Arable Land In China Research Articles

Breaking the Boundary between Permanent Capital Farmland and Arable Land in China: Understanding State and Drivers of Permanent Capital Farmland Non-Grain Production in a Rapid Urbanizing County

Amid unprecedented challenges to protect arable land, China’s permanent capital farmland (PCF) has played a crucial role in grain production. However, a clear legal and physical boundary between PCF and arable land seems to be unable to stop the spread of non-grain production. To address it, an analysis framework for PCF non-grain production was developed to examine the state and drivers of village-scale PCF non-grain production based on the logical relationship between PCF and arable land in the rapid urbanization of Liyang. The results suggested that PCF comprised approximately 70% arable land and 30% adjustable land. Meanwhile, forest land and aquaculture ponds occupied over 25% of PCF, while nearly 20% of PCF is unsuitable for the resumption of crop cultivation. The transition state (scenario SR) offered a realistic representation of PCF non-grain production, with an average non-grain production of 48.88%. This is 14.00% lower than the current state (scenario SD) and 9.65% higher than the future state (scenario ST). Furthermore, PCF area and agricultural income per capita significantly encouraged PCF non-grain production, with explanatory powers of 51.60% and 42.40%, respectively. In contrast, urbanization rate (with an explanatory power of 35.30%) significantly discouraged it. Therefore, this paper proposed PCF redefinition, flexible PCF, and diversified economic incentives to mitigate PCF non-grain production at the village scale.

A New Land Use Dataset Fusion Algorithm for the Runoff Simulation Accuracy Improvement: A Case Study of the Yangtze River Basin, China

Monitoring and understanding the development of agricultural management requires fine information on multiple agricultural land use classes. According to the main data bulletin of China’s third national land survey released in 2021, the proportion of arable land in China accounts for 16% of the total land area. After excluding areas that are not suitable for development (slope greater than 25 degrees), the remaining area represents arable land affected by human activities, constituting 96.69% of the total arable land area in the country. Artificially irrigated areas are products of the intertwined interactions between the natural environment and human society. However, the original remote sensing image (China’s land use/cover datasets, CLUDs), which is designed to depict the land use and cover patterns in mainland China, categorizes arable land into two main types: paddy fields and dryland. It lacks a subdivision of artificially irrigated areas. We also found a data discrepancy of more than 10% between the statistical data of rice and the paddy field data in CLUDs. To refine land use data, and then improve the simulation accuracy of the hydrological model, this article proposes a dual-source datasets fusion algorithm, learning based on big data, namely the LUCC statistical data fusion (LUSF) algorithm for integrating the remote sensing-based cropland area dataset and statistics dataset. The runoff simulation results show that, in the Yangtze River Basin, using LUSF datasets, the mean absolute percentage error value of monthly simulated runoff decreased by 0.74%, and the root mean square error value decreased by 0.22 million m3. At the basin scale, the absolute error of the simulated runoff is reduced by an average of 433 million m3 per year, and 36 million m3 every month. The LUSF datasets corrected the canopy interception coefficient effectively; the runoff simulation error was reduced by 2.96 billion m3/a. In the past 40 years, the runoff variation in Dongting Lake and Hanjiang River has been most strongly impacted by changes in the underlying surface. These results reveal that the new data fusion method has some significant improvement over the original method, applicable to the runoff simulation disturbed by strong human activities.

Potentially suitable habitats of Daodi goji berry in China under climate change.

