Spatiotemporal Variations in Meteorological Disasters and Vulnerability in China During 2001–2020

Ying Li,Shanshan Zhao,Guofu Wang

doi:10.3389/feart.2021.789523

Ying Li, Shanshan Zhao + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.789523

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Abstract

Based on the Yearbook of Meteorological Disasters in China, we analyzed the spatiotemporal variations in major meteorological disaster (MD) losses at the provincial scale during 2001–2020 to determine the spatiotemporal variations in MDs and vulnerability in China. Our results suggest that the impacts of MDs, including floods, droughts, hail and strong winds (HSs), low temperature and frosts (LTFs), and typhoons, have been substantial in China. MDs in China affect an average of 316.3 million people and 34.3 million hectares of crops each year, causing 1,739 deaths and costing 372.3 billion yuan in direct economic losses (DELs). Floods and droughts affected more of the population in China than the other MDs. Fatalities and DELs were mainly caused by floods, and the affected crop area was mainly impacted by drought. The national average MD losses decreased significantly, except for DELs. The trends in the affected population and crop area were mainly caused by droughts, and the trends in fatalities and DELs were dominated by floods. Floods and typhoons showed increasing influence in the last two decades relative to other disasters. The annual mean and long-term trends in MD losses exhibited regional heterogeneity and were subject to different dominant hazards in different regions. The disaster losses and their trends in southeastern China were mainly attributed to typhoons. The affected population, crop area, and DELs were all significantly and positively correlated with exposure. The vulnerability of the population, crops, and economy tended to decrease. Economic development reduced the vulnerability of the population and economy but showed no significant influence on the vulnerability of crops. Our findings suggest that more focus should be placed on the impacts of floods and typhoons and that socioeconomic development has an important influence on the vulnerability of the population and economy. These results provide a foundation for designing effective disaster prevention and mitigation measures.

Highlights

China is one of the most vulnerable countries to natural disasters (NDs) in Asia, suffering half of its economic losses from weather, climate, and hydrological events in the region during 1970–2019 (WMO, 2021)
We analyzed the spatiotemporal characteristics of meteorological disaster (MD) losses at the provincial level in China during 2001–2020 to determine the vulnerability of the population, agriculture, and economy, as well as to disclose their relationships with regional economic development
From 2001 to 2020, major MDs in China affected an average of 316.3 million people and 34.3 million hectares of crops per year, caused 1,739 deaths, and costed 372.3 billion yuan in direct economic losses (DELs)

Summary

Introduction

China is one of the most vulnerable countries to natural disasters (NDs) in Asia, suffering half of its economic losses from weather, climate, and hydrological events in the region during 1970–2019 (WMO, 2021). Research based on the Emergency Event Database (EM-DAT, http://www.emdat.be/) from the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED) showed that mainland China experiences 19 major NDs per year on average, affecting 92 million people and causing 4,840 deaths (Zhou et al, 2013). Floods, storms, and droughts are the primary causes of death and economic loss in China (Wu et al, 2014; Wang et al, 2021). China has conducted county-scale disaster information surveys, and numerous research studies have been based on these high-resolution data (Shi et al, 2020; Xu and Tang, 2021). Floods severely impact the Yangtze River basin, and typhoons induce heavy losses in southeastern China (Zhao et al, 2017)

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