Land consolidation and rural revitalization in China: Mechanisms and paths

Land consolidation has multi-functionality. Most of the existing researches focus on the supplementary function of cultivated land, but lack of systematic research on its function of promoting the sustainable development and revitalization of rural areas. In the context of the current global rural decline, land consolidation has been endowed with the connotation of promoting rural revitalization and regional sustainable development. This study systematically reviewed the evolution history of land consolidation in China, and then explored the current status, characteristics and potential impact of land consolidation as well as the driving mechanism of land consolidation promoting rural revitalization, and finally explained the feasible way to revitalize countryside by land consolidation in a typical case. Results showed that China's land consolidation has played an irreplaceable role in stabilizing the dynamic balance of arable land and ensuring food security. It has made or is moving towards supporting the development of modern agriculture, poverty alleviation and rural revitalization as well as regional sustainable development. Land consolidation is gradually favored in promoting rural development and revitalization because of its social, economic and ecological benefits, and it can provide a platform and inject new vitality for rural revitalization by solving the difficulties of lack of fund, land, technology, talent and industry. Comprehensive land consolidation helps to promote the overall revitalization of rural industry, ecology, organization, culture and talent. However, it also needs to be alert to the eco-environmental risks and negative effects brought by land consolidation projects. The problem-solving oriented land consolidation is needed in the process of promoting rural revitalization and regional sustainable development. The internal logic of rural decline at different development stages varies across countries, and the strategies to promote rural revitalization through land consolidation also need to be adjusted in time.     

Fragmentation of land ownership in Slovakia: Evolution,context, analysis and possible solutions

Land ownership fragmentation is currently a very topical issue in Slovakia. In particular, small farmers complain that even 30 years after the end of the previous (“real socialist”) regime, there has been no significant change in the structure of agricultural land use. The subject of the article is not the land fragmentation in terms of use. In Slovakia, the problem is rather the opposite. This contribution deals with fragmentation of ownership that is mostly invisible in the landscape. Usage still dominates over the ownership and the real landowner cannot get his or her own property in a simple way. The reason for this is huge fragmentation of land ownership, which makes it virtually impossible to actually claim it. Well known solution is the land consolidation that does not advance at a rate that would guarantee the rights (and obligations) of all owners in the foreseeable future in Slovakia. Neglecting the land fragmentation by authorities leads to tense situations between landowners and land tenants and also co-causes a stagnation of rural development and issues with landscape protection. The paper describes the specific state of land ownership in Slovakia and attempts to explain this complicated situation on a sample of 50 historical and modern ownership documents. This contribution has the ambition to specify the largely yet unresolved problems that arise from the current state of massive fragmentation of land ownership. The aim of the paper is also to fill in the information gap on the topic, not only in the national context.     

Land consolidation,customary lands,and Ghana's Northern Savannah Ecological Zone: An evaluation of the possibilities and pitfalls

Land fragmentation has been identified to greatly undermine crop production in many countries. In the case of Ghana’s customary tenure system, household farmlands are relatively small and are highly fragmented. Recent agricultural drives, however, have focused on farm level interventions that are ad hoc with short-term benefits. A sustainable long-term application of land consolidation which reorganises farmlands may improve yields, reduce the cost of production and improve the incomes of farmers. The successful implementation of land consolidation depends greatly on the suitability of local conditions with respect to land tenure and land use. However, in Ghana’s customary lands, the alignment between the requirements for land consolidation and existing conditions remains unexplored. This study investigated the feasibility of land consolidation within the customary tenure by juxtaposing the local conditions of the study areas with the baseline conditions for land consolidation outlined in literature. Using both qualitative and spatial data, the study revealed some traits of convergence and divergence with respect to the baseline conditions in the study areas. For example, conditions such as the existence of land fragmentation, suitable topography and soil distribution were fully met. Conditions such as the existence of a land bank, technical expertise, and infrastructure and supportive legal frameworks were partially met. The remaining conditions such as the willingness to participate, availability of a land information system and favorable land ownership structure were non-existent. The circumstances surrounding these unmet conditions are deeply embedded in customs and traditions that hardly yield to change. Since these conditions are fundamental for land consolidation, their absence negates the feasibility of land consolidation under the current tenure system of the study areas.     

