To move or not to move: How farmers now living in flood storage areas of China decide whether to move out or to stay put

Abstract

The living and production of large populations in flood storage areas (FSAs) is a common phenomenon in China. Such a situation inevitably produces a contradiction between flood potential and development, which may be solved by resettlement. Resettlement in FSAs with Chinese characteristics is an important means of flood risk management by the government. Based on a questionnaire survey, this paper analyses the factors influencing the resettlement decision-making process of farmer households' in FSAs using a logistic regression. The findings suggest that the location of the resettlement, resettlement subsidies, and rationality of the subsidy policy have the most significant positive effect. The government should take measures to encourage farmers to resettle, so as to accelerate resettlement progress.