Chapter Ninety-six of Great Significance

  "All this is the sin of man himself..."

  The Ministry of Agriculture's Yellow Soil Plateau Environmental Issues Special Task Force has not only held its first meeting to study the issue, but prior to that, the task force had dispatched over 1,000 personnel to conduct multiple on-site investigations in parts of Gansu, Shaanxi, and Shanxi provinces. After nearly three months of rushing around to obtain real data, the special task force convened its first meeting in Xi'an on March 9, 1922. Following that, there was another month of repeated verification and evidence-seeking, until April 5, when the meeting entered the stage of item-by-item discussion. Now, three days have passed, and many issues at the meeting have already entered a substantive stage.

  "To fundamentally solve the problem, we must understand the essence of the problem itself, why it arises, why it expands, what is its current situation and development trend. If we want to make some achievements in solving the environmental problems of the Loess Plateau, we also need to follow this process, looking at and solving the problem with a scientific, fair and practical perspective, rather than deliberately evading or concealing it."

  At the beginning of the meeting, Shi Yang, the leader of the working group, reminded the participants that the Loess Plateau is currently a key area for political work in the autonomous region and also a focus of attention from the Ministry of Agriculture after Yunnan, Guizhou and Sichuan. Solving the problems of soil erosion and desertification on the Loess Plateau will be a great achievement that benefits both the present and future generations.

  According to the Ministry of Agriculture's work habits, they first conducted an investigation and understanding of the current situation in solving the problem. The Loess Plateau starts from the Taihang Mountains in the east, extends to the Wushaoling Mountains in the west, connects to the Qinling Mountains in the south, and reaches the Great Wall in the north. It mainly includes Shanxi Province under Yan Xishan's rule, Shaanxi Province, Gansu Province, Qinghai Province, and part of Henan Province. This region is not only the largest loess accumulation area in China but also in the world. The climate is relatively dry, rainfall is concentrated, vegetation is sparse, and soil erosion is severe, which are the key points of the current situation in this region.

  Mountains, plateaus and rivers are the three main landforms of the Loess Plateau. The mountains that rise above the plateau are like isolated islands in the ocean. To the west of Liupan Mountain on the Guanzhong Plateau are the Quewu Mountain, Huajialing, and Majiamen Mountains; to the east of Longdong are the Ziwu Ridge, Baiyu Mountain, and Huanglong Mountain. The plateaus refer to the flat surface of the Loess Plateau, which is suitable for mechanized farming and is an important agricultural area. However, the plateaus are prone to erosion by running water, gully development, and division into long strips of plateau land, forming mountain ridges known as "liang" land.

  If the loess land is cut and scattered by gullies, forming isolated hills with a shape like a steamed bun, they are called "Liǎng" locally. The loess hills composed of "Liǎng" and "Xiá", are generally 100-200 meters higher than the nearby gully bottom, with severe soil erosion, which is the source area of Yellow River's mud and sand.

  The river is deeply cut into the loess plateau, forming a valley plain. In the Liangzhu area, groundwater emerges and converges to form small rivers, and the mud and sand brought by the river water deposit here, forming small plains on both banks, which are called "Chuan". On both sides of the "Chuan" there are also terraced fields, namely "Zhang" and "Gan" land. Zhang is a basin-shaped plain at the source of the Chuan land, different from the strip-distributed Gan land.

  The Yellow River flows through the thick, loose and fragmented loess plateau, coupled with frequent heavy rainfall, resulting in extremely severe soil erosion, which is the main source of sediment in the Yellow River. Especially from the estuary town to Tongguan, this section of the Yellow River passes through the loess plateau, where many tributaries converge, directly turning the Yellow River yellow.