Goji berry (Lycium barbarum L.) is a famous edible and medicinal herb worldwide with considerable consumption. The recent cultivation of goji berries in the Daodi region was seriously reduced due to increased production costs and the influence of policy on preventing nongrain use of arable land in China. Consequently, production of Daodi goji berry was insufficient to meet market demands for high-quality medicinal materials. Searching for regions similar to the Daodi region was necessary. The MaxEnt model was used to predicted the current and future potential regions suitable for goji berry in China based on the environmental characteristics of the Daodi region (including Zhongning County of Zhongwei prefecture-level city, and its surroundings), and the ArcGIS software was used to analyze the changes in its suitable region. The results showed that when the parameters were FC = LQHP and RM = 2.1, the MaxEnt model was optimal, and the AUC and TSS values were greater than 0.90. The mean temperature and precipitation of the coldest quarter were the most critical variables shaping the distribution of Daodi goji berries. Under current climate conditions, the suitable habitats of the Daodi goji berry were 45,973.88 km2, accounting for 0.48% of China's land area, which were concentrated in the central and western Ningxia Province (22,589.42 km2), and the central region of Gansu Province (18,787.07 km2) bordering western Ningxia. Under future climate scenarios, the suitable area was higher than that under current climate conditions and reached the maximum under RCP 6.0 (91,256.42 km2) in the 2050s and RCP 8.5 (82,459.17 km2) in the 2070s. The expansion regions were mainly distributed in the northeast of the current suitable ranges, and the distributional centroids were mainly shifted to the northeast. The moderately and highly suitable overlapping habitats were mainly distributed in Baiyin (7,241.75 km2), Zhongwei (6,757.81 km2), and Wuzhong (5, 236.87 km2) prefecture-level cities. In this stduy, MaxEnt and ArcGIS were applied to predict and analyze the suitable habitats of Daodi goji berry in China under climate change. Our results indicate that climate warming is conducive to cultivating Daodi goji berry and will not cause a shift in the Daodi region. The goji berry produced in Baiyin could be used to satisfy the demand for high-quality medicinal materials. This study addresses the insufficient supply and guides the cultivation of Daodi goji berry.

Impact and mechanism of the “three rights separation” of agricultural land on the output efficiency of arable land in China：Based on the production factor perspective

Impact and mechanism of the “three rights separation” of agricultural land on the output efficiency of arable land in China：Based on the production factor perspective

Problems of “Non-Food” Cultivated Land in China in the New Period and Suggestions for Countermeasures

With China's economic and social development, under the influence of many factors, such as the low efficiency of grain cultivation and the formation of a pattern of specialization in agricultural production, the phenomenon of “de-farming” and “de-fooding” of arable land has begun to emerge in some areas. “Non-food” in China's food production space at the same time, but also on the arable land will produce different degrees of damage. Therefore, this paper analyzes the background and challenges of the “degrading” of arable land in China in the new era, and reveals in depth the regional and typological characteristics of the “degrading” of arable land, its causes, and its impact on food and ecological security. The paper finds that the background of “non-food” cropland stems from the diversification of agricultural production and the need to explore alternative land uses other than traditional food crops, and poses a challenge to China's food security by affecting the food supply. In the future, we should explore the formation of a long-term mechanism to strengthen the policy guidance of “non-food” and improve the efficiency of arable land for food cultivation in order to stimulate farmers' incentives to grow food. The article puts forward countermeasures to enhance the willingness of business entities to grow food and prevent the “degrazing” of arable land from the perspectives of policy guidance, multi-party participation, standard construction and compensation mechanism, with a view to providing certain reference significance for the protection of arable land in China in the future.

Food Security and Land Use under Sustainable Development Goals: Insights from Food Supply to Demand Side and Limited Arable Land in China.

The conflict between economic growth and the arable land demand poses a significant challenge to maintaining food security and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Meanwhile, substantial regional disparities in food consumption contribute to variations in land demand, further exacerbating constraints on food security. However, few studies have delved into regional differences in land demand related to food consumption. To bridge these gaps, this study estimated the arable land demand and associated pressures, considering food consumption patterns and the land footprint across 31 provincial districts in China. The findings reveal that grains remain the primary crop consumed by Chinese residents. Notably, the food consumption pattern exhibits substantial disparities among provincial districts, particularly concerning livestock products. Given China's vast population and escalating consumption of livestock, the country demonstrates heightened land demands. While China does not face a national-level food security threat, regional disparities are evident, with eight provincial districts facing potential food security risks. This study explored the challenges and pathways in maintaining food security and the visions to achieve it, emphasizing the importance of sustaining a balanced food consumption pattern, reducing food waste, improving environmentally friendly agriculture practices, formulating effective and continuous laws and regulations, and exploring potential land resource development to alleviate the pressure on arable land and ensure food security.

