BEIJING, May 29 (AP) -- China's government on Monday reported modest success in its effort to control the spread of deserts that cover more than one quarter of the country.

The amount of land suffering from desertification is falling by 7,585 square kilometers (3,034 square miles) annually, the official Xinhua News Agency said, citing Zhu Lieke, deputy director of the State Forestry Administration.

But China's deserts still cover 2.64 million square kilometers (1.05 million square miles), or about 27 percent of the country, Zhu was quoted as saying at a conference on desertification.

China has planted thousands of hectares (acres) of vegetation to stop the spread of deserts in its north and west.

Officials said last month that the effort has reduced the severity of regular spring dust storms like the one that dumped choking yellow grit as far away as Japan in April.

But they said the problem can never be completely controlled.