  "The Loess Plateau, located west of the Liupan Mountains, is a newly formed fault basin, belonging to the plateau type, with an elevation of 1,500 to 2,000 meters. The terrain is fragmented, with many ridges, peaks, valleys and loess tablelands. The eastern part of Gansu and northern Shaanxi Plateau, including the area east of Liupan Mountains, west of Lvliang Mountains, north of Weihe River and south of the Great Wall, is also a plateau type, with an elevation of 800 to 1,200 meters. After intense erosion, except for a few remaining loess hills, most areas have become fragmented ridge-hill country. Only a few low mountains made of bedrock rise above the plateau, resembling isolated islands." Shi Yang stood in front of a huge map, waving his baton and introducing some situations.

  "The Shanxi Plateau, where we have not yet conducted large-scale surveys, includes areas south of Mount Hengshan, north of Funiu Mountain, west of Taihang Mountains and east of Luliang Mountains. The mountains include Luliang, Hengshan, Wutai, Zhongtiao and Taihang, while the basins include Datong, Xinzhou, Taiyuan, Linfen, Yuncheng and others. Except for river valleys and plains, most areas have an elevation of 1000 to 1500 meters, with rocky mountains forming the main body of the plateau, and loess deposits limited to basins and mountain valleys. Of course, the Wei River Plain is also known as the Guanzhong Plain, located between the northern mountains of the Wei River and the Qinling Mountains."

  "We can draw some conclusions based on the collected meteorological records and our own observations." As the leader of the important meteorological service team in the working group, Xie Fuxiong, the chief meteorologist of the autonomous region, has prepared to open up a new field of atmospheric science at Gongda tomorrow. The team, which was pulled into the government's large-scale project for the first time, naturally did not disappoint and achieved some results. Taking over the baton from Shi Yang, he began to explain the current climate situation on the Loess Plateau to everyone.

  Western Henan, Guanzhong in Shaanxi, and southern Shanxi have an average annual temperature of 7 to 14 degrees Celsius, with an annual rainfall of 600 to 800 mm. The summer is warm, with a prevailing southeast wind, and the rainy season coincides with the hot season. In areas such as Jinzhong, northern Shaanxi, eastern Gansu, and southern Ningxia, the average annual temperature is 4 to 12 degrees Celsius, with an annual rainfall of 400 to 600 mm. The summer wind gradually weakens, and evaporation far exceeds precipitation; in contrast, areas north of the Great Wall, including northern Shaanxi's Dingbian, Gansu's Tongxin, and Haiyuan to the west, have an average annual temperature of 2 to 8 degrees Celsius, with an annual rainfall of 100 to 300 mm. The annual, monthly, and daily temperature differences are all increasing, showing a pronounced continental climate. Wind-sand activity is frequent, and wind erosion and sandification are severe. This region's range almost coincides with the desert grassland belt.

  "That is to say, the Loess Plateau region has a large inter-annual variation in rainfall, and it belongs to the continental monsoon climate. In winter and spring, it is affected by the polar cold air mass, with cold and dry winds; in summer and autumn, it is influenced by the western Pacific subtropical high pressure and the Indian Ocean low pressure, with hot and rainy weather. The rainfall in a wet year is more than three times that of a dry year; the distribution within the year is uneven, with the flood season roughly from June to September, and during this period, the rainfall accounts for about 70% of the annual rainfall, mainly in the form of large-scale heavy rain, and the trend is decreasing from southeast to northwest. The estimated value of the area covered by a single heavy rain is over 50,000 square kilometers, according to historical records, it can be concluded that the three major heavy rain centers are Hekou Town, Longmen, Jingluo River, Weihe River, and Yiluo River."

  "At present, we can infer that the cause of the heavy rain is still lacking in evidence, but it has a certain degree of credibility. According to our inference, there are two reasons. One is that the area is located within the westerly wind belt and is affected by local topography, resulting in strong convection and leading to heavy rainfall, with a small range, short duration, and high intensity. The second reason is that it is caused by the disturbance of the western Pacific subtropical high pressure, so it will have a large area, long duration, and extremely high intensity. According to historical data inference and calculation, it is normal for hourly precipitation to exceed 100 mm..."

