The Tarim River in northwest China's
Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region is 2,179 kilometers (1,354
miles) long and has a drainage area of 198,000 square kilometers
(about 48.9 million acres). It is the longest inland river in China
and the fifth longest in the world.
The middle reaches of the Tarim River stretch some 100 kilometers
(62 miles) in length and is home to diversiform-leaved poplar and
shrubbery, which cover 1.47 million mu (245,000 acres) and
maintain the local ecological balance.
The river's water flow has been slowing and the grasslands have
been thinning out along the middle and low reaches of the Tarim
River in recent years. The Taklamakan Desert and Gurbantunggut
Desert are quickly encroaching on the river's lower reaches.
Local governments have spent 10.7 billion yuan (US$1.3 billion) and
launched a comprehensive program to promote environmental
protection for the Tarim River reaches since March. To protect the
forest and save water resources, residents in the middle and lower
reaches will be relocated to other places. Most of the residents to
emigrate are from Luntai and Yuli Counties. The measures are
expected to save 100 million liters of water each year.
(China.org.cn by Feng Yikun, December 7, 2002)