Résumé
China has the world’s longest history of soil bioengineering, with the first mention of giant fascines to control torrential floodwaters dating from over 2000 BC. However, soil degradation on steep slopes has accelerated hugely over the last 50 years, due to poor farming practice, deforestation, road and dam construction. The central government has therefore devised a series of major programs to reduce the exploitation of forest resources (Natural Forest Protection Program; NFPP) and to rehabilitate steep slopes by encouraging the conversion of cropland to forest and orchards (Sloping Land Conversion Program; SLCP). In this talk we define soil bio- and eco-engineering and how these techniques can be used to prevent landslides and erosion on hillslopes. We focus on case studies whereby vegetation has been used in conjunction with civil engineering to prevent landslides in Hong Kong and the social and practical aspects of planting on steep slopes to conserve soil on a large scale in mainland China. The successes and failures of tree planting and forest management in the NFPP and SLCP are discussed along with the priorities for future research and practical applications for using vegetation to fix soil on steep slopes prone to landslides and erosion