Controlling blown sand along the highway crossing the Taklimakan Desert

The Taklimakan Desert is the largest dunefield in China and the second largest shifting dunefield in the world. Control of the blown sand is important for the highway and oil bases there. Comprehensive studies suggest that the effective and feasible measures to control the blown sand include reed checkboard barriers, upright clustered reed fences, upright reed fences, upright nylon net fences, chemical and clay fixers and artificial vegetation. In practice, based on the type and extent of blown sand damages, various control measures are combined to form effective shelter systems. Reed checkboards and fences are the most widely used along the highway because reed is the most easily available material. Nylon net fences are also widely used in places where sand drift is weak to speed up engineering construction. Chemical and clay fixers are useful to consolidate the side slopes of the road but not to be extended on a large scale due to their prohibitive cost. Artificial vegetation, which has provided a pleasing environment, is practiced in Tazhong to control blown sand. Because of their strong dependence on water, vegetative measures can be only recommended in areas where the ground-water is easily available and of reasonably good quality. Fully taking advantage of the road cross-section can avoid the damages by blown sand. (C) 2004 Published by Elsevier Ltd.