The Farmland Rental Paradox: Extreme land ownership fragmentation as a new form of land degradation

Extreme farmland ownership fragmentation is becoming a limiting factor for sustainable land management in some countries. Scattered, excessively small parcels cease to be viable for individual farming, and owners feel forced to rent these parcels to larger enterprises farming on adjacent land. Our study demonstrates a phenomenon that we call the Farmland Rental Paradox, where very small parcels tend to create large production blocks by being rented to larger farmers, and therefore to significantly homogenize the land-use pattern. The parcel size established as the threshold for this phenomenon is 1.07 ha. Below this threshold, the smaller the parcels were, the larger the blocks that they tended to create.Using the example of the Czech Republic, a state with extremely high farmland ownership fragmentation, it is demonstrated that this phenomenon can currently determine the land use of up to 40% of the country's farmland. Our study also points to other countries where this phenomenon may apply, especially the transitional countries of Central and Eastern Europe.The study discusses the tempo of the fragmentation process, which accelerates exponentially in countries with the equal inheritance system. It goes on to discuss defragmentation, social impacts of the dominance of the land rental market, and environmental impacts of significant homogenization of the land-use pattern. The serious negative impacts of extreme land-ownership fragmentation show that this phenomenon can be considered as a significant form of land degradation.     

Assessing the fragmentation of construction land in urban areas: An index method and case study in Shunde, China

The fragmentation of construction land due to decentralised urban development, disorderly mixed land use, and large-scale transportation infrastructure poses a threat to urban integrity. There is a need to quantify the fragmentation level in a consistent way for inclusion in planning-related decisions. In the context of China's urban sprawl, this study develops a quantitative and intuitive index approach that planners can use to analyse multiple fragmentation features of construction land within urban areas. The approach can be used in planning policy reviews for timely land-use assessment and can be integrated into urban planning processes for developing strategic land-use scenarios. The method was applied in Shunde, a typical urban area in southern China, and construction-land fragmentation and its impacts on environmental quality were analysed. The results show that the entire built-up area in Shunde displays a high level of fragmentation. Patches of industrial and rural residence have been identified specifically higher fragmentation level. The shortage of available construction land makes land consolidation within built-up areas very important in planning Shunde's future development. Moreover, the land shortage requires the progressive reduction of construction land fragmentation. The results of the study also indicate that although land fragmentation has been affected by transportation infrastructure and the existence of rivers and hills in this region, decentralised decisions from hierarchical local governance regimes have greatly exacerbated this situation. Shunde provides examples of typical land-use problems associated with quasi-urbanised regions in China; construction-land fragmentation is a greater determinant for the sustainable development of urban and rural areas than construction-land growth.     

Tourism-driven rural spatial restructuring in the metropolitan fringe: An empirical observation

Rural spatial restructuring is regarded as an important method of achieving rural revitalization in China in recent years. With the spillover of leisure consumption demand in metropolitan areas, the rural spatial structure has undergone significant changes. To analyze the causal logic of rural spatial restructuring, this study constructs a tourism-driven rural spatial restructuring framework. Furthermore, GIS and participatory fieldwork are used to reveal the changing process of rural spatial restructuring. A case study of Qinggangshu Village shows that tourism-driven rural spatial restructuring is the result of internal and external forces, while land consolidation is highlighted as a direct way to trigger rural spatial restructuring, and rural tourism can accelerate land consolidation, and realize rural revitalization. However, for those villages without any resource endowment, simple land consolidation cannot improve the rural economy in a short period. Moreover, once rural spatial restructuring is completed, the rural economy and social culture will also be restructured. The framework demonstration results will provide a “road map” to rural spatial restructuring in metropolitan fringe areas and serve as a practical information resource for policy-makers. The driving factors of rural spatial restructuring are diverse at different stages. Therefore, the government should adopt a gradual management model, and systematically mobilize all forces to participate in rural construction to realize the sustainable development of rural areas.     

