Another blow to ecology

Building a golf course in a place facing serious water shortages and soil erosion is rubbing salt into an ecological wound. It can also be criminal to do so in a place where the central government has invested a lot of money on plants to reverse ecological degradation.

But that is exactly what is happening in Dongsheng district of Erdos in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region. In the past 11 years, the central government has invested millions of yuan in planting sea buckthorn trees, which have proven effective against soil erosion and in conserving underground water. Efforts by local residents and scientists have also made much progress to reverse water shortages and soil erosion.

Now a local company has built a practice course for golf in the area without permission from authorities. The course was using 5 million tons of water a year and all the sea buckthorn plants will die if the water needed is drawn from underground.