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Why did farming on the edges of the Takla Makan Desert contribute to desertification?

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Map of Asia highlighting the location of the Takla Makan Desert in northwestern China, with the desert area shaded in orange. Surrounding regions, including parts of Europe, Africa, and the Pacific Ocean, are shown for geographic context. An inset in the top right corner provides a global view with the desert's location marked. — Takla Makan Desert The Takla Makan Desert is flanked by high mountain ranges: the Tien Shan to the north, the Kunlun Mountains to the south, and the Pamirs to the west.

Farming on the edges of the Takla Makan Desert has contributed to desertification primarily through unsustainable land-management practices in an already fragile, arid environment.12

Since the 1950s, the migration of sedentary agriculturalists into these marginal lands has led to significant ecological degradation. Key factors include:2

Low Soil Fertility: The soil in these regions has very low initial fertility. Once cultivated, yields drop rapidly after only a few years, forcing farmers to abandon the land. Because the soil is so poor, these fallow fields fail to revert to grassland and instead transition into desert.2
Overgrazing: Recent market-oriented reforms have encouraged a rapid expansion of herd sizes. This has led to overgrazing, which strips the land of vegetation and further intensifies the desertification process.2
Irrigation Impacts: Large-scale irrigation projects, while supporting agriculture, have diverted water from natural river systems like the Tarim River. This water loss, combined with the region's intense evaporation, has dried up downstream areas and contributed to the loss of natural vegetation that once stabilized the edges of the sands.3