The Desert’s “Green Miracle”

The desert is often synonymous with a “forbidden zone of life.”

Here,
water is scarce,
plants are a luxury,
and barrenness and exposure define the landscape.

On this desolate land,
the echoing wind tells of life’s helplessness,
while frequent sandstorms warn of ecological fragility.

The application of Sand Film technology
unleashes the boundless potential hidden beneath every grain of sand,
awakening vitality in this once-silent land.

Sand Film empowers land improvement

BGI, in collaboration with the team led by Professor Yi Zhijian from Chongqing Jiaotong University, has promoted Sand Film technology by quantitatively adding plant-fiber binders within the top 20 centimeters of the desert surface. With a small amount of water as a medium, this process forms a “sand film” layer that stabilizes sand, retains water, and preserves nutrients.

Sand Film technology is the result of interdisciplinary innovation. Starting from a mechanics perspective, Professor Yi’s team discovered a universal bonding constraint mechanism that enables sand particles (granular matter) to transition from a discrete state to a rheological state. This led to the development of plant-fiber binders and successive pilot, intermediate, and large-scale trials, culminating in successful demonstrations across tens of thousands of mu.

Sand Film technology offers an innovative solution for sandy soil improvement. By altering the original mechanical properties and ecological structure of deserts, it enables sand to acquire soil-like characteristics, creating new possibilities for expanding cultivable land and achieving large-scale ecological restoration.

BGI Bioverse Ruoqiang (Qiemo) Demonstration Base, Bayingolin Prefecture

Natural soil typically has a “loose-top, compact-bottom” profile. After desert transformation, the upper layer becomes relatively compact while the lower layer remains loose sand. As a result, plant root systems develop more robustly, water and nutrient use efficiency improves, and crop yields increase.

Sand Film creates ecological miracles

Sand Film technology represents an ecological innovation. Through scientific and technological means, it addresses the challenge of shifting sand dunes and brings new life to deserts and barren lands.

At the Taklamakan Desert transformation demonstration base, crops such as corn, pearl millet, alfalfa, sorghum, foxtail millet, sunflowers, and tomatoes thrive. What was once a “forbidden zone of life” is now brimming with vitality.

Tomatoes

After eight years of field trials, the team found that in desert regions with an average annual precipitation of over 100 millimeters, drought-tolerant crops can grow naturally without any artificial irrigation, providing a new scientific approach for carbon sequestration and sink enhancement. With continued technological advancement and application, Sand Film technology is expected to create even broader ecological miracles in the future.

Sand Film opens a green future

The application of Sand Film technology not only improves land quality in desert regions but also offers new pathways toward green development.

By improving sandy land, vegetation coverage and biodiversity in desert areas gradually increase, enhancing carbon sink capacity and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This supports environmental sustainability and green ecological development. At the same time, improved land use efficiency boosts crop yields, creates employment opportunities for local communities, and promotes regional economic development.

Across vast deserts, BGI has launched a transformative ecological technology revolution driven by innovation. This is not only a technological breakthrough, but also a profound expression of humanity’s commitment to harmonious coexistence with nature.

BGI steadfastly implements the important guidance of President Xi Jinping from the symposium on strengthening comprehensive desertification control and advancing key ecological projects such as the “Three-North Shelterbelt Program.” Guided by the strategy of Green Development in the New Era, BGI continues to contribute to global ecological protection and sustainable development.