Land owners’ perception of land consolidation and their satisfaction with the results – Slovenian experiences

Land consolidation has been an important instrument of rural development for over a century throughout Europe. Nowadays, land consolidation can be an integral part of both rural and urban development projects, but the focus of our study is on land consolidation in rural areas. In addition to the efforts aimed at making agriculture and forestry more competitive through a comprehensive reallocation process, improvement of road and drainage networks, landscaping, environmental management, conservation projects, and other functions may be implemented in land consolidation. There are differences in the objectives and procedures of land consolidation among the countries. Beside the formal institutional framework of land consolidation, informal institutions can have a substantial influence on the implementation of land consolidation. In the article, the past experiences in the field of land consolidation in Slovenia are presented, which are still reflected in the limited acceptability of this instrument among land owners. Furthermore, the current institutional (legal) framework is analyzed in detail. The main objective of the research was to investigate the opinion of land consolidation participants about land consolidation. Based on the field survey conducted on a sample of private land owners involved in selected land consolidation projects we tried to define the advantages and disadvantages of the current practice. The main finding is that the active participation of land owners contributes to their comprehension of the aims and to their satisfaction with the results of the land consolidation. It has been shown that the active participation of land owners in the land consolidation is the basis for developing good practices; moreover, it affects the land owners’ perception of land consolidation. The transfer of knowledge and representation of good practices among actors are still needed, in particular because of bad experiences in the past (i.e. enforced and environmentally unfriendly projects) and the traditional emotional attachment to land among land owners. In parallel, there is a great need to provide an optimization of the land consolidation process in Slovenia.     

Land reform and land fragmentation in Central and Eastern Europe

It has often been stated that land fragmentation and farm structures characterized by small agricultural holdings and farms divided in a large number of parcels have been the side-effect of land reform in Central and Eastern Europe. This article reports the findings of a study of land reform in 25 countries in the region from 1989 and onwards and provides an overview of applied land reform approaches. With a basis in theory on land fragmentation, the linkage between land reform approaches and land fragmentation is explored. It is discussed in which situations land fragmentation is a barrier for the development of the agricultural and rural sector. The main finding is that land fragmentation is often hampering agricultural and rural development when both land ownership and land use is highly fragmented.     

农村居民点综合破碎度评价及影响因素探测*——以山东日照市为例

[目的]尝试借鉴景观格局的研究思路,对农村居民点破碎化程度进行评价及其影响因素分析,为当前"新农村建设"中合理进行土地整治提供辅助依据。[方法]充分考虑农村居民点的规模、形状和分布特征,构建了乡镇尺度上的农村居民点综合破碎度评价模型,并利用多元回归模型对其影响因素进行了分析,提出了居民点整理模式的针对性建议。[结果]以沿海平原地区——山东日照为例的研究结果表明:(1)农村居民点破碎度综合指数(FCI)能够较好地反映沿海平原地区农村居民点的空间分异特征;沿海地区FCI大于内陆地区,形成了"阶梯状"的空间分布格局。(2)多元回归模型可以较为准确地探测出破碎度影响因素;研究区FCI的显著影响因素包括距海岸线的距离、距县城的距离、坡度、道路密度等。[结论]通过分析不同等级破碎度的分布特征及其影响因素,可以为各地政府因地制宜开展土地整治、城乡协调发展和新农村建设的土地利用决策提供参考依据。     

