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Assessing effects of afforestation projects in China: Cao and colleagues reply

Nature volume 466, page 315 (2010)Cite this article

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As Yang et al. point out, we focused on tree planting in China in our Correspondence; however, planting the wrong species of shrub can also cause depletion of soil water and exacerbate environmental degradation (X. M. Mu et al. Acta Pedologica Sinica 40, 210–217; 2003).

We disagree that the main factor responsible for soil erosion in drylands is run-off: serious soil erosion and related environmental disasters, such as desertification and sandstorms, are caused by wind — particularly where annual precipitation is less than 400 millimetres (X. M. Wang et al. Earth-Sci. Rev. 88, 188–206; 2008). Wind erosion can increase in grassland that has been invaded by shrubs or trees because the protective covering of grasses is damaged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Economics and Management, China Agricultural University, No. 2 Yuan Ming Yuan West Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100094, China

    Shixiong Cao & Guosheng Wang

  2. Water and Soil Conservation Institute of Yan'an City, Shaanxi, 716000, China

    Li Chen

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  1. Shixiong Cao
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  2. Guosheng Wang
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  3. Li Chen
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Cao, S., Wang, G. & Chen, L. Assessing effects of afforestation projects in China: Cao and colleagues reply. Nature 466, 315 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/466315d

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