Analysis of Land Degradation and Its Impact on China's Food Security

Land degradation is an important problem facing the world. China's attention and scientific research on land degradation started relatively late, and it is still in the process of understanding and deepening in many aspects. Important scientific issues such as the concept of land degradation, the causes and classification of degradation, the monitoring indicators and means of degradation, the evaluation system and the early warning mechanism are still in the early stage of discussion, and the academic circles at home and abroad are still in the stage of controversial exploration in many aspects, and no general consensus has been formed so far. Therefore, through the research and analysis of domestic and foreign literature, this paper summarized the meaning of land degradation, analyzed the current situation of land degradation research and the impact of land degradation on China's food security, in order to provide scientific basis for land degradation prevention and management, and provide decision-making basis for improving the quantity and quality of arable land in China and ensuring food security.

Spatial differences of specialty agriculture development in the mountainous areas of China -- "one village, one product" as an example

With the rapid development of urbanization, the rate of abandonment of arable land in China's mountainous areas has accelerated. Solving the phenomenon of abandonment of arable land has become an important issue in managing the use of China’s arable land, the key to which lies in the development of specialty agriculture using the unique natural environment of mountainous areas. This paper scrutinizes both the horizontal and vertical distribution of specialty agriculture in these areas, drawing upon the “One Village, One Product” dataset provided by the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The findings reveal that the horizontal distribution pattern of specialty agriculture exhibits the formation of eight primary clusters. It is intriguing to observe that a majority of these clusters are situated at the intersection of two or three provincial administrative units, with the largest cluster occurring at the border of Chengdu and Chongqing. In terms of the vertical distribution pattern, the specialty agriculture in China’s mountainous areas are mainly distributed at low altitudes, i.e., below 500 m, and at gentle slopes of 4°–8°, and with increases in altitude or slope, the overall amount of specialty agriculture declines rapidly.

Changes in the landscape patterns of Black-necked Crane habitat and its correlation with their individual population numbers during the past 40 years in China.

The landscape pattern of the Black-necked Crane (Grus nigricollis) habitat in China changed at different spatial scales and long-term periods due to natural factors and human activities, and habitat reduction and fragmentation threatened the survival of Black-necked Cranes. The factors driving the habitat landscape pattern and individual population changes of Black-necked Cranes remain to be studied. In this paper, based on remote sensing data of land use from 1980 to 2020, the changes in landscape pattern and fragmentation of the Black-necked Crane habitat in China over 40 years were analyzed from two different spatial scales using the land cover transfer matrix and landscape index. The correlation between landscape and Black-necked Crane individual population was analyzed. The most obvious observations were as follows: (1) Although transformation between landscapes occurred to varying degrees, the area of wetlands and arable land in the breeding and the wintering areas (net) increased significantly from 1980 to 2020. (2) Habitat fragmentation existed in the breeding and the wintering area and was more obvious in the wintering area. (3) The number of individuals of Black-necked Cranes increased period by period, and habitat fragmentation did not inhibit their population growth. (4) The number of individuals of Black-necked Crane was closely related to the wetland and arable land. The increasing area of wetlands and arable and the increasing landscape shape complexity all contributed to the growth of the individual population. The results also suggested that the number of individuals of Black-necked Crane was not threatened by the expanding arable land in China, and they might benefit from arable landscapes. The conservation of Black-necked Cranes should focus on the relationship between individual Black-necked Cranes and arable landscapes, and the conservation of other waterbirds should also focus on the relationship between individual waterbirds and other landscapes.

Transcriptome Analysis Revealed that GhPP2C43-A Negatively Regulates Salinity Tolerance in an Introgression Line from a Semi-Wild Upland Cotton.