  "My goodness!!" As Xie Fusheng finished his speech, many people in the audience couldn't help but exclaim. With such a large amount of rainfall, such a concentrated rainy season, and the poor water and soil conditions, it's no wonder that there wasn't massive soil erosion. After years of washing away, it's not easy for the Loess Plateau to still have its current landscape with thousands of gullies and ravines. Of course, considering human factors, it's not hard to imagine why the Loess Plateau has become a ugly sight with dense wrinkles today.

  "As for the origin of the loess, we believe it is due to the wind. In our view, these hundreds of meters thick deposits of yellow earth come from the vast arid desert regions of northern and northwestern China, including Gansu, Ningxia, and the Mongolian Plateau, as well as Central Asia. The rocks in these areas expand during the day when heated by the sun, contract at night when cooled, and are gradually weathered into stones, sand, and clay of varying sizes. Whenever the strong northwest winds blow in winter and spring, fierce gusts arise, sand and stones fly through the air, and dust blocks out the sun..."

  "So the coarse stones were left on the spot, and they remained in place to become Gobi, while the finer sand particles fell in nearby areas, accumulating into pieces of desert. The fine dust and clay flew southeast, and when the wind weakened or was blocked by the Qinling Mountains, it accumulated, forming the vast Loess Plateau over tens of thousands of years. After being eroded by flowing water, it formed a fragmented surface with gullies and ridges."

  Li Si Guang was temporarily assigned to the working group, although he is a geologist and mineralogist, but leading research teams for field surveys and data summarization and inference, these are all his strong points. Moreover, the Loess Plateau itself is an area rich in mineral resources, naturally it is an important work area for the Ministry of Land and Resources' Mineral Resource Development and Management Bureau. Understanding the current situation of this region, being aware of environmental issues in the region, analyzing and determining whether it is suitable for mineral resource development, all contribute to achieving the autonomous region's goal of sustainable utilization. Therefore, he is also an important member of the working group, and his Loess Inference has won recognition from many people.

  "On the issue of soil erosion, we can conclude that it is caused by the flushing of loose yellow soil in gullies. The particles of yellow soil are fine and loose, with chemical analysis showing that they contain calcium carbonate, which dissolves easily in water and collapses. The slope of the ground surface in this area is relatively large, vegetation is sparse, and as Professor Xie Fukui just mentioned, the region's climate is characterized by heavy rainfall in summer, resulting in unique landforms such as peaks, steep cliffs, caves, sinkholes, and natural bridges, which further exacerbate gully expansion and accelerate soil erosion."

  "If it is related to tectonic movement, then the reason is more convincing. We all know that the crust is moving, and in modern times, the crust is in a state of uplift, which causes the riverbed to continue cutting down and eroding sideways, and the erosion of the valley headwaters becomes more severe, while the valley slopes are constantly expanding, causing the inter-valley land to become increasingly fragmented. Of course, we also need to pay attention to another factor, that is, human destruction of natural activities..."

  Everyone present nodded in agreement when these words were spoken, as it is well-known that the Loess Plateau region has been the central location of power in China for a long time. For example, Xi'an was once the capital of several dynasties, and the dense population in this area relied heavily on nature for their livelihood, especially agriculture, which had a double-edged effect. The Chinese people, who consider food to be heaven, have been somewhat lacking in their harmonious coexistence with nature, especially when it comes to the Loess Plateau, leading to today's dire consequences of both natural and human destruction.

  "The Loess Plateau used to be a region of forests and forest grasslands, but now the forests in areas such as Shanxi and Shaanxi have long since disappeared, leaving behind only barren mountains, gullies and vast expanses of yellow earth. From studies on the remaining native vegetation, it can be confirmed that before agriculture, this area was originally covered with forests and forest grasslands. But our nation has actually turned these beautiful forests and grasslands into what is now almost a desert."

  "From historical records, before the Qin and Han dynasties, Huangtu was a place with dense forests, lush mountains, and beautiful scenery. Now, in the northern part of the Maowusu Desert on the Huangtu Plateau, Jingbian County's Baichengzi is already a dry and barren desert area, but it used to be a beautiful place with lush mountains and clear waters, and was once the location of the capital city of the Daxia Kingdom, Tongwan City. When King Helian Bobo of the Daxia Kingdom built this capital city, he praised it saying, 'How beautiful is Sifu! It faces the vast wetlands and has a clear stream running through it. I have traveled to many places, but none as beautiful as this.' But now, that place is almost covered by the desert."

