IF YOU visit the Loess Plateau right now you will find a suitably luscious landscape in the province thought to be the cradle of Chinese civilisation.
Agricultural land is rich in produce and animals, tourism levels have significantly increased, and farmers are reaping the rewards of an economic boom on the land they own, not merely tend to.
It is incredible to think that little over 10 years ago this flourishing ecosystem was devastated to the point of collapse, and no longer able to support the population.
Centuries of unsustainable farming on the land caused alarming levels of soil erosion, flooding, nutrient depletion, crop failure, and poverty was widespread throughout the province.
No solution seemed sufficient, and after supporting settled agriculture for an estimated 9,500 years, the Loess Plateau seemed beyond repair.
Its transformation into today’s luscious green greatly contrasts the desolation of a decade ago.
The answer, we are told, lies in sustainable or regenerative farming, also known as permaculture.