A line in the sand: Workers plant a web of shrubs in the desert to halt the advancing of sand dunes

Xinjiang, in Northwest China, is home to the country's biggest deserts. Fighting desertification is a constant for cities deep in the region, to avoid the fate of being buried like the ancient Loulan civilization more than 1,600 years ago.

The town of Qiemo, in the middle of the Taklimakan Desert, China's largest, has been fighting against the sand dunes pushing towards it. On the other side of the Qarqan River, the sand dunes are only two kilometers away at the nearest point. Three times in the town's history, the river running through it was diverted by shifting desert sands................the article and more images to...(Global Times)
23/10/14