A bird's-eye view of the carbon sequestration project in Wangwa town, Pengyang county, Ningxia. [Photo provided to seeningxia.com]
The first carbon sequestration transaction for a soil and water conservation project in the Yellow River Basin was signed in Yinchuan, Ningxia, on Sept 12.
The carbon sequestration project involved in this transaction is located in Wangwa town, Pengyang county. Covering an area of 28.86 square kilometers, scientific measurement and verification have determined that the total carbon sequestration from soil and water conservation in the watershed from 2002 to 2023 amounts to 93,000 metric tons.
The value of the ecological products from soil and water conservation in this area is estimated to exceed 3 million yuan ($422,774.88). In this transaction, 36,000 tons of carbon sequestration credits, amounting to 1.12 million yuan, were purchased.
Ningxia is a key region for soil erosion control in the Yellow River Basin and holds significant ecological importance. It has implemented over 700 national key projects for soil and water conservation, including comprehensive small watershed management, slope farmland improvement, and silt dam construction.
These efforts have cumulatively treated an area of 26,000 square kilometers affected by soil erosion. As a result, the soil erosion area decreased from 19,600 square kilometers in 2011 to 15,100 square kilometers in 2023, a reduction of 23 percent.