China promises to become an economic superpower in the 21st century, but it faces formidable environmental problems, such as acid rain, air and water pollution, desertification and soil erosion. According to a recent report from the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, the world's most populous nation could surpass Japan in GDP in 2015, but regional disparities like water shortages and chronic poverty in the western provinces would hamper development.
The difficulties that China faces in its quest for prosperity are already being acutely felt in development projects in its western region, particularly in arid areas ruined through centuries of desertification and soil erosion. About 17 percent of China is desert, most of which is found in the west, where poverty and drought are common.
Deserts already cover one-quarter of the earth's surface and pose growing a threat to human existence. Desertification -- the change of arable land into desert -- is caused by a variety of natural and human factors, including reduced rainfall due to climate change, unrestricted logging, overgrazing, reckless land cultivation and excessive gathering of wood for fuel.