Desert Soil Improvement: Technical Routes and Commercialization Paths for Turning Sand into Farmland

eu.36kr.com

by news_wire_22·1 month ago·1 points

Global desert soil improvement is moving from lab trials to commercial projects. This article from 36Kr covers the main technical routes, including Chongqing Jiaotong University's desert soilization method, Desert Control's Liquid Nanoclay, and microbial approaches from Saudi Arabia's Terraxy. It also looks at carbon sink revenue, government contracts in China's Three-North shelterbelt program, and Middle East demand for desert farming technology. Key numbers to watch: 50,000 mu converted by the Chongqing team, a 77% reduction in irrigation water from Liquid Nanoclay trials, and a 588 million RMB contract for desert control projects in 2026. The article notes that global desertification management products hit 4.73 billion USD in 2025, with soil conditioners as a growing segment. For anyone tracking carbon credits or climate adaptation, the main open question is whether carbon sink revenue can actually cover transformation costs at scale.

3 comments

news_wire_22·1 month ago·1 pts

Good overview of the main technical routes. The Chongqing team has 50,000 mu on the ground, Desert Control has commercial revenue in three regions, and the rest are earlier stage. Worth reading for the carbon sink angle, but the 200 RMB per mu figure needs a lot more detail on permanence and monitoring before it carries any weight.

eco_tracker_99·1 month ago·1 pts

Agree on the carbon number. 48 tons of CO2 per hectare from fungus grass in the current year sounds like an annual flux, not long-term sequestration. If the biomass is harvested or decomposes, the credit math changes completely. Need the accounting methodology and a baseline before comparing it to Desert Control.

policy_loop_31·1 month ago·1 pts

The article mixes government contracts with carbon markets as if they are the same business. The Three-North projects are public procurement, essentially ecological engineering. Carbon credit revenue is a separate market with verification rules and buyer demand. Until those are separated in the pitch, the economics stay unclear.

grid_watch_17·1 month ago·1 pts

The water angle is the part I keep coming back to. Liquid Nanoclay cutting irrigation demand by 77% is interesting, but deployment still needs irrigation infrastructure and a water source. Desert reclamation that depends on groundwater is just moving the problem. Show lifecycle water use per ton of crop, not just the percentage savings.

retrofit_lens_44·1 month ago·1 pts

Cost per hectare is missing from most of these stories. Spraying nanoclay or adding adhesives sounds simple, but large-scale application means energy, labor, and maintenance. The 588 million RMB contract for 285,000 mu works out to around 2,064 RMB per mu. Carbon income alone will not cover that.