Massive soil erosion could dislocate nearly 100 million people in southwest China within 35 years and reduce harvests by about 40 percent in some parts of the country over the next five decades, according to a new survey. About 4.5 billion tons of soil are washed and blown away each year throughout the country, the survey by a China research team found, making it increasingly difficult for the growing nation to feed itself. The estimated cost for this decade alone is about 200 billion yuan, or $29 billion. Among the factors causing the erosion are overpopulation, construction, farming, deforestation and a lack of environmental policy. More than 3.5 million square kilometers (1.35 million square miles) have been affected by soil erosion so far, according to the news agency Xinhau.
Survey: Soil Erosion Ravages China and Will Displace Millions
More From E360
-
INTERVIEW
How One South African Community Stopped Shell Oil in Its Tracks
-
ANALYSIS
Will New Leader End Progress in Saving Indonesia’s Forests?
-
Oceans
Dire Straits: Can a Fishing Ban Save the Elusive European Eel?
-
Climate
Scientists Are Trying to Coax the Ocean to Absorb More CO2
-
INTERVIEW
Marina Silva on Brazil’s Fight to Turn the Tide on Deforestation
-
Solutions
Solomon Islands Tribes Sell Carbon Credits, Not Their Trees
-
INTERVIEW
With Sea Turtles in Peril, a Call for New Strategies to Save Them
-
RIVERS
Jared Kushner Has Big Plans for Delta of Europe’s Last Wild River
-
Energy
A Nuclear Power Revival Is Sparking a Surge in Uranium Mining
-
OPINION
Despite Official Vote, the Evidence of the Anthropocene Is Clear
-
INTERVIEW
At 11,500 Feet, a ‘Climate Fast’ to Save the Melting Himalaya
-
Oceans
Octopuses Are Highly Intelligent. Should They Be Farmed for Food?