A Ukrainian strike drone hit a Russian fuel tanker on the Nova Kakhovka-Melitopol highway. The fuel tank immediately caught fire, so did the driver.

Since 1978, China has been carrying out one of the most ambitious ecological projects in human history: the Three-North Shelter Forest Program, often called the Great Green Wall.The goal is to halt the relentless advance of the Gobi and Taklamakan deserts. So far, China has planted more than 66 billion trees along a 2,800-mile (4,500 km) stretch. The government plans to plant another 34 billion trees by 2050, which could increase global forest cover by roughly 10% compared to late-1970s levels.The project was launched to combat severe soil erosion and the massive dust storms that have plagued northern China, including Beijing, for decades. Officials recently celebrated a major milestone: successfully encircling the Taklamakan Desert, helping raise the country’s overall forest coverage above 25%.Satellite observations and climate models show that these vast planted forests have already begun to alter local weather patterns by influencing the atmospheric water cycle in northern and western China.However, the project faces significant criticism. Much of the planting has relied on monocultures of fast-growing species like poplar and willow. These artificial forests lack biodiversity and have proven highly vulnerable to disease, in one province alone, over a billion trees were lost to pests. Additionally, planting water-hungry trees in arid regions has dramatically lowered groundwater levels, caused widespread tree die-off, and in some cases may have worsened desertification.As the program continues, many scientists are calling for a shift toward more diverse, native tree species that are better adapted to dry conditions and can survive long-term without depleting the region’s scarce water resources.Science and facts💡

A Ukrainian strike drone hit a Russian fuel tanker on the Nova Kakhovka-Melitopol highway. The fuel tank immediately caught fire, so did the driver.

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