Changes in the area and pattern of farmland in China's eastern Loess Plateau

The aim of this study was to analyze the changes in the area and pattern of farmland in Ningwu County of China's eastern Loess Plateau, using multi-temporal Landsat data, for the periods 1990-2000 and 2000-2010. It was found that (1) the increase in area of farmland from 1990 to 2000 has been a direct result of the rapid population increase in the area; (2) the decrease in area of farmland from 2000 to 2010 has been caused primarily by the implementation of the governmental project involving conversion of sloping farmland into woodland or grassland project since 2000, and the simultaneous rapid expansion of construction land; (3) the expanded areas of farmland have been mainly located on hillsides during 1990-2000, which has resulted in the farmland becoming more fragmented and dispersed, and consequently, the shapes of the farmland patches have become more irregular and complex during this period; (4) the decrease in sloping farmland has been the main reason for forcing the shapes of farmland patches to become more regular and simplified during the period 2000-2010.