BEIJING — Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Saihanba Forest Farm in north China’sHebei Province. Three generations of tree planters’ unremitting efforts have turned the once vast barren land into the world’s largest man-made forest. …local government [described their work] in coordinating the protection and restoration of mountains, rivers, forests, farmland, lakes and grass, indicating that green development will be elevated to a higher position in the country’s modernization drive. Covering an area of about 93,000 hectares, Saihanba almost became a wasteland in the 1950s due to rampant tree felling operations… In 1962, hundreds of foresters embarked on tree planting in Saihanba to change the tide of rapid desertification. …the forest coverage has increased from 11.4 percent to 80 percent, currently supplying some 137 million cubic meters of clean water to the Chinese capital. …According to authorities, China has successfully halted the expansion of desertification by an annual average of 2,424 square kilometers.