Salt damage is a major threat to sustainable cotton production owing to the limited arable land in China, which is mainly occupied by the production of staple food crops. Salt-stress-tolerant cotton varieties are lacking in production, and the mechanisms underpinning salt stress tolerance in cotton remain enigmatic. Here, DM37, an intraspecific introgression line from Gossypium hirsutum race yucatanense acc TX-1046 into the G. hirsutum acc TM-1 background, was found to be highly tolerant to salt stress. Its seed germination rate and germination potential were significantly higher than those of the recipient TM-1 under salt stress. Physiological analysis showed that DM37 had a higher proline content and peroxidase activity and lower Na+/K+ ratios at the seedling stage, which is consistent with a higher seedling survival rate after durable salt stress. Furthermore, comparative transcriptome analysis revealed that responsive patterns to salt stress in DM37 were different from those in TM-1. Weighted correlation network analysis demonstrated that co-expression modules associated with salt stress in DM37 also differed from those in TM-1. From this analysis, GhPP2C43-A, a phosphatase gene, was found to exhibit negative regulation of salt stress tolerance verified by virus-induced gene silencing and the genration of transgenic Arabidopsis. Gene expression showed that GhPP2C43-A in TM-1 was induced by durable salt stress but not in DM37, probably attributable to a variation in the cis-element in its promoter, thereby conferring different salt stress tolerance. These results provide new genes/germplasms from semi-wild cotton in salt-stress-tolerant cotton breeding, as well as new insight into the mechanisms underpinning salt stress tolerance in cotton.

Analysis of the Balance between Supply and Demand of Arable Land in China Based on Food Security

Arable land is the natural resource of food production, plays a key role in safe guarding people’s livelihood, maintaining social stability, and ecological balance. In the context of the great challenge of rapid loss of arable land and rapid growth of food demand due to rapid socio-economic development, scientific forecasting of arable land demand and supply, can clarify the conservation pressure of regional arable land, provide a reference for formulating effective arable land policies, and ensuring regional food security and sustainable development. Therefore, with the help of system dynamics model and Gray-Markov model, this study predicts and analyzes the balance of arable land supply and demand in China, and reached the following conclusions. (1) During the projection period, with the continuous development of living standards and agricultural technology, both per capita food demand and food production show an upward trend. However, the combined effects of changes in diet structure and grain yields on changes in arable land demand are smaller than those brought about by population changes. Therefore, the trend of arable land demand is similar to that of population change, and the arable land demand in China reaches a peak of 112.78 million hm2 in 2026. (2) The amount of arable land possession is always greater than the amount of arable land replenishment, and the arable land supply area shows a continuous decreasing trend, and the arable land supply in China is 127.16 million hm2 in 2035. (3) China’s supply holdings are all able to meet the demand of China’s arable land, but combined with existing studies, it is insufficient to meet the demand of crop rotation fallow between 2023 and 2030, which is not conducive to sustainable development. In the future, arable land protection policies should be comprehensively improved and strictly implemented to ensure national food security and achieve sustainable use of arable land.

Understanding farmers’ willingness in arable land protection cooperation by using fsQCA: Roles of perceived benefits and policy incentives

Under small-scale farming operations, farmers’ willingness in arable land protection cooperation (FWALPC) is a feasible way to realize the trinity protection of arable land in China. However, farmers often fall into the dilemma of collective action due to lack of motivation and free-riding behavior. On the basis of the configuration perspective, this paper conducted a questionnaire survey on 197 farmers in Xingning City by using the fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) method to explore the causal complex mechanism of the seven antecedent conditions of perceived benefits and policy incentives on the FWALPC. Results show the following: (1) Among individual factors, perceived economic benefits, policy subsidies, and government propaganda constitute the necessary conditions for the FWALPC. (2) The drive path of high-level FWALPC can be divided into four types: perceived ecological benefits leading type, perceived social benefits leading type, perceived emotional benefit–government regulation leading type, and government propaganda leading type. (3) The driving path of low-level FWALPC has one type and has a causal asymmetry relationship with high-level FWALPC. This research enriches and develops the relevant theories of collective action behavior of small farmers, and provides a new perspective for how land managers can improve FWALPC.

Examining pathways linking rural labour outflows to the abandonment of arable land in China

