Understanding Climate Hazard Patterns and Urban Adaptation Measures in China

Abstract

Climate-related risks pose a great threat to urban safety, infrastructure stability and socioeconomic sustainability. China is a country that crosses diverse geomorphic and climatic regions in the world and is frequently affected by various climate hazards. In this study, we propose a comprehensive analysis on the spatial pattern of major climate hazards in China from 1991 to 2020, including rainstorms, droughts, heatwaves, coldwaves, typhoons, and snowstorms, and generate an integrated sketch map on multi-hazard zones. It is detectable that South of the Yangtze River is in danger of heatwaves, rainstorms, and typhoons, while the North China Plain is more likely to suffer droughts. Coldwaves, snowstorms, and freezing mainly affect Northeast China, Northwest China, and the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. In the view of climate governance, cities are hotspots affected by intensified climate hazards in a warmer climate. There is an urgent need to incorporate a climate adaptation strategy into future city construction, so as to improve social resilience and mitigate climate impacts in rapid urbanization process. Specific adaptation measures have been developed from the perspectives of land-use planning, prevention standard, risk assessment, and emergency response to facilitate the understanding of climate resilience and urban sustainability.