不同模式农地整治对耕地细碎化的影响效应 及其区域差异 ——来自湖北省江汉平原与武陵山区的经验证据

研究目的：基于湖北省江汉平原、武陵山区483份农户调查数据,分析不同模式农地整治对耕地细碎化的影响效应及其区域差异,探求适应现代农业发展的耕地细碎化治理新路径。研究方法：综合指数法、双重差分模型。研究结果：（1）政府主导模式和新农主导模式通过促进地块集中连片的土地平整工程,改善农业生产关系的权属调整工作,共同降低自然因素和产权因素造成的耕地细碎化;（2）相对于政府主导模式,新农主导模式定位于现代农业发展,农地流转与农地整治的耦合度更高,土地平整工程和权属调整的比例更高,对耕地细碎化的治理效果也更为明显;（3）与丘陵山区农地整治相比,平原地区农地整治更能显著降低耕地细碎化。研究结论：建议继续大力实施政府主导模式和新农主导模式的农地整治,结合区域自然资源禀赋、产业布局、区位优势,总结和完善农地整治的地域模式,因地制宜地推进土地平整工程和权属调整工作,全面促进现代农业高质量发展。     

土地整治促进区域经济协调发展的机制与路径——基于改进的存量-流量模型

土地是影响区域经济协调发展的重要因素之一,随着土地综合整治项目在全国范围内的开展,对于土地整治如何促进区域经济协调发展的探索势必成为一个新的研究领域,特别是十八届三中全会提出了建立城乡统一的建设用地市场,给城乡建设用地的整治带来了新的机遇和挑战。该文立足于统一的城乡建设用地市场,通过改进的土地市场存量——流量模型,研究了土地整治如何对经济发达地区和经济欠发达地区的土地市场产生影响,探索了土地整治促进区域经济可持续发展的作用机制,并详细阐述了土地整治促进区域经济协调发展的实现路径,得出了科学合理的土地整治可有效促进区域经济协调发展的结论。该文最后针对目前土地整治存在的问题,提出了4点建议,分别是:健全土地整治项目的规划机制、创新城乡建设用地增减挂钩制度、与产业结构升级的目标相融合以及积极保护未利用地。     

Land consolidation in Cyprus: Why is an Integrated Planning and Decision Support System required?

This paper explores issues of land fragmentation, consolidation and reallocation and argues that a new planning support system for land consolidation is needed in Cyprus because of the long duration of projects, the high operational costs and the conflicts between the stakeholders involved. An Integrated Planning and Decision Support System is proposed that integrates artificial intelligence technologies and multi-criteria decision methods with a geographical information system for use in routine land consolidation planning as well as for undertaking ex ante evaluations of land consolidation projects, as required by the European Union. A framework is provided which shows how the system will contribute to reducing the problems associated with the land consolidation process.     

PROPERTY INSTITUTIONS AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPROVEMENT

Pressures to limit levels of agricultural production create opportunities for the provision of new environmental benefits from rural land. However, the public good characteristics of these benefits mean that they are unlikely to be provided by conventional profit-maximising firms. This paper examines the role of land ownership by public interest demand groups in the form of Conservation Amenity and Recreation Trusts. This form of ownership can establish incentives for the consideration of the external benefits of land use in land management decisions.     

What is the policy improvement of China’s land consolidation? Evidence from completed land consolidation projects in Shaanxi Province

Land consolidation plays an important role in increasing cultivated land, improving cultivated land quality and the ecological environment, and promoting the coordinated development of urban and rural areas. However, under the conditions of three decades of land consolidation being conducted and changing urban–rural human–land relationship, the areas of improvement in the land consolidation policy of China must be studied. This article analyzes the implementation and distribution characteristics of the land consolidation project completed in Shaanxi Province in 2018. Results show that land consolidation projects in Shaanxi are mainly land reclamation projects, cropland consolidation projects, and high-standard cropland consolidation projects. The increased cultivated land is mainly from land reclamation projects and cropland consolidation projects. The land consolidation projects in Aeolian Plateau Area, Loess Plateau Area, and Da Ba Mountain Area are mainly land reclamation projects. The land reclamation projects in Guan Zhong Plain Area and Qing Ling Mountain Area account for a large proportion. The spatial distribution of rural settlement consolidation projects, and rural settlement consolidation and land reclamation projects are mainly located in Guan Zhong Plain Area and distributed in the boundary area of Guan Zhong Plain Area and Loess Plateau Area. According to the characteristics of land consolidation projects and the changes of urban–rural human–land relationship, China should be prudent in or stop advancing land reclamation to increase cultivated land; cropland consolidation and high-standard cropland construction are vital ways to achieve China’s food security; and rural settlement consolidation should be carefully conducted in remote areas under the background of urbanization.     

