Researching climate change in Ningxia Hui
Ningxia Hui is a dry, desert-like region located in the north of the People’s
Republic of China. As one of the country’s poorest regions, its population is
heavily reliant on agricultural production and its economy is, therefore, highly
vulnerable to climate change.
In recent years, rising temperatures and
decreasing rainfall have begun to impact upon the region, and, since 2005, it has experienced
severe drought. In fact, the decline of rainfall to just 100mm during
the summer months made 2005 the driest year in half a century. As a result of
these changes in climate, harvests have failed and families have been unable to
meet their nutritional needs, and even forced to buy water.
In response, DFID and DEFRA began to fund joint research projects in the region.
The aim was to investigate the impact of climate change on Chinese agriculture
and discover ways in which it could adapt in the future, to protect the
livelihoods of farmers and Ningxia's poorest people.
Since Ningxia is a self-governed, independent region of China, these
investigations will be applied at the local level by government,
infrastructure-providers and farmers.
Ningxia is far from an isolated
example. The reality is that, depending on the level of future emissions,
temperatures are set to increase by 3 and 4°C throughout China by the end of the
21st century. Yields of rice, maize and wheat are likely to be reduced by
37% as a consequence of these increases. In the years to come, the findings of the projects
in Ningxia may prove of great use for the country as a whole.
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Last updated 23 November 2007
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