The Influence of Historical River System Changes on Settlement Distribution and Implications for Cropland Gridding in the Yellow River Delta

Yu Ye (), Yuting Liu, Shanqian Gao, Lin Lou, Xiangping Zhang and Fahao Wang
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Yu Ye: Faculty of Geographical Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Yuting Liu: Faculty of Geographical Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Shanqian Gao: Faculty of Geographical Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Lin Lou: Faculty of Geographical Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
Xiangping Zhang: Yellow River Institute of Hydraulic Research, Zhengzhou 450003, China
Fahao Wang: Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China

Land, 2025, vol. 14, issue 4, 1-16

Abstract: In historical regional cropland reconstruction in floodplains and delta areas, changes in the river system and the historical distribution of settlements are important to the spatial–temporal dynamic process of historical land reclamation. This paper takes the Yellow River Delta as the research area, combines historical data with field investigation, and analyzes the influence of river system change and delta formation on settlement establishment and land reclamation. The results revealed the following. (1) The development timing of the Yellow River determines the order of deposited land by old river courses and the settlement or resettlement process of the village. Since 1855, approximately 90% of new villages have been located within the 1–5 km buffer of the Yellow River channels. Two peak tides for village establishment along the Yellow River corresponded to the fluvial periods and the 20 ± 10 yr after the river silted out. It took over 100 years for the cultivation range to advance 5 km from the coastline of 1820 to the sea for the lengthy desalination and subsequent freshwater-driven dilution of the newly deposited land. (2) It is necessary to introduce the locations of the settlements, distance from the river courses, and coastline change to the cropland distribution model by setting parameters for different buffer zone distances. This paper provides data and theoretical parameters for cropland construction in the Yellow River Delta suitable for the floodplains and delta areas. The relevant findings can provide valuable references for land use policy formulation, agricultural development planning, and management practices in delta regions.

Keywords: historical land use change; river system change; historical settlement distribution; the Yellow River Delta (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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