcing back more than <> kilometers of desert, realizing the real "people entering the sand and retreating", and also becoming a model area for precise and scientific sand control of the "Three North" project.

If life does not stop, the fight against sand will not stop

"For decades, I have personally witnessed and practiced the scientific thesis that 'green water and green mountains are gold and silver mountains'." Wang Youde said: Practice has proved that the more dry a single operation is, the poorer it gets, and the power of diversified operation is infinite. Through decades of efforts, Baijitan Forest Farm has embarked on a road of "focusing on forests, promoting forests with vice-sides, diversified management, and comprehensive development". With the improvement of business conditions, Baijitan Forest Farm has also introduced a series of people's livelihood policies such as housing subsidies for employees, subsidies for children's schooling, and subsidies for industrial development, which not only improve the living conditions of employees, but also promote the increase of employees' income, and achieve the goal of "green desert, farm life, and rich employees".

On December 2018, 12, Wang Youde was awarded the "Reform Pioneer" medal and certificate by the CPC Central Committee and the State Council. On September 18, 2019, he was awarded the national honorary title of "People's Model". On September 9, 17, Wang Youde was once again awarded the title of "The Most Beautiful Striver". Wang Youde's life of struggle interprets the oath of "life does not stop, sand control does not stop", and is also a scientific sand control pathfinder who has made Baijitan from a "desert capital" to a "desert oasis".

"To control desertification, we should have faith, confidence, and determination to do this well, but we should also pay attention to stressing science, not being reckless, and understanding innovation." Wang Youde said that in the past, some localities believed that "people will conquer the sky," blindly "marched to the desert," and ignored natural conditions to plant trees and grass and transform deserts in places that were not suitable for planting grass and trees. ”

"As a forester, although I am retired, I hope to continue to contribute to the cause of desert greening. In the past, the desert was happy when it was green, but now I want the society to share the fruits of desertification control. Next, I want to raise funds for poor mountainous areas and poor desert areas. For example, some villages are very poor, so we donate a fruit forest to them, and we provide seedlings and build gardens ourselves; In places where wind and sand damage is serious, donations can be raised to build a windbreak and sand fixation forest; Provide greening services for schools, welfare homes, etc. under construction; Greening the mining area in Ningdong..."Wang Youde, who is almost old, continues to practice his original intention and promise with his actions. (End)