AbstractAgainst the backdrop of increasing rural labour outflow in China, the marginalisation of agriculture and arable land abandonment has become prevalent. Previous studies have examined the linkages between rural labour outflow and arable land at the national scale but have largely ignored regional differences. Moreover, mechanisms linking rural labour outflow to abandonment have not been analysed systematically. This study uses 2016 China Labour‐force Dynamics Survey data (CLDS) and structural equation models (SEMs) to examine the means by which rural labour outflows affect arable land abandonment regionally. The analysis focuses on the mediating role and the moderating role of land tenure approval (LTA), nonagricultural income (NAI), agricultural mechanisation (AMC), and agricultural production efficiency (APE). There are three major findings. Firstly, in the main grain‐producing areas (MGPA), part‐time labour outflow alone is positively associated with arable land abandonment, while in the main grain‐consuming areas (MGCA), only off‐farm labour is directly related; there is no significant relationship between labour outflow and arable land abandonment in grain production and marketing balance areas (GPMBA). Secondly, part‐time labour does not necessarily lead to reduced levels of mechanisation, although lower APE emerges as an important factor in promoting arable land abandonment. Thirdly, the relationships between off‐farm labour/part‐time labour and arable land abandonment are moderated by LTA in both MGPA and GPMBA, while the moderation effect exists only in the case of part‐time labour in MGCA and GPMBA. We conclude that policies and measures in relation to agriculture and abandonment should be formulated differently for different regions.

Recessive Transition Mechanism of Arable Land Use Based on the Perspective of Coupling Coordination of Input–Output: A Case Study of 31 Provinces in China

In the rapid process of urbanization in China, arable land resources are faced with dual challenges in terms of quantity and quality. Starting with the change in the coupling coordination relationship between the input and output on arable land, this study applies an evaluation model of the degree of coupling coordination between the input and output (D_CCIO) on arable land and deeply analyzes the recessive transition mechanism and internal differences in arable land use modes in 31 provinces on mainland China. The results show that the total amount and the amount per unit area of the input and output on arable land in China have presented different spatio-temporal trends, along with the mismatched movement of the spatial barycenter. Although the D_CCIO on arable land increases slowly as a whole, 31 provinces show different recessive transition mechanisms of arable land use, which is hidden in the internal changes in the input–output structure. The results of this study highlight the different recessive transition patterns of arable land use in different provinces of China, which points to the outlook for higher technical input, optimized planting structure, and the coordination of human-land relationships.

Spatially explicit analyses of sustainable agricultural residue potential for bioenergy in China under various soil and land management scenarios

Sustainability is critical for biomass feedstock supply and crop production. Most studies on agricultural residue estimations ignored the loss of soil organic carbon (SOC) and thus possibly overestimated its resource potential. This study estimated the resource potential of using agricultural residues for bioenergy in China, considering soil conservation, collection cost, and future changes in yield and management. This study carried out a spatial explicit assessment of sustainable agricultural residue potential and their on-farm collection costs. Rothamsted carbon model was used to quantify the grid-specific amount of residue to be retained in soil for sustainable purposes. The results showed that 226 Mt of residues could be collected annually to maintain the current SOC level, which ranges from 0.1% to 39.0% at a mean of 1.1% nationwide. To achieve SOC level above 2% over all arable land in China, the collectable residues would be reduced to 24 Mt. Future yield improvements and no-tillage would significantly increase the collectable residues to 117, 383, and 514 Mt in 2050 under SOC scenarios of above 2%, above 1%, and maintaining current level, respectively. Maintaining the current SOC level, 495 Mt of residues could be collected in 2050 with a cost ≤ 0.98 $⋅GJ−1, which equals 8.6 EJ of energy potential. From the view of high supply potentials and low collection costs, Shandong, Henan, and Jiangsu provinces are the preferred regions to develop residue-based bioenergy production. The results highlighted the differences of resource potential among various SOC scenarios and spatial heterogeneity of residue resource among regions.

Analysis of Climatic Potential Productivity and Wheat Production in Different Producing Areas of the Northern Hemisphere

Cultivation patterns under water saving management are closely related to climate change and crop productivity. Survey data for wheat production in China, Canada, and the USA from 1965 to 2014 was analyzed through classification statistics, comparative analysis and weighting methods. The results showed that China, Canada and the USA wheat grain production accounts for 26.49% to 34.68% of global wheat production. Of these three countries, both the highest total yield and the highest average yield per area sown were in China post 1985. Since 2000, China has accounted for 10.70% to 11.12% of global wheat planted area, producing 15.73% to 17.45% of global wheat output. Achieving high wheat yield in China was mainly based on consuming more irrigation water. The per capita arable land in China, Canada and the USA was 0.10 ha, 1.31 ha and 0.70 ha, respectively. The per capita arable land in Hebei, China, Saskatchewan, Canada and Oklahoma, USA was 0.09 ha, 16.11 ha and 3.48 ha, respectively. Hengshui, China (HS) produces two crops a year. Outlook, Saskatchewan, Canada (OK) and Woodward, Oklahoma, USA (WW) produce one crop a year. Mean precipitation averages 109 mm, 210 mm and 291mm during the wheat growing season, respectively. Due to less per capita arable land in China, achieving high yield means higher water consumption, which creates a sharp contradiction between water scarcity and demand for grain in China. Consequently, high water use efficiency technologies in agriculture are more needed in China than in the other two countries. High demand for water at post 1985 yield levels cannot be met by rain-fed production in HS. Grain yields of 5975.6 kg/ha to 7031.2 kg/ha can be achieved with irrigation. Economic benefits mainly determine wheat production in the USA and Canada, whereas in China production is driven by food security and sustainable production goals. The conclusions of this paper could provide a reference for wheat production in different regions.

