Author(s): Guangwei Huang
Linked Author(s):
Keywords: Kuznets curve; GDP; Flood fatality; Annual total runoff; Chongqing City
Abstract: This A Kuznets curve is the graphical representation of Simon Kuznets' hypothesis that as a country develops, there is a natural cycle of economic inequality driven by market forces which at first increases inequality, and then decreases it after a certain average income is attained. The concept has been applied to environmental studies hypothesizing that the relationship between per capita income and the use of natural resources and/or the emission of wastes has an inverted U-shape. This paper presents a case study aimed to validating the applicability of the Kuznets curve to flood disaster. The focus is the largest city of China-the Chongqing City that is located in Southwest China. The economy of the city jump-started in 1998 since it was raised to be one of the four municipalities under direct control of China’s central government. By analyzing various data for the 10-year period after its takeoff, it was found that the annual flood fatality during the study period was largely controlled by the annual total runoff of surface waters across the city. The relationship between economic growth and flood fatality is not a simple matter of increase or decrease. Instead, the high investment in water-related infrastructures along large rivers owing to economic growth was offset by irrational urban development along tributaries.
Year: 2013