  Moreover, the western part of the Loess Plateau in Gansu, including Longdong, Longxi, Lanzhou and Ningxia, which now appears as a grassland, was also a forest area in history. Historical records show that it was customary for residents in the forest areas to build houses with wooden boards. During the Han Dynasty, those places were all lush forests. However, nowadays the towering trees are gone, leaving only withered and dry trees and sparse grasslands. I believe that if no improvement is made, those places will also become a desert in the future.

  "It is laughable that during the Yuan Dynasty, Genghis Khan once camped in the northwest mountain pass of Liupan Mountain to avoid the heat. During the Yuan Dynasty, Liupan Mountain was a forested area, but after the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the forests on Liupan Mountain were largely destroyed due to excessive logging and land reclamation, leaving only a small area in the Jingyuan Mountains with relatively dense forest cover. The areas that were once lush with trees and had majestic peaks are now sparse with trees and overgrown with weeds, resembling a barren wilderness. We can't help but ask, why did the densely forested loess plateau become what it is today?"

  Historical expert Yao Shifeng vividly told the audience about the past beauty of the Loess Plateau. History is not to be questioned or altered, it has already happened and cannot be changed. Accepting the painful facts and learning from them is the best way to show respect and understanding for history. Of course, Yao Shifeng has not yet explained why the Loess Plateau transformed from beauty to ugliness.

  "I believe that everyone present here, like me, firmly believes that the Loess Plateau was once covered with forests and forest grasslands. However, the reason for such an unacceptable change is actually our own fault as Chinese people. Long-term human destruction has caused large areas of forests to gradually disappear and become today's barren mountains and bare hills. The destruction caused by war, palace construction, logging, and deforestation for farming, among others, with deforestation and farming being the most severe and thorough destruction of forests."

  "For nearly two thousand years, the continuous reckless deforestation and reclamation have caused irreparable damage to the forests. The large-scale land reclamation during the Qin and Han dynasties, as well as the migration and reclamation of border areas, resulted in massive destruction of forests in northern Shanxi and northern Shaanxi. The subsequent large-scale 'land reclamation' implemented by the Ming dynasty led to unprecedented ecological disasters in the northern part of the Loess Plateau. In the early Ming dynasty, the government vigorously promoted the 'tuntian' system in northern Shaanxi and northern Shanxi, forcing every soldier to clear forests and open up wasteland. The situation became so dire that there was a saying: 'even the steep cliffs have no inch of land left unplowed'."

  Everyone knows that the incompetent Qing government is good at making trouble. The Ming dynasty's implementation of the tuntian system had already caused serious damage to the environment. The Manchu government was unwilling to do nothing, so they implemented a reward system for reclaiming wasteland, from northern Shaanxi and northern Shanxi to southern Inner Mongolia, the northern part of the Loess Plateau and the Ordos Plateau, hundreds of millions of mu of grassland were reclaimed as farmland.

  "What's even more tragic is that the Loess Plateau has been dominated by extensive farming and shifting cultivation since ancient times. They didn't choose suitable land for farming, nor did they rely on intensive farming to increase grain production. Instead, they adopted a slash-and-burn approach, recklessly burning mountains and expanding arable land at the expense of the environment. They didn't fertilize the soil, relying solely on natural fertility to produce grain. After a few years, when the topsoil was depleted and the fertility was exhausted, they abandoned the land and moved on to new areas, repeating this vicious cycle over and over again. As a result, all the land covered with forests and grasslands was shaved bald, just like the Qing government's order to the Han people: 'Keep your head but not your hair, or keep your hair but not your head'."

  Historical expert Yao Shi-feng's words resonated with the participants to a great extent. The uncontrolled human destruction is indeed the main reason for the severe environmental damage, and this also made it clear that the focus of solving this problem lies in paying attention to human factors, how to make today's "bald head" have some "hair style", the key point is still on human beings.

