Spatial Agglomeration Characteristics of Rural Settlements in Poor Mountainous Areas of Southwest China

Abstract

The rural settlements in poverty-stricken mountainous areas are the "living fossils" of an economic society with the characteristics of spatial dispersion and are slowly changing. Spatial agglomeration is the development direction of rural settlements. In-depth exploration of the spatial agglomeration characteristics and influencing factors of rural settlements in poverty-stricken mountainous areas is a way to provide a basis for rural settlement restructuring. We selected Pengshui County, a national poverty-stricken county in the southwestern mountainous area of China, as the research area. Spatial buffer and kernel density analysis were used to analyze the agglomeration characteristics of rural settlements and influencing factors. The results show that: (1) The rural settlements are small in scale and the space is evenly dispersed. 55.63% of the rural settlements’ sizes are less than 1000 m2, 84.15% of the rural settlements’ sizes are less than 2500 m2, and 92.81% of the rural settlements are within 200 m. (2) The elevation and slope of topographic factors have a significant agglomeration effect on rural settlements. However, the slope direction has no agglomeration effect. 85.41% of rural settlements (52.75% of rural settlements are gathered between 400 and 800 m above sea level) are gathered at an altitude of 1000 m or less, and 77.59% of rural settlements are gathered with a slope of 6~25°. Additionally, there are few rural settlements with a slope of 0~2°. Moreover, the distribution of residential areas has no agglomeration effect on rural settlements. (3) The cultivated land exerts the most significant effect on rural settlements followed by roads and water sources, while the role of urban land is weak. 99.48% of rural settlements are concentrated in the 100 m area of cultivated land. Therefore, in the poverty-stricken mountainous areas in the southwestern mountainous areas of China, convenient farming is the primary condition for production and living. Rural settlements are highly correlated with cultivated land. Rural settlements are scattered and concentrated with the scattered cultivated land. The rural settlements were leaded by the distribution of cultivated land. Less high-quality cultivated land with less slope were occupied or not by rural residential areas’ people.

The Expansion Mechanism of Rural Residential Land and Implications for Sustainable Regional Development: Evidence from the Baota District in China’s Loess Plateau

“…In general, the scales of residential land in plain areas are large, and the scales of residential land in mountainous areas are relatively small. Elevation and slope have greatly influenced the safety and convenience of residents′ living and production conditions [40]. Resource endowments include natural resources (light, temperature, cropland, etc.)…”

Spatial and temporal distribution of rural settlements and influencing mechanisms in Inner Mongolia, China

“…It is undeniable, however, that cultivated land, towns, and population density factors are the most important in Inner Mongolia. Numerous studies have shown that, in traditional farming societies, cultivated land is the basic guarantee for rural development, and villages are distributed close to cultivated land [ 16 , 17 ]. This is the case in Inner Mongolia, which is a large agricultural province, and the importance of cultivated land is irreplaceable.…”

“…Rural settlements are the regional carriers of natural, economic, and social composite systems [ 14 – 16 ]. Spatial distribution and agglomeration of rural settlements on different scales and landforms have obvious regional differences [ 2 , 17 ]. In China, rural settlements show an overall low degree of agglomeration, small scale, and large regional variation [ 1 , 2 , 18 ].…”

“…In China, rural settlements show an overall low degree of agglomeration, small scale, and large regional variation [ 1 , 2 , 18 ]. For example, the density of settlements in southeast coastal areas is higher than that in northwest inland, while plain areas are higher than mountainous and hilly areas, traditional agricultural farming areas are higher than pastoral areas, and economically developed areas have a higher density than economically underdeveloped areas [ 2 , 17 – 21 ]. The spatial pattern of rural settlements in plain areas is mainly random and dispersed, while in cold alpine areas and desert fringes settlements are mainly clustered [ 2 ].…”

Rural Morphology and Forces Driving Change in Rapidly Urbanizing Areas: A Case Study in Fujian, China

“…Natural conditions are the most important factor, among which elevation is most commonly considered to be a basic natural environmental factor that affects the distribution of rural settlements [ 42 , 43 , 44 ]. Luo et al [ 45 ] found that nearly 80% of rural settlements were gathered with a slope of 6~25°, while the elevation had a higher significant agglomeration effect on rural settlements than slope. Precipitation and temperature were positively related in arid regions, while there was no apparent correlation in Southeastern China [ 46 ].…”