Measurement and Spatial Driving Type Analysis for Water Poverty in China Based on WPI-LSE Model

Water Poverty assessment is a new research field of water sciences.Based on the water poverty index constructed in this paper,the water poverty degrees of 31 provinces in China in 2009 were measured,and the 31 regions were divided into four types according to the poverty degree.The water poverty contribution ratio of the five subsystems named resources,access,capacity,usage and environment was calculated,and the LSE method was applied to determine the spatial driving type for water poverty.The results reveal some conclusions: ①water poverty conditions are worsened from southeast to northwest in China.②Water resource is the common driving factor of water poverty in north regions.③The access and capacity are the main driving factors in the less developing regions such as northeast,centre and west.④In the southeast and southwest where do not be lack of water resource and northwest where is low developing region,the factor of usage is the driving factor for water poverty.⑤Environment factor is the driving factor of water poverty in northeast and east,whose development level is better than others.The results can reflect the general distribution pattern of water poverty in China,which may also provide the necessary theoretical basis for the holistic water resources management in different regions.