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Spatial and temporal changes of agro-meteorological disasters affecting maize production in China since 1990

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Abstract

Agro-meteorological (AM) disasters have been reported to be more frequent with climate change. In this study, the spatial and temporal changes in the frequency of major AM disasters affecting maize production are investigated by analyzing observed records at 224 national AM stations in China from 1991 to 2009. To investigate the temporal changes of the disasters with climate warming, the whole study period was separated into a cool period (1991–2000) and a warmer one (2000–2009). We found drought was the most common disaster with a frequency of 49 %, followed by chilling injures (19.46 %). The frequency of disasters affecting maize increased significantly during the reproductive growth period than the vegetative growth period. Spatial patterns of major disaster frequency were characterized by region-specific, with more cold stress in northeastern China, drought in northern and western China, and rainstorms in southwestern China. Our study highlighted that the frequency and scope both increased significantly, implying a potential increasing risk for maize production. It is critical and important for local farmers and governors to take reasonable and timely adaptation measures based on the latest disasters’ features to mitigate the potential yield loss from AM disasters in order to ensure food security in China.

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Acknowledgments

This study was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41071030), National Basic Research Program of China (No. 2012CB955404); the strategic pilot scientific projects of the Chinese Academy of Science (Project Number XDA05090308); The Programme of Introducing Talents of Discipline to Universities (B08008), Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities; and The Integrated Risk Governance Project (2013DFG20710) by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resources Ecology, Key Laboratory of Environmental Change and Natural Disaster, MOE, Academy of Disaster Reduction and Emergency Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China

    Zhao Zhang, Yi Chen, Pin Wang & Xiaofei Liu

  2. Institute of Geographical Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China

    Shuai Zhang & Fulu Tao

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  1. Zhao Zhang
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  2. Yi Chen
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  3. Pin Wang
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  4. Shuai Zhang
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  5. Fulu Tao
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  6. Xiaofei Liu
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Correspondence to Fulu Tao.

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Zhang, Z., Chen, Y., Wang, P. et al. Spatial and temporal changes of agro-meteorological disasters affecting maize production in China since 1990. Nat Hazards 71, 2087–2100 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-013-0998-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-013-0998-y

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