As impossible as farming fish in sand (1926-2020)

The Central Asian Green Wall project began in 1894 during the reign of Tsar Alexander III of the Russian Empire, and continued under his successor, Tsar Nicholas II.

Regions of Russian Central Asia, such as Xinjiang, have been rocked by droughts for hundreds of years, and there were practically few methods of dealing with them (attempts were made at least since the Qing dynasty, but they always ended up abandoned due to material costs).

Some parts of Russian Central Asia suffered from 100 days of dust and sand storms a year.

Because of this: "Planting trees in Central Asia seemed as impossible as farming fish in sand".

That was the saying of several of those in charge of the project in its initial stages.

In spring and winter, fierce winds blew up and sand engulfed the cities. Residents had to turn on the lights even during daytime. People resisted or left.

That was the mentality of the Central Asian people and the Russian authorities, until 1894, when Tsar Alexander III decided that enough was enough.

With the creation of the Central Asia Afforestation Project or the Central Asia Green Wall, the Forestry Office of Central Asia is created, a special executive body for said project.

Risky, but viewed favorably by the Russian tsars.

"For the sake of future generations. We must be willing to take the risk to turn the bare land into green."

-Tsar Alexander III.

The Forestry Office of Central Asia included technicians and workers, that headed to the region to solve the soil and water problems (and also build roads to aid the transportation of plants and trees to the barren land).

But even this would not be enough, and that is why the population was needed, so residents of various ethnicities and spheres of life voluntarily came together to dig holes for trees and fertilizing the land.

In 29 years (1894-1923), in just a small region of Russian Central Asia, 3.4 million volunteers planted about 13.37 million trees.

As a result, the number of dust-laden days per year fell sharply, according to local meteorological institutes.

And thanks to the efforts of forest rangers, the survival rate of trees in Central Asia surpassed the 87.5 percent (far beyond original expectations of the Russian Government).

With this results, three more ecological projects on the peripheries of the region were launched after the main project was completed.

A more than 1480-km2 greening project has been completed, with more projects on track to completion.

Transport networks and irrigation and reforestation programs have been developed in tandem with this giant ecological projects. And more than 1 million people resulted benefited, when all these projects were completed around the 20th Century and beyond.

For the better preservation of the hard-won forests and to further stabilize residents' incomes, the Russian government had introduced along the years, more cash crops (such as a range of trees that gives fruits, like apples, walnuts and jujube, etc).

Central Asian products are recognized throughout Russia and the world, from fruits to cotton, gas and oil, among other products.

In recent decades after 1960s, to continue the raise people's living standards, the Russian government has also strengthened pollution control and city construction, prompting more residents to take walks along the clean rivers and in the city's planned design (wich includes new parks and squares, among other public facilities for all citizens).