The classification and assessment of vulnerability of man-land system of oasis city in arid area

Abstract

Oasis city system is the center of the man-land relationship in arid area and it is the most influential spatial and temporal multiple dynamic system. Oasis city system is not only the largest area where artificial disturbances occur at a regional scale but also the most concentrated area of human activity in arid area. In this study, we developed an applicable and convenient method to assess vulnerability of man-land system of oasis cities with vulnerability indicator system, respectively evaluating the sensitivity, adaptability and vulnerability of the eco-environment system, the economic system and the social system. The results showed that the sensitivity and vulnerability of oasis cities in Xinjiang, China have significant differences while their adaptability does little. In order to find the inherent differences in the vulnerability of oasis cities, triangle methodology has been adopted to divide Xinjiang oasis cities into five types. Some adaptive developing policies specific for individual cities are also proposed based on their vulnerability type and constraining factors.

Keywords

vulnerability / sensitivity / man-land system / oasis cities / arid area

References

[1] Adger W N (2006). Vulnerability. Global Environmental Change, 16(3): 268–281

[2] Alessa L A, Kliskey A A, Brown G (2008). Social-ecological hotspots mapping: a spatial approach for identifying coupled social-ecological space. Landsc Urban Plan, 85(1): 27–39

[3] Berkes F, Colding J, Folke C (2002). Navigating Social-Ecological Systems: Building Resilience for Complexity and Change. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

[4] Eakin H, Luers A L (2006). Assessing the vulnerability of social-environmental systems. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 31: 365–394

[5] Gallopín G C (2006). Linkages between vulnerability, resilience, and adaptive capacity. Glob Environ Change, 16(3): 293–303

[6] Gao C, Jin F J, Lei J (2012a). Vulnerability assessment of economic system of oasis cities in arid area. Econ Geogr, 32(8): 43–49 (in Chinese with English abstract)

[7] Gao C, Lei J, Jin F J (2012b). Analysis on vulnerability of ecological environment system of oasis cities in Xinjiang. J Desert Res, 32(4): 1148–1153 (in Chinese with English abstract)

[8] Huang J, Cui S H, Qiu Q Y, Shi L Y, Ma K M (2010). Estimates of exposure of a coastal city to spatial use changes—a case study in Xiamen. International Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology, 17(4): 292–298

[9] IHDP (2001). 2001 IHDP (international human dimensions program) update. Special issue on vulnerability,2: 1–16. Available on line at: http://www.ihdp.org

[10] Kates R W, Clark W C, Corell R, Hall J M, Jaeger C C, Lowe I, McCarthy J J, Schellnhuber H J, Bolin B, Dickson N M, Faucheux S, Gallopin G C, Grübler A, Huntley B, Jäger J, Jodha N S, Kasperson R E, Mabogunje A, Matson P, Mooney H, Moore B 3rd, O’Riordan T, Svedlin U (2001). Environment and development. Sustainability science. Science, 292(5517): 641–642

[11] Lei J, Dong W, Yang Y, Lu J, Sterr T (2012). Interactions between water-land resources and oasis urban development at the northern slopes of the Tianshan Mountains, Xinjiang, China. Journal of Arid Land, 4(2): 221–229

[12] Li B, Tong L J (2008). Vulnerability and sustainable development mode of coal cities in Northeast China. Chin Geogr Sci, 18(2): 119–126

[13] Li H, Zhang P Y, Cheng Y Q (2009a). Economic vulnerability of mining city—a case study of Fuxin City, Liaoning Province, China. Chin Geogr Sci, 19(3): 211–218

[14] Li L, Shi Z H, Yin W, Zhu D, Ng S L, Cai C F, Lei A L (2009b). A fuzzy analytic hierarchy process (FAHP) approach to eco-environmental vulnerability assessment for the Danjiangkou reservoir area, China. Ecol Modell, 220(23): 3439–3447

[15] Liu X Q, Wang Y L, Peng J, Braimoh A K, Yin H (2013). Assessing vulnerability to drought based on exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity: a case study in middle Inner Mongolia of China. Chin Geogr Sci, 23(1): 13–25

[16] Liu Y X, Zhang X L, Lei J, Zhu L (2010). Urban expansion of oasis cities between 1990 and 2007 in Xinjiang, China. International Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology, 17(3): 253–262

[17] McCarthy J J, Canziani O F, Leary N A (2001). Climate Change 2001: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, Third Assessment Report of the IPCC. Cambridge UK: University Press

[18] National Research Council (2010). Understanding the Changing Planet: Strategic Directions for the Geographical Sciences. Washington: National Academies Press, 41–48

[19] Smit B, Burton I, Klein R J T, Street R(1999). The science of adaptation: a frame work for assessment. Mitig Adapt Strategies Glob Change, 4(3–4): 199–213

[20] Smit B, Wandel J (2006). Adaptation, adaptive capacity and vulnerability. Glob Environ Change, 16(3): 282–292

[21] Sun C L, Zhang X L, Jin N, Du H R, Ma W W (2010). Spatial difference features and organization optimization of cities and towns in Tarim River Basin. Journal of Arid Land, 2(1): 33–42

[22] Taylor J (2011). Community-based Vulnerability Assessment: Semarang, Indonesia. New York: Springer, 329–337

[23] Turner B L 2nd, Kasperson R E, Matson P A, McCarthy J J, Corell R W, Christensen L, Eckley N, Kasperson J X, Luers A, Martello M L, Polsky C, Pulsipher A, Schiller A (2003). A framework for vulnerability analysis in sustainability science. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 100(14): 8074–8079

[24] Wang S Y, Liu J S, Yang C J (2008b). Eco-environmental vulnerability evaluation in the Yellow River Basin, China. Pedosphere, 18(2): 171–182

[25] Wang X D, Zhong X H, Liu S Z, Liu J G, Wang Z Y, Li M H (2008a). Regional assessment of environmental vulnerability in the Tibetan Plateau: development and application of a new method. J Arid Environ, 72(10): 1929–1939

[26] Xiu C L, Cheng L, Song W, Wu W (2011). Vulnerability of large city and its implication in urban planning: a perspective of intra-urban structure. Chin Geogr Sci, 21(2): 204–210

[27] Yan L, Xu X G (2010). Assessing the vulnerability of social-environmental system from the perspective of hazard, sensitivity, and resilience: a case study of Beijing, China. Environmental Earth Sciences, 61(6): 1179–1186

[28] Yang Y, Zhang X L, Lei J, Dong W, Zeng W Y, Gao C (2010). Spatial integration of oasis city group around the western margins of the Tarim Basin. Journal of Arid Land, 2(3): 214–221

[29] Young O R, Berkhout F, Gallopin G C, Janssen M A, Ostrom E, van der Leeuw S (2006). The globalization of socio-ecological systems: an agenda for scientific research. Global Environmental Change— Human and Policy Dimensions, 16(3): 304–316

Acknowledgements

This work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 41171107, 41230632).

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

2014 Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg