The executive meeting of the State Council discussed long-term goals to stem desertification yesterday, saying that the worsening of all improvable desertified land would be brought under control by the middle of the century.

Premier Wen Jiabao presided over the meeting, which heard reports on the issue from the State Forestry Administration.

In recent years, the area of desertified soil has been in net decrease, but China still suffers the gravest desertification in the world and prevention and control is still an arduous task.

The meeting said that by 2010 the environment in major desertified regions should have seen an obvious improvement, and that by 2020 over half of recoverable desertified soil should be improved. By 2050, the desertification of all such soil should be basically under control.

The meeting also discussed regulation of chemicals that can be used to make toxins, and said rules are essential to regulate their production, trade, transport, import and export.

(Xinhua News Agency August 18, 2005)