Arid Loess Plateau Disturbance Village Livelihood Sustainability Analysis

Drought, as a main external climatic disturbance on the rural social-ecological system in the northwest area of Chian, has a direct impact on the local household livelihood. How to improve the resilience of farmer’s livelihood to drought is a vital issue for the local sustainable development in this area. In this study, Hongjia Village of Changwu County, Shaanxi Province and Zhonglianchuan Village of Yuzhong County, Gansu Province were selected as the research objects, and based on in site questionary method and stastical, the farmer’s livelihood capital and sustainability were assessed by using DFID sustainable livelihood framework. The main conclusions are as follows:1) Under the disturbance of drought, farmer’s household livelihoods were both vulnerable for two research area. In Hongjia Village, only18%of farmer’s household livelihoods were sustainable, while60%in the adge of unsustainable and22%unsustainable. In Zhonglianchuan Village, only9%of farmer’s household livelihoods were sustainable, and49%of farmer’s household livelihoods were not sustainable and42%in the age of unstainable2) The low sustainability of household livelihoods is due to the disturbance of drought firstly. The low amount with high variability in precipitation had a negative effect of agricultural production directly. Secondly, the simple planting system also decreased the the sustainability of household livelihoods. The farmers in Zhonglianchuan Village mainly depend on the potato planting and those in Hongjia Village on the apple planting, which leads to a low adaptive capacity to climate change. Thirdly, due to natural cause local farmers income structure similar to social environment is based on farming and migrant workers for family income main forms.3) The comprehensive index of livelihood sustainability ranged from0.2to1.2for two research village. Higher sustainablility in Hongjia Village than in Zhonglianchuan Village was due to the weaker drought disturbance. Hongjia Village has a climate of semihumid with throne to drought while Zhonglianchuan Village in a semiarid climate.4) The farmer’s income diversity has an important impact on household livelihood. Compared with those in Zhonglianchuan Village, farmers in Hongjia Village had a more complex and more stable household income structure, which decreased their dependence on crop production and led to a higher household livelihood in the context of climate change.