Based on 30.07 million mu of bushes, which accounts 87 percent of all the forest resources, Ordos has formed an industrial structure featuring the construction of timber bases as primary industry, the R&D, production and sales of forest and sand products as secondary industry and ecological tourism as tertiary industry.
At present, there are 25.53 million mu of raw material forests, including 6.17 million mu of willow, 9.81 million mu of caragana, 4.51 million mu of hedysarum mongolicum, 0.34 million mu of wild apricot, 0.56 million mu of sea buckthorn, 75,000 mu of sacsaoul, 20,000 mu of grapes, 20,000 mu of haihong fruit, 3,500 mu of apple and 19,000 mu of red dates.
Enterprises like Yili and Dongda involved in sand control and afforesting and related industries surpassed 80 in number, 14 key prefectural enterprises and 2 leading national forest enterprises were born. The annual yield of products reached 35,000 tons, artificial boards 25,800 cubic meters, biomass-generated electricity 313 million degrees, creating a total value of 3.56 billion yuan and a sales volume of 3.15 billion yuan; and this business has put 100,000 farmers and herdsmen into work.
Taking advantage of the good ecological environment, Ordos actively developed ecological and cultural industries of sight-seeing in the grassland and desert tourism, and built 20 scenic spots like Engebei Desert, Xiangsha Bay and Seven-star Lake.