Analysis on the Change of Arable Land Area and Its Driving Force in Xunyi County of Shaanxi Province

Dynamic process of arable land area and its driving forces in Xunyi county were discussed based on statistic data from 1989 to 2009 in Xunyi county during the past 20 years in this paper.The driving factors of social index affecting the arable land area change were studied using single factor association analysis and principal component analysis by selecting 10 social factors,including GDP,population and urbanization level,etc.The purpose of study trying to discover the driving factors and providing a reference for the rational conservation of cultivated land recourses in ecologically fragile regions.The results showed that: the general trend of arable land area presented reduction in the study period.The change has experienced three stages: the steadily reduction stage(1989-2000),slow reduction stage(2000-2003) and smooth change stage(2003-2009).The driving factors that affect the changes of arable land area in study area are economic development,population and advanced technology of agriculture.