Livelihood vulnerability assessment of land-lost farmers in the context of tourism and the COVID-19 pandemic

To facilitate natural heritage protection, ecological protection, and tourism development, farmers in natural heritage tourist destinations are often relocated and resettled, thus becoming land-lost farmers. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the livelihood vulnerability of land-lost farmers in natural heritage tourist destinations has become particularly prominent. In this paper, the Yinhuwan resettlement community in China’s Mount Sanqingshan Scenic Area is taken as an example and changes in stock and livelihood capital structure of farmers after relocation are analyzed. Based on the “exposure-sensitivity-adaptability” framework, an evaluation index system of farmers’ livelihood vulnerability is constructed to evaluate farmers’ livelihood vulnerability. The multiple linear regression model is used to empirically analyze the influencing factors of livelihood vulnerability. The results show: (1) Relocation and resettlement induced considerable changes to the livelihood of farmers. After relocation, the livelihood capital of farmers has generally increased. The physical capital and financial capital of farmers increased significantly, while natural capital was replaced by tourism capital. This led to a decrease in human capital of farmers compared with tourism operations. (2) The COVID-19 pandemic has greatly impacted the livelihood of farmers in this resettlement community. (3) Under the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the livelihood vulnerability of the main Nongjiale operators has become relatively high, while that of part-time Nongjiale operators and non-Nongjiale operators is moderate. (4) Tourism capital, tourism market seasonality, and livelihood diversification are significant factors influencing the livelihood vulnerability of farmers in this resettlement community. In this paper, the original natural capital is replaced with tourism capital, and a new analysis framework of livelihood capital is constructed. This provides a reference for future research on the livelihood of farmers in tourist destinations. This reference helps to study the sustainability of the livelihoods of land-lost farmers, and to evaluate the feasibility of the resettlement policy of farmers in tourist destinations. Several suggestions are presented that provide a basis for the formulation of relevant policies for reducing farmers’ livelihood vulnerability.