The "Great Bend" of the Yellow River represents a critical front in the new era's "Three North" Shelterbelt Development Program. Qingyang City in Gansu Province, situated within the fragmented loess plateau region of eastern Gansu, serves as the primary ecological barrier against sandstorms advancing southward from the north. By the spring of 2026, an ecological conservation campaign here is accelerating, driven by technological empowerment and innovative models. From using drones to "air-drop" saplings to overcome steep slope afforestation challenges, to "cloud-based tree planting" enabling public participation across distances, and exploring economic returns from ecological forests—Qingyang is drafting a contemporary response centered on ecological priorities and green development.

In the spring landscape of Zhenyuan County's Pu River Basin, drones ascend along pre-set flight paths over rugged terrain, accurately delivering bundled Chinese pine and spruce saplings to steep slopes inaccessible by manual labor. Below, villagers promptly collect the air-dropped saplings, digging holes and planting them with seamless efficiency. "In the past, afforestation on such steep slopes relied entirely on human labor—carrying loads on our backs. We'd be exhausted by the end of the day, with low efficiency and high risks," remarked He Yongnian, a project technician, wiping sweat from his brow as he gestured toward the operating drones. "Now, this 'iron helper' can do the work of over a dozen people in a day. It's not only safer but also multiplies the planting speed several times over."

Qingyang's entire area falls within the core zone of the Yellow River's "Great Bend" campaign. The region's fragmented topography, characterized by deep gullies and steep slopes—particularly in northern areas like Huachi and Huan counties, which border the Mu Us Sandy Land—has long posed significant challenges for afforestation. The difficulty of accessing steep slopes created a persistent bottleneck. The introduction of drone technology has begun to reverse this predicament. Beyond transporting saplings, technology now permeates the entire project management process. According to Qingyang Forestry and Grassland Bureau officials, innovative use of drone mapping and comparison systems enables full-process supervision, shifting project design from "post-review" to "pre-guiding," reducing the time from task assignment to design approval to approximately 30 days, with initial acceptance qualification rates exceeding 95%. "We can trace every sapling's origin, planting location, and survival rate through backend data," He Yongnian added, noting that aerial capabilities provide not only breakthroughs for greening steep slopes but also a "sky-eye" for precise quality control.

While drones buzz over barren mountains, a "cloud-based tree planting" initiative is simultaneously unfolding in urban areas. Li Na, a resident of Xifeng District, recently adopted a Chinese pine in Huachi County through the "National Voluntary Tree Planting" online platform. With a few taps on her smartphone to complete payment, she promptly received an electronic "Voluntary Tree Planting Certificate." "Before, if you wanted to plant a tree, you either couldn't find a suitable location or lacked the time to visit a site. Now, participation is just a finger-tap away, and you can monitor the growth of your adopted tree anytime. It feels incredibly rewarding," Li Na shared with a smile. This initiative exemplifies Qingyang's exploration of an "internet plus national voluntary tree planting" model. Through the online platform, the city has launched public donation projects such as "Ancient and Famous Tree Protection" and "'Three North' Program Love Forests." Citizens can simply follow an official account or log into a designated website to schedule tree-planting activities or choose participation methods, achieving "cloud planting and online engagement."

"For participants who complete either offline physical labor or online donations, we issue the 'Voluntary Tree Planting Certificate' in accordance with regulations," explained He Dengning, Deputy Director of the Qingyang Forestry and Grassland Bureau. "The 'internet plus' model breaks temporal and spatial constraints, allowing more people to conveniently participate in ecological construction and further stimulating public enthusiasm for planting, loving, and protecting green spaces. Making共建绿色家园 a social conscious action is our original intention in continually enriching the substance and innovating the forms of national voluntary tree planting." Data shows that this year alone, over 20,000 citizens have participated in voluntary tree planting via the online platform, with raised funds used for sapling procurement and subsequent maintenance, fostering an atmosphere of "collective participation and shared benefits."

In Jingjiagou near Mafangyuan Village, Huancheng Town, Huan County, villager Jing Dengke pointed to a newly constructed water detention basin beside the gully. "Before, heavy rains would cause the gully head to collapse, washing the plateau's soil downstream. We watched our land grow thinner. Now it's better—the gully head is filled, the basin holds water, and our minds are at ease," he said. Bordering Huachi County, Huan County's location in the fragmented loess plateau region made soil erosion a persistent concern. Zhao Haifeng, an engineer with the Huan County Soil and Water Conservation Management Bureau, grew up in the area and vividly recalls scenes of torrential rains scouring the loess plateau: "Rainwater would carry surface sediment into the gullies, 'cutting' the plateau and deepening the gullies." Since 2020, Huan County has implemented the Loess Plateau Surface Protection Project, with Jingjiagou's gully head management being one component. Today, water detention basins and diversion channels on the plateau direct surface runoff into the basins; eroded gully heads are backfilled and reinforced, with hundreds of level terraces neatly arranged on the slopes. "Water flows into gullies more slowly, with less sediment, and the stored water can be used for irrigation," Zhao Haifeng noted. Over five years, Huan County has protected over 150,000 mu of plateau surface, constructed 30 new silt-trapping dams, and completed comprehensive soil and water loss control on more than 2 million mu.

