内蒙古高原

　　内蒙古高原位于中国北部，面积约100万平方千米，平均海拔1,000米以上，是中国的第二大高原。

　　内蒙古高原开阔坦荡，地面起伏和缓。从飞机上俯视高原就像烟波浩瀚的大海。

　　高原上既有碧野千里的草原，也有沙浪滚滚的沙漠，是中国天然牧场和沙漠分布地区之一。

　　内蒙古高原气候十分干燥，沙漠分布面积占全国沙漠总面积的1/3以上。较大的沙漠有巴丹吉林沙漠、腾格里沙漠、乌兰布和沙漠和库布齐沙漠等。

　　黄河流经内蒙古高原中部时，河谷较宽展，泥沙在此堆积，成为肥沃的冲积平原，这就是被人们称为“塞上江南”的河套平原。

　　内蒙古高原是中国著名的天然草场。“天苍苍，野茫茫，风吹草低见牛羊”，曾是对草原的真实写照。但由于过度放牧等原因，导致草场退化，出现了荒漠化的现象。所以，中国正在实施的西部大开发战略，把改善生态环境作为重要举措之一。

　　The Inner Mongolian Plateau

　　With an area of about one million square kilometers and an altitude of more than 1,000 m, the Inner Mongolian Plateau is located in the north of China and is the second largest plateau in the country.

　　The Inner Mongolian Plateau is vast, with a moderately undulating surface. Seen from a plane, it looks like an immense sea. The plateau has not only vast green pastures, but also deserts of billowing sand. It is one of the areas where natural pasture and desert are distributed.

　　The Inner Mongolian Plateau has very dry weather and more than one-third of the total desert in China. There are comparatively big deserts, such as the Badain Jaran Desert, Tengger Desert, Ulanbu Desert and Kubuqi Desert.

　　The Yellow River passes through the Inner Mongolian Plateau, where the river valley expands and sand accumulates into the Hetao Plain - fertile alluvial plain - which is called "Jiangnan (areas south of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River) beyond the Great Wall" by people.

　　The Inner Mongolian Plateau is the famous natural grassland in China. The verse of "under boundless sky, on vast plains, cows and sheep can be seen when the wind blows and grass lowers" draws a vivid picture of the region. Due to the excessive grazing, the grassland has degenerated into desert in many places. Therefore, environmental improvement is an important part of the government"s western region development strategy.