Alxa League Launches the 2026 Key Campaign for the Sixth Phase of the Three-North Shelterbelt Program

Sand Control Project Site

Recently, the commencement ceremony for Alxa League's 2026 sand control project, themed "Building Ecological Barriers Through Sand Control, Securing the Yellow River and Benefiting People's Livelihoods", was held on the west bank of the Yellow River's "Great Bend" on the edge of the Ulan Buh Desert in Alxa League. This marks the official launch of Alxa League's 2026 key campaign for the Sixth Phase of the Three-North Shelterbelt Program.

Alxa League is one of the key regions for the Three-North Shelterbelt Program and a core area for building China's Northern Sand Control Belt ecological security barrier. Since the launch of the shelterbelt system project in 1980, five phases have been completed, covering a total of 5.1315 million mu with a total investment of 632.4206 million yuan. The Sixth Phase (2021–2030) plans to cover 14.3782 million mu, undertaking two landmark campaigns: the key campaign for the Yellow River's "Great Bend" and a major campaign along the Hexi Corridor and the edge of the Taklamakan Desert. By the end of 2025, 84.51% of the Sixth Phase targets had been achieved. The year 2026 is designated as the "Quality Improvement Year" for the Three-North Shelterbelt Program, with plans to complete sand control on more than 2.4 million mu.

Over the past year, Alxa League has achieved full completion of the forest and grass shelterbelts surrounding the Badain Jaran, Tengger, and Ulan Buh deserts, with cumulative desertification control exceeding 100 million mu. This year, construction has begun on a photovoltaic-powered sand control belt along the Yellow River in Alxa League, further strengthening the ecological and energy security barrier and making new contributions to safeguarding national ecological security.