Status and future perspective for soil contamination of arable land in China

Status and future perspective for soil contamination of arable land in China

Spatial Changes and Land Use of Arable Land in China

Numerous concerns have been raised in China over the issues of limited arable land resources and food security in China. Especially, the record levels of soil pollution and the conversion of the arable land become the serious threat to the nation’s capacity to produce adequate levels of staple cereal crops for Chinese people. Most of arable land, only 15% of the country, mainly concentrated on the central eastern coast and along the Yangtze and Yellow river valleys which had the highest sediment deposit among the lands in China. An agricultural land in China was classified into four categories including arable land. The survey of spatial distribution and types of land use by in China established by remote sensing data and conventional aerial photography showed main land use features and the spatial pattern and processes of land use change for 15 regions covering China. The agricultural land area in 2015 was increased by 64.9% from that in 1960 while the changes of the arable land area ranged from decrease of 6.6% in 1980 to increase of 20.2% in 1990. Conclusively, we assume that Chinese government may have to figure out the practically adequate arable land area to produce safe food for people in China, bearing in mind of 135 million ha that is a minimum threshold to ensure adequate food production. The spatial change in arable land area in China.

Study on the ecological potential of Chinese straw resources available for bioenergy producing based on soil protection functions

Straw return has positive effect on improving soil ecological environment, and now there are serious ecological problems of arable land in China. Therefore, the concept of basic straw returning amount (BSRA) was put forward based on soil protection functions, and literature review and scenario analysis method were adapted to design BSRA. Based on this, a bottom up dynamic accounting model was built, which considering the changes of sown area, unit crop yield, planting structure and crop straw utilization. Then, the model was applied to assess the potentials of straw resources for bioenergy production. Usable straw resources in low, middle and high BSRA scenario (Table 1) are 265.70, 180.25 and 117.51 Tg respectively in 2030, mainly composed of paddy rice (Oryza sativa L.) stalk, maize (Zea mays L.) stalk and potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) stalk in low and middle scenario, and maize stalk, potato stalk and sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) stalk in high scenario. Available crop residues mainly distribute in Sichuan, Henan, Heilongjiang and Shandong Province under the three scenarios. There will be interzone spatial transfer of usable straw resources, over time, mainly transferring to Northeast China, North China and Northwest China. The usable straw amount will have shape decrease in August and September as the increase of BSRA.

Life Cycle Assessment of China’s agroecosystems

Agricultural Life Cycle Assessment (ALCA) is an important tool able to inform environmental improvement in agricultural ecosystems. However, many studies address only one or a few environmental aspects, and where several indicators are used, the optional steps of normalization and weighting are rarely used to support interpretation. In this study, the winter wheat-summer maize rotation, widely practiced on the North China Plain, was evaluated using a variety of indicators addressing natural resource use, human and ecosystem health. The results after normalization and weighting highlight the need to address eutrophication potential and aquatic eco-toxicity potential as significant environmental aspects, especially in the higher input winter wheat part of the rotation. Different results were obtained using Chinese normalization factors compared to global factors, highlighting the need to use local factors when local environmental challenges are the priority. With the scarcity of arable land in China, there have been concerted and successful attempts to raise yields. However, there is now a need to improve nutrient management and pest control as strategic priorities. The life cycle perspective is important because opportunities also exist to achieve environmental improvement in the local manufacturing systems for farming inputs.