Forestry and Grassland Engineers and Technicians Green occupation

How to become a Desertification Control Engineer

Official Chinese title (2022 occupational classification): 防沙治沙工程技术人员

Plans projects to stop and reverse desertification, designs the work, gives technical guidance, and surveys, monitors and assesses resources.

Main tasks

Drawing up project plans and delivery plans and designing the work
Giving technical guidance during construction
Surveying and monitoring land turning to desert and forecasting how it will change
Surveying and monitoring natural resources in desertifying areas and assessing ecological condition
Drawing up regional plans based on ecological surveys and assessments
Drawing up plans to protect, restore and survey vegetation in sandy areas and seeing them carried out
Promoting new technology, methods and materials for controlling desertification
Designing, managing and checking the results of sand barriers, tree planting, aerial seeding and closing land for natural regrowth
Surveying and designing access roads and supporting infrastructure in sandy areas and guiding construction

Ways in

University: Agriculture & Environment degrees, Offered by 83 universities in China Related undergraduate subject classes in the Ministry of Education catalogue (2025): Forestry (0905); majors such as Forestry, Landscape Gardening, Forest Protection, Economic Forestry, Smart Forestry. Matched to the occupation by Peernovo.
University: Engineering degrees, Offered by 105 universities in China Related undergraduate subject classes in the Ministry of Education catalogue (2025): Forestry Engineering (0824); majors such as Forest Engineering, Wood Science and Engineering, Forest Products Chemical Engineering, Furniture Design and Engineering, Timber Architecture and Materials. Matched to the occupation by Peernovo.

Pay · AI and this job

Median pay in China: CN¥79,500 a year (2025).
Middle half: CN¥55,200 to CN¥123,700. One in ten earn less than CN¥42,000 and one in ten more than CN¥192,300.
This is the figure for the mid group Engineering and Technical Personnel, not for this job alone.
National figure: wage prices of enterprise employees from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) enterprise pay survey. The public sector and the self-employed are not covered.
Guangzhou only: median CN¥96,320 a year (2025), middle half CN¥71,956 to CN¥112,228.
This is the figure for the minor group Forestry and Grassland Engineers and Technicians, not for this job alone.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

The census group Engineering and Technical Personnel holds 2.35% of everyone employed in China; 17.1% of its workers are women (2020 Census).
48.9% are under 35, 45.1% are 35 to 54 and 6% are 55 or older. The middle age band is 35 to 39.
Census figures for the whole mid group (2020 long-form sample), not for this job alone.

Questions people ask

How do I become a Desertification Control Engineer?

Ways in include: Agriculture & Environment degrees; Engineering degrees.

How much does a Desertification Control Engineer earn in China?

Across China, the median pay of enterprise employees is CN¥79,500 a year (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS), 2025). The public sector and the self-employed are not covered. It is the figure for the mid group Engineering and Technical Personnel. In Guangzhou alone it is CN¥96,320 a year (2025).

Will AI change the work of a Desertification Control Engineer?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS): 2025 enterprise pay survey information: wage prices of enterprise employees by occupation mid group, and digital occupations (P10 to P90 annual CNY) (2025 (published 2026-07-08)), retrieved 5 October 2026
Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau: Guangzhou 2025 labour market wage prices (P10 to P90 annual CNY by occupation) (2025 (enterprise pay survey)), retrieved 4 October 2026
National Bureau of Statistics of China: China Population Census Yearbook 2020, long-form tables 4-6 and 4-7 (employed by occupation mid group, sex, age) (2020 Census long form (10% sample)), retrieved 4 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation, National Bureau of Statistics: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China, 2022 edition (public consultation draft) (2022 public consultation draft (1,636 occupations; final edition 1,639)), retrieved 4 October 2026

Sources: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition, public consultation draft), Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation and National Bureau of Statistics; Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, 2025 enterprise pay survey information; Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, 2025 labour market wage prices; National Bureau of Statistics of China (www.stats.gov.cn), 2020 Population Census yearbook; Ministry of Education, vocational education major profiles (2022 revision) and undergraduate major catalogue (2025); Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, national vocational qualifications catalogue (2021); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Figures processed by Peernovo. English text, translations and the matching of occupations to ISCO-08, majors, degree fields and qualifications by Peernovo.

Descriptions and tasks are Peernovo's own words, written from the facts in the Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition). Job titles and work types are the classification's own.

Updated 5 October 2026