Methodology for the analysis of causes of drought vulnerability on the River Basin scale

Abstract

The concept of vulnerability has emerged in recent decades as a key concept for the research on drought risk as well as in the implementation of mitigation strategies of drought risk. The context within which this concept emerges is one of scientific consensus: the research community agrees that we are witnessing a paradigm shift in water management policies, within a broader framework of changes in the relationship between humans and nature. In this context, vulnerability studies must become an instrument for the assessment and mitigation of risk. Based on the proposals put forward by the IPCC concerning the components of vulnerability (exposure, sensitivity and adaptive capacity), this paper proposes a methodology for the evaluation and analysis of drought vulnerability on the river basin scale. The methodology results in the calculation of a Drought Vulnerability Index (DVI) and the use of different techniques for the interpretation of results.