Background Benggang is a fragmented landform formed by the overall collapse of slope soil. Benggang erosion, the most serious erosion type in South China, has caused extremely intensive land degradation. Current control patterns of the Benggang erosion, neglecting the resource endowment of the Benggang lands themselves, either focus on ecological restoration with less attention on economic benefits, or use mechanized equipment to totally change the Benggang's landscape and morphology.

Methods By analyzing the resource endowment of the Benggang lands, we put forward the concept of the Benggang economics. Furthermore, we analyzed the major patterns to develop the Benggang economics and its relevance to the Benggang-erosion management, and gave some specific measures to promote the Benggang economics.

Results 1) The authors argued that the Benggang lands had a number of distinctive resource endowments. First of all, the Benggang lands may serve as earth-science popularization education bases; secondly, the spectacular landscape associated with intensive soil collapse can be used to develop tourism; thirdly, the alluvial sandy soil layer has potential to substitute river sand as constructional materials; and finally, the distinctive surface conditions related to the sandy soil in combination with the high daily temperature variation can foster characteristic agricultural products. 2) Based on these resource endowments, we proposed the notion of the Benggang economics and suggested that we should fully develop the primary industry together with the secondary and the tertiary industries on Benggang lands, thereby maximizing the land use efficiencies. The primary industry should mainly rely on the characteristic agriculture associated with the distinctive surface conditions on Benggang lands, rather than the traditional planting industry. The secondary industry mainly refers to the exploitation of the alluvial sands as a new mineral resource. The tertiary industry refers to the tourism and the associated services. The tourism has potentials to promote the whole Benggang economics and should receive more attention. The government should select some Benggang lands as science popularization education base for students, whereby attracting people and developing the Benggang economics. The Benggang economics implies 1) the original Benggang landscape should maintained as well as possible so as to utilize its own resource endowments as much as possible; 2) the gully measures such as check dams should receive priority in controlling the Benggang erosion risk. Accordingly, the government should allow the peasants to exploit and sell the alluvial sands so that they are willing to remove the alluvial deposition behind the dam regularly.

Conclusions As an initiative idea, the Benggang economics is closely relevant to rural revitalization. Governments should promote the establishment of demo bases of the Benggang economics as soon as possible.