  Before putting forward solutions, I have to mention again the series of ecological disasters caused by the destruction of the Loess Plateau's ecosystem. Shi Yang spoke again, before many departments and key members of the review meeting expressed their opinions, it is necessary to recognize the severity of the problem. "We all know now that after the large-scale destruction of forests on the Loess Plateau, the ecological barrier was lost, the ecological environment deteriorated severely, leading to a series of disastrous consequences such as river water sources drying up, soil erosion, increasing sandstorms and frequent droughts and floods."

  "First of all, the hydrological conditions of rivers have deteriorated severely. Destroying forests destroys the water conservation conditions, resulting in a sharp reduction in water sources, increasing sedimentation, and drastic fluctuations in water levels. In ancient times, the Loess Plateau had lush vegetation, and its rivers had large volumes of clear water, earning it the name 'Great River' rather than the current 'Yellow River', because the water was clear and the mountains were green. In 113 BC, Emperor Wu of Han Liu Che once took a large boat to inspect Shanxi Province, but now the water volume has decreased drastically and is almost dry, with many river sections that can be crossed on foot."

  "Secondly, soil erosion is becoming increasingly severe. Destroying vegetation and grasslands will inevitably cause rainwater and runoff to directly wash away the yellow earth's surface, resulting in severe soil erosion. Our calculations show that the Loess Plateau has an area of over 300,000 square kilometers affected by soil erosion, with around 2 billion tons of soil lost each year, more than 70% of which flows into the Yellow River. There is no need for scientific calculations; just experiencing a local rainstorm once will reveal how severe the soil erosion is, as what flows is not rainwater but rather high-concentration mud, as thick as the porridge we drink. How can there be high yields and good benefits from farming on such land?"

  "Thirdly, water and drought disasters are becoming more frequent. From the 24th year of Emperor Cheng of Han to the first year of Emperor Gaozu of Tang (2306 years), there were only 16 droughts in these regions, with an average of one every 144 years. However, as forest destruction worsened, droughts became more frequent, occurring once every 34 years during the Yuan Dynasty, once every five years during the Ming and Qing Dynasties, and now at an even higher frequency. Just last year, a severe drought occurred in this region, with the previous one happening in 1918. The destructive power of floods is even more severe, with a single breach of the Yellow River resulting in tens of thousands of people losing their homes..."

  "The last thing is that the wind and sand are getting worse, and people's living conditions are deteriorating. The lack of vegetation cover, combined with continuous drought and little rain, has led to large-scale desertification in many areas of the Loess Plateau. Many areas in western Shaanxi have begun to desertify, and another consequence of the lack of vegetation is that people's livelihoods are threatened by fuel shortages - how can they cook without firewood? How can they raise livestock without grass to get a better income? The poverty and desertification of the land have seriously threatened people's livelihoods. In order to solve this dilemma, we must reach out to nature for help, but what is the result? The problem will only get worse, and people's lives will become more impoverished and unhappy. What can be done? Today, I hope that after discussing with you all, we can come up with a practical solution."

  The People's Government attaches great importance to the severe environmental problems on the Loess Plateau, not only because it affects the livelihood of tens of millions of people in Gansu and Shaanxi provinces, but also because this region is geographically central to China, a hub of Chinese culture, and a foundation for the future development strategy of the autonomous region. The problem has become extremely serious after thousands of years of accumulation, and if left unchecked, it will harm more Chinese people and become a major obstacle to the country's rejuvenation. By pooling together elite talent from various departments and fields, we hope to come up with a good solution that can at least curb the worsening trend, and then use time to accumulate achievements and gradually change the situation until it returns to a certain level.

  "Our key point is not how to analyze the causes of nature, but to take measures against human factors. In my view, the first thing to do is to strengthen environmental protection propaganda, let everyone in the Loess Plateau, the entire autonomous region and even the whole China know that protecting the environment is everyone's responsibility, and solve the backward habit of relying heavily on nature from the ideological roots. The current environment of the Loess Plateau cannot be destroyed anymore, if we wait until it becomes desertified to think about governance, it will require a longer time and cost."