Trends in land ownership fragmentation during the last 230 years in Czechia,and a projection of future developments

A high level of fragmentation of farmland ownership is an important underlying cause of land degradation and, at the same time, an obstacle to sustainable land management. This study makes the first-ever analysis of long-term trends in the rate of fragmentation. Our study covers the period from the earliest stages of the current form of ownership patterns at the end of the 18th century until the present day. On the basis of significant predictors that have been identified (initial fragmentation, population growth, historical development of inheritance laws and of the land market, natural soil fertility and landscape type), we go on to project probable developments for the period from 2016 to 2045. A total of 102,984 land parcels in 56 cadastral units in the territory of Czechia have been analysed on the basis of data from four years (1785, 1840, 1950, 2015). Our study considers the development of two basic indicators of fragmentation – Mean Parcel Size and Number of Owners per 100 ha. The Mean Parcel Size has decreased over a period of 230 years from 1.08 ha to 0.64 ha, at a mean rate of −0.26% year⁻¹. During the same period, the Number of Owners per 100 ha has risen from 17.50 to 79.66, at a mean rate of 0.61% year⁻¹. A detailed analysis of the development trends confirms significant spatial variability and also time variability of the rates of the two indicators. The analysis also shows their mutual complementarity: growth in the rate of one of the indicators is usually accompanied by a drop in the other. The general trend that we project for the territory of Czechia in the upcoming 30 years is that there will be further diminution of the physical size of land parcels (continuing fragmentation of land parcels) accompanied by a reduction in the Number of Owners (defragmentation of land ownership).     

坚持社会主义农村土地集体所有的大方向——评析土地私有化的四个错误观点

本文以习近平总书记多次强调坚持农村土地农民集体所有、坚持“统分结合”发展集体经济与合作经济的重要讲话为指导,客观评析了主张土地私有化或变相私有化的四个错误观点:评析了“农村土地集体所有制产权不清”的观点,认为法律对土地集体所有权作出了非常清晰的界定;评析了“土地私有制是农村土地改革方向”的观点,认为这种主张的实质是通过永久性地固化原有的家庭土地承包关系来搞农村土地私有化,无视和否定了习近平总书记所强调的壮大农村集体经济应注重“统分结合”双层经营的思想;评析了“农村土地私有化会使农民更为富裕”的观点,认为私有土地的自由买卖并不能使农民实现权利与结果的公平,绝大多数农民也不可能通过农村土地私有化实现全面小康和共富共享;评析了“‘一田两主’制度是农村土地改革有效途径”的观点,认为这一论断是通过实际架空农村土地的集体所有权来变相主张农村土地私有化。     

Changes resulting from a land consolidation project (LCP) and its resource–environment effects: A case study in Tianmen City of Hubei Province,China

Land consolidation (LC) is essential for ensuring rural development and for increasing land use effectiveness. LC has been implemented in China since the mid-1990s in an attempt to increase available cropland area, reduce fragmentation and promote agricultural production capacity. The purpose of this study is to identify the changes resulting from the land consolidation project (LCP) implementation, and to develop a parametric approach to assess the resource–environment effects. This study could promote the LCP planning, and provide the support for the decision-making of the LC authorities. The Tianmen land consolidation project in Hubei Province of China was chosen as a case study. The results of the case study showed LCP implementation results in great changes in land use types and their proportions, connectivity of field-roads, irrigation systems and drainage systems, plot numbers, plot shape and plot size. These changes bring both positive and negative effects to region environmental and economic system. Positive effects were demonstrated in agricultural production capacity and agricultural production cost and the negative effects were expressed by the ecosystem services value, landscape diversity and human disturbance intensity.     

