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 The food production at arid-semiarid region is dependent on water. The understanding of food production change is closely related with water resource management. In this study, we used the unit yield as a key index of food production, and we considered the relationship between secular change of quantity food production, human activities and natural condition in Xinjiang since 1990.
 As a result, tended to increase unit yield, it came to sluggish growth in the boundary in 2004 that agriculture tax of government was abolished, and in 2008, it greatly decreased. The main factors are the decrease of irrigation rate due to the damage of irrigation equipment, the decline in farmers’ production enthusiasm and the changes in technology adoption behavior according to an increase in production costs due to mechanization. These brought decrease of the quantity food production. Besides, the changes in demand due to gentrification and diversification of diet associated with economic development brought a change in the unit yield. In natural condition, a natural disaster such as drought is a direct impact on food production. In addition, the increase of the production cost(mainly pesticides) due to natural disaster became the burden, it can be considered to have influenced indirectly to food production.

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 India, which has four important international rivers, has experienced numerous water resource related conflicts with its four neighboring countries. To resolve conflicts, countries have respectively concluded bilateral agreements by signing treaties or political memoranda. Furthermore, they have established permanent joint organizations and facilities for exchange of data and for river inspections. This report presents analysis of the implementation of purposes and obligations prescribed in those agreements, which previous studies have not sufficiently addressed. Furthermore, few comparative studies have examined the four rivers in India. Recent disclosure of data and proceedings can support such analyses. India and Pakistan have formed a trusteeship with exchange of data and with joint inspections of the Indus River, even during wartime. India and China have cooperated and signed a Memorandum of Understanding related to the Brahmaputra River. Nevertheless, agreements related to the Ganges and the Mahakali rivers have not been implemented because of insufficient funds and feasibility studies. Exploration of the similarities and differences of implementation status of past agreements related to international rivers is necessary to mitigate future water resource related conflicts among nations.

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 Thermal image velocimetry (TIV) is a method to measure 2-dimensional velocity distribution of near surface wind by using time-sequential thermal images with an image correlation technique. This report introduces the principle of the method and some applications in outdoor environment (e.g. thermal updraft along a heated vertical wall, dustdevil like vortex observed in a sports ground, near surface wind along a complex terrain, and measurement by helicopter) to figure out potential use of this method.

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[in Japanese]

View full abstract

[in Japanese]

View full abstract