  "The second is to attach importance to policies, just like we protect mineral resources within the autonomous region, and establish corresponding laws and regulations for supervision, guidance and punishment. Those who have made contributions to ecological environment construction should be affirmed and rewarded, while those who maliciously destroy ecological balance should be dealt with according to law. This measure corresponds and coordinates with the first one, creating a social atmosphere where everyone consciously protects and beautifies the environment."

  "The third is to conduct a comprehensive inspection and grading of the entire region, dividing it into different levels of severity to develop corresponding measures. The most severe areas can even directly relocate the people in that area, mobilize government forces to directly carry out environmental governance and supervision. For areas with slightly lower levels, returning farmland to forests and grasslands, closing mountains for afforestation, and building water conservancy projects to retain soil and water are necessary. Of course, this process should emphasize scientific and orderly methods, as areas that have already shown signs of desertification cannot be changed by simply planting trees on a large scale, and the trees planted may not necessarily survive. Planting grass may be a better option, and there are also excellent plant species that have adapted to the harsh environment, which can be promoted for wider cultivation to fight against desertification."

  "I think this is not enough, the current difficulty is that drought has threatened people's survival. If we don't deal with it now, it will bring an unprecedented disaster to the ecological environment again. Do we want to let it evolve into a situation where people are forced to eat their children and strip trees bare to survive? Planting trees, building water conservancy projects, etc., all rely on the premise that people do not depend on the ecological environment. Under the premise of being unable to eat enough, wear warm clothes, or live in a good house, who would be willing to let the hard-won land become green? Who would be willing to entrust their family's future to those small saplings and government subsidies? We cannot afford to support tens of millions of people so that they do not destroy the environment. Once we solve the problem of livelihood and development, environmental problems can be ignored."

  The speaker was Li Si Guang, who had a very clear understanding of the current situation in the autonomous region where the south is strong and the north is weak. The provinces of Guangdong, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan have obvious environmental resource advantages, with an early start to development and broad prospects for growth on a solid foundation. In contrast, Shaanxi and Gansu are not so optimistic, especially when discussing how to solve the increasingly serious ecological instability problem of the Loess Plateau today. In his view, everything starts and ends with people, and must be people-centered. If the livelihood problems of the people are solved well, who would still cut down trees, burn grass, and destroy the environment for no reason? Therefore, he believes that Shaanxi and Gansu have rich natural resources, which should be rationally utilized to achieve better industrial development as a backing, making it easier to address environmental issues.

  "Our exploration of the Loess Plateau has shown that this region is extremely rich in coal resources, with reserves, production and quality ranking first in the country. The conditions for mining are also very good, with over 100 billion tons of coal deposits available for open-pit mining. Shanxi Province is a super-large coal base, while the Shenfu Coalfield and Changqing Oilfield in northern Shaanxi Province are also important components of the Loess Plateau energy base. The reserves of non-ferrous metals and natural gas are also enormous. Moreover, we can not only build energy industries in these areas, but also machinery processing, electrical equipment, textiles and other industries that can provide a good way to solve people's livelihood problems..."

  "Of course, Director Li is speaking the truth, but we all know that industrial construction requires a cycle and time. What you are talking about is a long-term solution. Moreover, the region is still mainly agricultural population at present, and it will be a long and arduous process to shift people's livelihoods with strong industry. In agriculture, these problems do not exist. On the basis of Director Shi Yang's measures, we might as well increase government fiscal investment, reward and subsidize farmers who implement various policies, while increasing agricultural research efforts, improving grain crop yields per unit area, and of course, promoting crops that are more conducive to ecological restoration and have certain economic benefits..."

  An ordinary-looking meeting, with a small number of participants and agenda items, but its significance is still profound. Just like a classic phrase from the conference, this undertaking has a "contribution to the present and benefits for future generations" meaning that is deeply significant.