Chinese authorities are leveraging solar farms to integrate crop cultivation and livestock rearing, contributing to the prevention of sandstorms and desert encroachment.
Located 805 kilometers west of Beijing, in the desert region of Inner Mongolia, a solar power project is underway. Over the next few decades, authorities in Ordos plan to install 100 gigawatts of photovoltaic panels, more than three times the capacity currently being developed across the United States, spanning a 400-kilometer long and 5-kilometer wide area. The project aims not only to generate vast amounts of clean electricity but also to restore barren land, bringing greenery and even livestock to an area as large as Puerto Rico. To achieve this, local authorities are combining solar expansion with desertification mitigation.
A solar farm in the Kubuqi Desert near Ordos. (Photo: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg).
China’s central role in the global expansion of solar power capacity is evident. They dominate the entire industrial chain from production to installation and maintenance of photovoltaic panels worldwide. Meanwhile, Beijing’s efforts to combat desertification have received less attention, despite a simultaneous focus on both activities.
Deserts occupy more than a quarter of China’s total land area. Since the 1950s, the country has sought to mitigate the severity and impact of dust storms, preventing deserts from encroaching on urban areas or fertile land in the long term. As climate change exacerbates desertification globally, Beijing has increasingly focused on this challenge.
Combining clean electricity generation technology that requires relatively low maintenance with vast tracts of land that receive abundant sunlight is a logical approach. Many Chinese companies have sought to deploy massive solar farms in the desert for over a decade, with varying degrees of success. However, in recent years, they have started to make significant progress.
The 6-year project in the Kubuqi Desert near Ordos, Inner Mongolia, is the result of years of effort by solar developers. Initially, they implemented measures such as creating sand barriers and planting trees to ensure operational safety. “They had to act to minimize damage to the local ecology and environment while also protecting their own facilities from devastating sandstorms. Surprisingly, their efforts have led to grass growing in the desert,” said Wang Weiquan, secretary-general of the Energy and Environment Council of the China Energy Research Society.
A 2022 study found that solar projects in the desert have led to a notable trend of greening. About one-third of the land beneath solar power plants built in 12 Chinese deserts has plant growth. Recent research indicates that photovoltaic panels not only provide shade, allowing for plant growth but also reduce ground wind speeds, preventing sand from being lifted. Many solar companies see an opportunity in this. They have begun researching suitable crops to plant beneath the panels. One effective crop they discovered is licorice, which can survive in harsh environments and enrich the soil by absorbing nitrogen from the air and converting it into the ground.
A solar farm in Kubuqi operated by Elion Resources Group, a Chinese company specializing in desert reclamation, also grows potatoes, watermelons, and raises sheep. Agricultural activities not only keep sand in place but also address two national goals: poverty alleviation (by providing jobs for local labor) and enhancing food security.
Since 2017, several major solar companies like Longi have been building experimental projects in the desert to demonstrate the ecological and social benefits of their initiatives. They also continue to improve their products for better performance in extreme weather. For instance, a 2-gigawatt solar power plant in Kubuqi connected to the grid last December uses bifacial panels to enhance electricity production and replaces traditional supporting structures with long wires that hold the panels from both sides, allowing for more space for agriculture and livestock rearing.
