IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v10y2018i11p3909-d178717.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Landslides and Cropland Abandonment in China’s Mountainous Areas: Spatial Distribution, Empirical Analysis and Policy Implications

Author

Listed:
  • Xin Deng

    (College of Economics of Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work and should be regarded as co-first authors.)

  • Dingde Xu

    (Sichuan Center for Rural Development Research, College of Management of Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work and should be regarded as co-first authors.)

  • Miao Zeng

    (School of Economics of Sichuan University, Chengdu 610065, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work and should be regarded as co-first authors.)

  • Yanbin Qi

    (College of Economics of Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China)

Abstract

Cropland, as the largest land use type in the human landscape, contributes to not only biodiversity but also global food security. However, cropland abandonment not only is harmful to agricultural cultural landscapes but also threatens food security. Prior studies have suggested that changes in the social environment drive farmers to abandon cropland. In contrast, this study reveals that factors of the natural environment (e.g., landslides) have steadily and significantly affected cropland abandonment after controlling the factors of the social environment. More specifically, based on the survey data of a large sample of 4850 mountainous households in 24 provinces of China and following the theoretical framework of “environment → land use”, this study quantitatively identified the impacts of landslides on cropland abandonment in mountainous areas using the Probit and Tobit models. The results show that: (1) There is a similar spatial agglomeration trend between landslides and cropland abandonment. Namely, an area that has a high incidence of landslides also has a high incidence of cropland abandonment. (2) There is a significant and positive correlation between landslides and cropland abandonment. Namely, compared with peasants who have not suffered from landslides, the probability that peasants suffering from landslides will abandon cropland and the area abandoned increase by 6.8% and 0.064 mu, respectively. (3) Elderly farmers (over 64 years old) and the development of urbanization help curb cropland abandonment in the mountains. The results of this study may provide reference for the government to implement effective policies for managing landslides and revitalizing unused cropland resources.

