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Spatial and temporal characteristics of droughts in the Northeast China Transect

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Abstract

In this study, drought trends and change magnitudes of the Northeast China Transect (NECT) were analyzed using the Mann–Kendall test and Theil–Sen’s slope estimator. Meteorological data from 20 meteorological stations of NECT region from 1957 to 2012 were used. Results demonstrated that five stations had significant negative trends in precipitation. The magnitudes of the significant negative trends at the 95 % confidence level varied from −2.41 ± 1.05 mm year−1 at Tonghe station to −1.11 ± 0.51 mm year−1 at Qianguoerluosi station. Analysis of the seasonal precipitation series showed a mix of negative and positive trends. Many stations also exhibited strong contrasting seasonal trends that counterbalanced one other at the yearly level. In addition, cluster analysis based on discrete wavelet transform (DWT) was applied to the standard precipitation index (SPI) series. Results revealed three different and spatially well-defined subregions (east, center and west regions of NECT). Due to the decrease in precipitation from the east to the west, land use varies from forest regions in the east, to agriculture in the center, to pastoral areas in the west. Characteristics of drought events for each representative station of different subregions are explored using temporal evolution of the SPI values. Results showed that severe or extreme droughts occurred in 2001, 2003 and 2008 in Tonghe, 1980 and 2007 in Tongliao and 2005–2007 in East Ujimqin Banner. Results indicate that clustering analysis based on DWT has great potential for examining spatial coherence of regional drought, which was consistent with not only the precipitation spatial distribution but also the characteristics of land use in the study area. This study not only provides important information on drought variability in the NECT, but also provides useful information for improving water management strategies and planning agricultural practices.

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Acknowledgments

We thank the China Meteorological Data Sharing Service System for providing the required precipitation data of the various stations. This work was funded jointly by the Project of China CDM Fund (Grant No: 1214115), the Special Foundation from State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology (Grant No: SKLURE2012-1-05), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No: 41001060) and the National Science and Technology Plan (Grant No: 2011BAD31B02). The authors gratefully acknowledge the Editor-in-Chief Professor Thomas Glade and two anonymous reviewers for comments on precious versions of this article. The authors are also grateful to Alison Beamish from University of British Columbia for his assistance with improving the language of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100085, China

    Xiaoxue Wang & Xuyong Li

  2. Key Laboratory of Agricultural Water Resources, Hebei Key Laboratory of Agricultural Water-Saving, Center for Agricultural Resources Research, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, No. 286, Huaizhong Road, Shijiazhuang, 050021, China

    Huitao Shen, Wanjun Zhang, Jiansheng Cao & Yongqing Qi

  3. Institute of Forest Sciences, Bailongjiang Forestry Management Bureau, Lanzhou, 730070, Gansu, China

    Guopeng Chen

  4. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Xiaoxue Wang

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  1. Xiaoxue Wang
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Correspondence to Huitao Shen.

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Wang, X., Shen, H., Zhang, W. et al. Spatial and temporal characteristics of droughts in the Northeast China Transect. Nat Hazards 76, 601–614 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-014-1507-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-014-1507-7

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