Desertification in South China

Photo: Chen Zhiqing　
Time: 30^th May, 1996　
Site: Near Datang Town, Nanxiong County, Guangdong Province　
Height: 160 m
Brief Introduction: When talking about desertification, what appear in one’s brain are desert scenes in arid and semi-arid regions in northwest of China. While this picture was taken in Guangdong Province in south China, where the annual precipitation is over 1500 mm. Vegetation has been destroyed by irrational human activities. Running water erosion is terribly fierce on purple sandstone here which dose not hold much anti-erodibility. The picture shows that almost all surface soil has been washed out by storms, leaving bare rocks everywhere without any plants. The landscape got a name of ‘red desert’.