Suggested Citation

  • Xin Deng & Dingde Xu & Miao Zeng & Yanbin Qi, 2018. "Landslides and Cropland Abandonment in China’s Mountainous Areas: Spatial Distribution, Empirical Analysis and Policy Implications," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-14, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:11:p:3909-:d:178717
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/11/3909/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/11/3909/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Renwick, Alan W. & Jansson, Torbjorn & Verburg, Peter H. & Revoredo-Giha, Cesar & Britz, Wolfgang & Gocht, Alexander & McCracken, Davy, 2011. "Policy Reform and Agricultural Land Abandonment," 85th Annual Conference, April 18-20, 2011, Warwick University, Coventry, UK 108772, Agricultural Economics Society.
    2. Prishchepov, Alexander V. & Radeloff, Volker C. & Müller, Daniel & Dubinin, Maxim & Baumann, Matthias, 2011. "Determinants of agricultural land abandonment in post-soviet European Russia," IAMO Forum 2011: Will the "BRICs Decade" Continue? – Prospects for Trade and Growth 1, Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Central and Eastern Europe (IAMO).
    3. Müller, Daniel & Leitão, Pedro J. & Sikor, Thomas, 2013. "Comparing the determinants of cropland abandonment in Albania and Romania using boosted regression trees," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 66-77.
    4. Jennifer Alix-Garcia & Tobias Kuemmerl & Volker C. Radeloff, 2012. "Prices, Land Tenure Institutions, and Geography: A Matching Analysis of Farmland Abandonment in Post-Socialist Eastern Europe," Land Economics, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 88(3), pages 425-443.
    5. Wenjiao Shi & Fulu Tao & Jiyuan Liu & Xinliang Xu & Wenhui Kuang & Jinwei Dong & Xiaoli Shi, 2014. "Has climate change driven spatio-temporal changes of cropland in northern China since the 1970s?," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 124(1), pages 163-177, May.
    6. Zou, Baoling & Mishra, Ashok K. & Luo, Biliang, 2018. "Aging population, farm succession, and farmland usage: Evidence from rural China," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 437-445.
    7. K. Warner & M. Hamza & A. Oliver-Smith & F. Renaud & A. Julca, 2010. "Climate change, environmental degradation and migration," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 55(3), pages 689-715, December.
    8. Dingde Xu & Jifei Zhang & Golam Rasul & Shaoquan Liu & Fangting Xie & Mengtian Cao & Enlai Liu, 2015. "Household Livelihood Strategies and Dependence on Agriculture in the Mountainous Settlements in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(5), pages 1-20, April.
    9. Li Peng & Lei Lin & Shaoquan Liu & DingDe Xu, 2017. "Interaction between risk perception and sense of place in disaster-prone mountain areas: a case study in China’s Three Gorges Reservoir Area," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 85(2), pages 777-792, January.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Deng, Xin & Xu, Dingde & Zeng, Miao & Qi, Yanbin, 2019. "Does Internet use help reduce rural cropland abandonment? Evidence from China," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    2. Jiang Du & Miao Zeng & Zhengjuan Xie & Shikun Wang, 2019. "Power of Agricultural Credit in Farmland Abandonment: Evidence from Rural China," Land, MDPI, vol. 8(12), pages 1-14, December.
    3. Zhuolin Yong & Linmei Zhuang & Yi Liu & Xin Deng & Dingde Xu, 2020. "Differences in the Disaster-Preparedness Behaviors of the General Public and Professionals: Evidence from Sichuan Province, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(14), pages 1-12, July.
    4. Rui Min & Hongxin Yang & Xu Mo & Yanbin Qi & Dingde Xu & Xin Deng, 2022. "Does Institutional Social Insurance Cause the Abandonment of Cultivated Land? Evidence from Rural China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(3), pages 1-11, January.
    5. Xin Deng & Zhongcheng Yan & Dingde Xu & Yanbin Qi, 2020. "Land Registration, Adjustment Experience, and Agricultural Machinery Adoption: Empirical Analysis from Rural China," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-14, March.
    6. Yingqian Huang & Fengqin Li & Hualin Xie, 2020. "A Scientometrics Review on Farmland Abandonment Research," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(8), pages 1-26, August.
    7. Xin Deng & Miao Zeng & Dingde Xu & Feng Wei & Yanbin Qi, 2019. "Household Health and Cropland Abandonment in Rural China: Theoretical Mechanism and Empirical Evidence," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(19), pages 1-13, September.
    8. Dingde Xu & Zhuolin Yong & Xin Deng & Linmei Zhuang & Chen Qing, 2020. "Rural-Urban Migration and its Effect on Land Transfer in Rural China," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-15, March.
    9. Yuchen Guo & Wei Song, 2019. "Spatial Distribution and Simulation of Cropland Abandonment in Wushan County, Chongqing, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(5), pages 1-25, March.
    10. Raju Rai & Yili Zhang & Basanta Paudel & Narendra Raj Khanal, 2019. "Status of Farmland Abandonment and Its Determinants in the Transboundary Gandaki River Basin," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(19), pages 1-18, September.
    11. Xu, Dingde & Deng, Xin & Huang, Kai & Liu, Yi & Yong, Zhuolin & Liu, Shaoquan, 2019. "Relationships between labor migration and cropland abandonment in rural China from the perspective of village types," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    12. Dingde Xu & Xin Deng & Shili Guo & Shaoquan Liu, 2019. "Sensitivity of Livelihood Strategy to Livelihood Capital: An Empirical Investigation Using Nationally Representative Survey Data from Rural China," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 144(1), pages 113-131, July.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Carolina Perpiña Castillo & Eloína Coll Aliaga & Carlo Lavalle & José Carlos Martínez Llario, 2020. "An Assessment and Spatial Modelling of Agricultural Land Abandonment in Spain (2015–2030)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-23, January.