Scientific management extends beyond soil and water conservation to every aspect of species selection and industrial layout. "On barren mountains and slopes with poor site conditions, we prioritize planting trees and shrubs with strong ecological protective functions, such as Chinese pine, spruce, and lilac. On gentler terrain with better conditions, we vigorously plant dual-purpose ecological and economic species like wild apricot and peach, striving to unify ecological and economic benefits," explained He Yongnian. This "adaptation to local conditions" approach is yielding substantial ecological economic results. Sea buckthorn, drought-tolerant and wind-resistant, thrives on many barren slopes while being rich in nutrients, becoming a "green bank" for increasing incomes. Last year, Huachi and Huan counties established over 10,000 mu of new sea buckthorn bases, bringing their cumulative sea buckthorn forest area to over 550,000 mu. Tailoring to different terrains, the counties have developed sea buckthorn forests primarily for ecological protection, as well as sea buckthorn tea gardens and orchards for higher economic returns. Liang Fan, a senior engineer at the Huachi County Natural Resources Bureau, reported that a local bio-tech company has established nine production lines for processing and packaging sea buckthorn berries, tea, pulp, and seed oil. In 2024, it launched over 20 sea buckthorn products with a total output value exceeding 40 million yuan. In the first half of 2025, sea buckthorn pulp was exported for the first time, accessing international markets.

Amid reforms to deepen the collective forest tenure system, Qingyang is exploring new pathways for integrated ecological-economic development. Caijiamiao Township in Qingcheng County employs a three-dimensional management model of "mushrooms on shady slopes, chickens on sunny slopes, and medicinal herbs in forest gaps," achieving an average income of over 5,000 yuan per mu. Leveraging resources from the Ziwuling Forest Area, Huachi County has developed the cultivation of medicinal herbs like Chinese thorowax root and Codonopsis pilosula, along with sika deer breeding, generating 450 million yuan in understory economy output for the county. Statistics indicate the city's total understory economy output has reached 855 million yuan, a 14.9% increase from 2023. More promisingly, Qingyang is promoting the northwest's first nationally certified voluntary emission reduction afforestation carbon sink project—the "Gansu Ziwuling Forestry Administration Ziwuling Forest Area Afforestation Carbon Sink Project"—which is expected to trade on the Beijing Green Exchange, with projected total revenues exceeding 100 million yuan.

Establishing green cover on barren mountains is followed by the crucial task of nurturing it into lush forests. At the Dafengchuan Forest Farm in Huachi County, 58-year-old Qiao Genning rides a motorcycle with his 30-year-old son Qiao Jiaming on the back, patrolling through the woods. Located in the Gansu Ziwuling area, Qiao Genning recalls his father planting trees there since his childhood. In 1996, Qiao Genning began working at the Dafengchuan Forest Farm. Tasks included digging fish-scale pits, firming soil around roots, and watering. As large-scale afforestation progressed, he transitioned to forest patrol duties in 2004. "Protecting forests is no easier than planting them. You have to worry about clearing mountains, inspecting forests, banning grazing, and preventing pests and diseases—every aspect," he remarked, having walked this path for over 20 years. His son Qiao Jiaming later trained as a professional forest ranger. Three years ago, he joined his father as a colleague at the forest farm, witnessing improvements in forest protection: over 50 kilometers of forest roads have been repaired, five ranger stations now have water and electricity, and technological tools like drones assist in patrols.

To ensure afforestation success, Qingyang has established a comprehensive working mechanism. It innovatively built a "2+3" new afforestation management system, reinforcing responsibilities for mountain closure/grazing bans and young forest tending, ensuring no lapse in management during the critical five-year growth cycle. The city has appointed 6,110 forest chiefs at city, county, township, and village levels (10 city-level, 108 county-level, 1,222 township-level, 4,770 village-level), employing 10,988 full-time and part-time forest and grassland rangers, forming a collaborative "forest chief + ranger + construction enterprise" protection network. Technology also empowers management. Qingyang utilizes drones equipped with thermal imaging for dynamic monitoring from 500-meter altitudes. The Xifeng District Forest Fire Brigade has established an integrated "aerial patrol + ground response" prevention and control system, effectively mitigating fire and pest risks. "Drones can fly up to 500 meters high. Using thermal imaging, any anomalies detected are immediately located and reported to rangers for disposal," explained Li Jin, a spokesperson for the Xifeng District Forest Fire Brigade.

"From land preparation and seedling selection to planting, we strictly control every step to ensure afforestation quality," stated a responsible official from the Huan County Natural Resources Bureau. For project management, the county divides areas into responsibility zones, implements team-based contracting, and has established a construction management model where section-level officials oversee zones, technical staff are stationed on-site, and supervision units are resident. Currently, Qingyang is accelerating the construction layout of the "One Screen, Five Zones" project. Focusing on the six major governance tasks of the Yellow River's "Great Bend" campaign, it is systematically implementing significant ecological projects including forest management, water purification, gully stabilization, plateau protection, land remediation, and mine rehabilitation, aiming to complete 1.16 million mu of forest and grassland ecological construction and plant 4 million trees through voluntary efforts within the year. "We are fully committed to winning the battle of the Yellow River's 'Great Bend' and strengthening the ecological security barrier of the eastern Gansu loess plateau," He Dengning affirmed.