Developing an appropriate land use methodology to promote spatially just,formal retail areas in developing countries: The case of the City of Cape Town,South Africa

South African scholars have increasingly recognized that the prevailing management system for land use is one not relevant to the current spatial needs of the country's settlements. These include, in particular, the need to create sustainable, spatially just and resilient settlements and to develop land in a manner that promotes efficient urban development. The debate in the South African literature on land use management has, with a few notable exceptions, yet to venture into the specific mechanics of how to fix this system, ways the system can be used to create a spatially just urban form, or its applicability in formal retail areas.This paper addresses these questions within the context of formal retail areas and the zoning category that these are typically found in, namely that of the General Business zone. This paper initially investigates the current exclusionary nature of formal retail areas in the context of South Africa and within Cape Town and how this is linked to the more macro patterns of spatial exclusion within Cape Town. It is argued that within the context of Cape Town there is a need to focus on both commercial, particularly formal retail, as well as residential, areas with regard to the project of creating a more spatially just city. It is subsequently demonstrated, firstly, how zoning scheme provisions could be used as a mechanism to address these patterns of exclusion in formal retail areas, specifically exploring provisions that would encourage inclusion of informal and microenterprises within shopping malls. Secondly, it is demonstrated how provisions can be included that create a safer and more inviting environment for public transport users and poorer employees and consumers, in formal retail areas.The contribution of this paper is to initiate a long overdue conversation regarding the relationship between land use management and social justice within a developing world context, and in formal retail areas, and aims to set out ways in which land use management can be made more relevant; both for South African cities and cities in other developing countries.     

Impacts and causes of land fragmentation, and lessons learned from land consolidation in South Asia

Landholdings and land parcels in South Asia are undergoing fragmentation, thereby accelerating the pace of their degradation and constraining agricultural development. Based on experiences gained in the region and elsewhere, this paper finds the fragmentation of small landholdings and tiny land parcels detrimental to land conservation and economic gain, thereby discouraging farmers from adoption of agricultural innovations. Primarily induced by the dependency of the major proportion of ever growing population on agriculture, the process of land fragmentation has been reinforced by the law of inheritance of paternal property, lack of progressive tax on inherited land, heterogeneous land quality and an underdeveloped land market. South Asian countries have had adopted policies and legal measures for facilitating land consolidation. However, desirable results were not achieved, as such interventions could not address structural causes of the problem. Broad policy and legal measures have been outlined for facilitating land consolidation in a sustainable way.     

A multi-criteria model for land valuation in the land consolidation

Land consolidation is an effective technique in land management that contributes to sustainable rural development. Land valuation is one of the most important steps in land consolidation because it plays an important role in the reallocation process. Land valuation is also an important problem in Turkey as in many countries in the world. Because the lands will be reallocated at the end of the consolidation process, it is very important to determine the precise value of each parcel. However, the methods used in land valuation in many countries lag behind current techniques and technologies. For this reason, a new method for land valuation is needed. The purpose of this study was to develop a new model based on multi-criteria calculations that is suitable for today's technologies and addresses the weakness in the current land valuation methods. In a case study of Solak, Antalya, Turkey, we identified fourteen key land value factors. Those factors were assigned weights by the Land Valuation Committee, academic staff, engineers, and local landowners. The weights were then integrated into a framework called the Land Quality Index. The land quality index factors are the criteria for evaluating the geographical, physical, and socio-economic structure of the region. The scores for each factor on each parcel were determined using GIS software. The total score of fourteen factors was then converted to a 100-point scale, that comprised the Land Quality Index. The land value of each parcel was determined by adding the soil index to the Land Quality Index. In our study, we also created three different models to investigate how the parameters were apportioned during the land valuation. We found that, while the current method used by the government agency (General Directorate of State Hydraulic Works) classified the lands into five groups, our methods classified the lands into 17, 20, 24 groups, respectively. In addition, while the deduction rate was 4.97 % in the current method, they were 4.89 %, 4.86 % and 4.85 % in our new models, respectively. The method we proposed in this study determined land values more accurately, precisely, and fairly compared to current method used by General Directorate of State Hydraulic Works. It is suggested that our models could be used instead of the current method in the land consolidation works in Turkey.