    2. Guandong Su & Hidenori Okahashi & Lin Chen, 2018. "Spatial Pattern of Farmland Abandonment in Japan: Identification and Determinants," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-22, October.
    3. Robert Pazúr & Juraj Lieskovský & Matthias Bürgi & Daniel Müller & Tibor Lieskovský & Zhen Zhang & Alexander V. Prishchepov, 2020. "Abandonment and Recultivation of Agricultural Lands in Slovakia—Patterns and Determinants from the Past to the Future," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(9), pages 1-22, September.
    4. Deng, Xin & Xu, Dingde & Zeng, Miao & Qi, Yanbin, 2019. "Does early-life famine experience impact rural land transfer? Evidence from China," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 81(C), pages 58-67.
    5. Dingde Xu & Zhuolin Yong & Xin Deng & Yi Liu & Kai Huang & Wenfeng Zhou & Zhixing Ma, 2019. "Financial Preparation, Disaster Experience, and Disaster Risk Perception of Rural Households in Earthquake-Stricken Areas: Evidence From the Wenchuan and Lushan Earthquakes in China’s Sichuan Province," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(18), pages 1-17, September.
    6. Dingde Xu & Chen Qing & Xin Deng & Zhuolin Yong & Wenfeng Zhou & Zhixing Ma, 2020. "Disaster Risk Perception, Sense of Pace, Evacuation Willingness, and Relocation Willingness of Rural Households in Earthquake-Stricken Areas: Evidence from Sichuan Province, China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(2), pages 1-19, January.
    7. Dingde Xu & Wenfeng Zhou & Xin Deng & Zhixing Ma & Zhuolin Yong & Cheng Qin, 2020. "Information credibility, disaster risk perception and evacuation willingness of rural households in China," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 103(3), pages 2865-2882, September.
    8. Dingde Xu & Enlai Liu & Xuxi Wang & Hong Tang & Shaoquan Liu, 2018. "Rural Households’ Livelihood Capital, Risk Perception, and Willingness to Purchase Earthquake Disaster Insurance: Evidence from Southwestern China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-19, June.
    9. Xin Deng & Miao Zeng & Dingde Xu & Feng Wei & Yanbin Qi, 2019. "Household Health and Cropland Abandonment in Rural China: Theoretical Mechanism and Empirical Evidence," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(19), pages 1-13, September.
    10. Thiagu Ranganathan & Ghanshyam Pandey, 2018. "Who Leaves Farmland Fallow and Why? An Empirical Investigation Using Nationally Representative Survey Data from India," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 30(5), pages 914-933, December.
    11. Suresh Chaudhary & Yukuan Wang & Amod Mani Dixit & Narendra Raj Khanal & Pei Xu & Bin Fu & Kun Yan & Qin Liu & Yafeng Lu & Ming Li, 2020. "A Synopsis of Farmland Abandonment and Its Driving Factors in Nepal," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-22, March.
    12. Ionuț Săvulescu & Bogdan-Andrei Mihai & Marina Vîrghileanu & Constantin Nistor & Bogdan Olariu, 2019. "Mountain Arable Land Abandonment (1968–2018) in the Romanian Carpathians: Environmental Conflicts and Sustainability Issues," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(23), pages 1-11, November.
    13. Dingde Xu & Zhuolin Yong & Xin Deng & Linmei Zhuang & Chen Qing, 2020. "Rural-Urban Migration and its Effect on Land Transfer in Rural China," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(3), pages 1-15, March.
    14. Müller, Daniel & Leitão, Pedro J. & Sikor, Thomas, 2013. "Comparing the determinants of cropland abandonment in Albania and Romania using boosted regression trees," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 66-77.
    15. Wojciech Sroka & Bernd Pölling & Tomasz Wojewodzic & Miroslaw Strus & Paulina Stolarczyk & Olga Podlinska, 2019. "Determinants of Farmland Abandonment in Selected Metropolitan Areas of Poland: A Spatial Analysis on the Basis of Regression Trees and Interviews with Experts," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-23, May.
    16. David Fernández-Nogueira & Eduardo Corbelle-Rico, 2019. "Determinants of Land Use/Cover Change in the Iberian Peninsula (1990–2012) at Municipal Level," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(1), pages 1-12, December.
    17. Xueling Bao & Fengwan Zhang & Xin Deng & Dingde Xu, 2021. "Can Trust Motivate Farmers to Purchase Natural Disaster Insurance? Evidence from Earthquake-Stricken Areas of Sichuan, China," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-15, August.
    18. Castro, P. & Pedroso, R. & Lautenbach, S. & Vicens, R., 2020. "Farmland abandonment in Rio de Janeiro: Underlying and contributory causes of an announced development," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    19. Yuejuan Yang & Kun Wang & Di Liu & Xinquan Zhao & Jiangwen Fan & Jinsheng Li & Xiajie Zhai & Cong Zhang & Ruyi Zhan, 2019. "Spatiotemporal Variation Characteristics of Ecosystem Service Losses in the Agro-Pastoral Ecotone of Northern China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(7), pages 1-23, April.
    20. Raissa Sorgho & Isabel Mank & Moubassira Kagoné & Aurélia Souares & Ina Danquah & Rainer Sauerborn, 2020. "“We Will Always Ask Ourselves the Question of How to Feed the Family”: Subsistence Farmers’ Perceptions on Adaptation to Climate Change in Burkina Faso," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(19), pages 1-25, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:10:y:2018:i:11:p:3909-:d:178717. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.