Evaluation of eco-economic effects in relation to resettlement policy in Shulehe River Basin

摘要

In the Shulehe River Basin, policy of resettlement was very effective in handling agricultural development and livelihood problems in regions of poverty limited by topography, climate, or infrastructure. Thus, since 1996–1997, the Shulehe River Basin resettlement project transferred roughly 7.5×104 people from areas of Dingxi, Longxi or Minxian which could not offer sufficient resources for the residents. Meanwhile, construction facilities such as the reservoir, which underpins the resettlement project, also triggered an internal migration of people away from the reservoir to other parts of the Shulehe River Basin. This large scale migration derived apparent effects in water resources, land use and cover change, agricultural structure as well as landscapes. Results show that total arable land expanded by 3.1×108 m2, cattle numbers maintained a stable level of 1×104, pigs declined to a low level due to market trends, and sheep numbers soared from 17.44×104 to 73.57×104. However, greening and afforestation increased while croplands maintained a rational tendency accompanying with greening area expansion. From the standpoint of integration, the Shulehe River Basin resettlement policy fulfilled its previous goals of improving the inhabitants' livelihood and the capacity of environment when spatial residues including environmental capacity and resources consumption for sustainable development are still positive conditions.