Recently, a noteworthy project titled “Intelligent Management of Ecological Animal Husbandry” was recognized nationally in the Alshaa Desert Grassland. The project, conducted under the auspices of Alshaa Left Banner in Alshaa League, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, was selected as an outstanding case for national intelligent agriculture development in 2022. It was one of 74 cases recommended by the Information Center of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.
The project has been under research and development since 2000, keeping in mind the unique landscape of Alshaa League and the needs of its herders. As a result, it has developed technical equipment that includes an intelligent grazing system and an intelligent drinking water system. The core system for intelligent grazing employs internet and satellite positioning technology to improve animal husbandry.
The system’s internet technology connects herd location information and movement to monitoring equipment, facilitating intelligent identification, positioning, tracking, monitoring, and management. It can also identify remote grazing areas, provide automatic statistics, real-time monitoring of pasture information, timely acquisition of unusual and abnormal conditions, and decision-making controls.
To date, more than 500 herders in Alshaa have used over 2,000 sets of Beidou positioning equipment, managing about 30,000 camels through intelligent grazing. The calculations show that compared with the same period last year, camel herders can save more than 50 percent of grazing time and grazing costs of at least 5,000 yuan ($729) per year. The project has extended to other areas of Inner Mongolia, as well as to Gansu and Qinghai provinces.
Smart drinking water technology uses a network and monitoring camera, along with induction, automatic detection, and remote-control technology, to automate the management of electric water extraction. The technology started to be developed and promoted in farming and pastoral areas in 2015, and more than 1,000 smart drinking water devices have been installed for farmers and herders so far.