Arid Zone Research ›› 2023, Vol. 40 ›› Issue (4): 663-669.doi: 10.13866/j.azr.2023.04.15

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Vulnerability assessment and spatiotemporal distribution of agricultural drought in Northwest China

LI Feifei1(),ZHOU Xia1(),ZHOU Yuxi2   

  1. 1. College of Economics and Management, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai’an 271018, Shandong, China
    2. School of Public Administration, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai’an 271018, Shandong, China
  • Received:2022-09-28 Revised:2022-11-17 Online:2023-04-15 Published:2023-04-28

Abstract:

Northwest China is an important agro-pastoral interleaved region, with a fragile ecology and agricultural production that is extremely sensitive to climate change. Studying the spatiotemporal distribution of agricultural drought vulnerability is key to effectively coping with drought. Based on the IPCC vulnerability assessment framework, considering the impact of evapotranspiration on soil water content, a multi-timescale drought index was incorporated into the index system, and the entropy weight method was used to measure the vulnerability of agriculture to drought; the spatiotemporal distribution of agricultural drought vulnerability and the evolution of cold and hot spot areas were also analyzed. The results show that the vulnerability of agriculture to drought in the northwest region showed a downward trend from 2010 to 2020, with the largest decline in 2010 to 2015, but the regional equilibrium was weakened and there was a “polar” phenomenon. The cold and hot spots of drought vulnerability in the northwest region changed significantly. In 2010, the hot spots were concentrated in the southwest of Xinjiang, and the cold spots were distributed in the north of Xinjiang and Ningxia. In 2020, the hot spot area shifted to the south of Gansu and Qinghai, and showed an outward radiation phenomenon, while the cold spot area was mainly concentrated in northern Xinjiang.

Key words: Northwest China, agricultural drought vulnerability, IPCC assessment framework, entropy weight method, analysis of space hot spot detection, drought index