(MENAFN- EIN Presswire) EINPresswire / -- Recently, employees from the State Grid Fuxin Power Supply Company conducted special patrols and thermal inspections on the 10kV Guangzheng Line at the Sihucheng State-Owned Forest Farm in Zhangwu County, Fuxin City, Liaoning Province, ensuring the safe and stable operation of the power grid during winter.

Sihucheng Forest Farm lies on the southern edge of the Horqin Sandy Land, an area long plagued by severe natural conditions. In the past, sandstorms often darkened the sky, and locals would lament,“A bowl of rice comes with half a bowl of sand.” Liujiacun Village, surrounded by endless dunes, was a vivid example-seeds planted one day would be blown away or buried the next.

In 2001, then-village chief Hou Gui took on a daunting challenge by leasing a section of barren sandy land within the Sihucheng Forest Farm. He signed a three-year afforestation trial agreement to explore reforestation as a means to combat desertification. Thanks to his high tree survival rate, he expanded the effort in 2004, contracting 2,073 mu (about 345 acres) for reforestation.

Hou's collaboration with power supply employees dates back to 2001, when Zhang Guocheng-then an operations worker at the Sihucheng Town Power Supply Office-helped him inspect power lines and repair water pumps. In 2006, the State Grid launched the“Electricity Access for All” project to bring power to previously unelectrified rural areas. That July, the power supply team installed 2.2 kilometers of lines, erected 44 poles, and set up a 20 kVA transformer, delivering electricity directly to Hou's forest plots.

With electricity in place, Hou expanded his reforestation area. By spring 2022, he had dug six new machine-operated wells, but the existing power infrastructure could not meet the growing irrigation demand. Upon learning of the issue, employees from the Fuxin Power Supply Company upgraded the transformer to 50 kVA and extended more than 500 meters of low-voltage lines. Within just three days, they provided power to seven wells.“Wherever my trees are planted, the power lines follow,” Hou said proudly.

From April to August each year-the crucial period for newly planted trees to take root-the Fuxin Power Supply Company classifies Hou as a priority customer. During this season, employees conduct daily patrols and inspections to ensure safe operation of the wells' power lines and promptly resolve any electricity-related problems.

As greenery advances, the sands retreat. As electricity advances, the sands retreat as well. With the power grid paving the way, lush vegetation steadily replaces barren land. These“heroes of reforestation” and“pioneers of electricity” work hand in hand, extending both power lines and hope across a once desolate landscape.

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