Land contamination risk management in Cameroon: A critical review of the existing policy framework

Land affected by contamination from human activities has been identified as a major environmental problem in developed countries and there are established mechanisms for identifying, prioritising, characterising, assessing and remediating the land so that risks to human health and environmental receptors are minimised. However, comparative mechanisms and approaches for sustainable land management are often lacking in developing countries such as Cameroon. This paper presents a critical review of the existing policy framework in Cameroon in relation to environmental management, particularly land contamination.It is established that in Cameroon, there is an acute lack of comprehensive information on land contamination from economic development and industrialisation, inadequate legal and institutional framework, weak enforcement capacity and unsatisfactory coordination between various stakeholders towards sustainable land management practices. The coastal town of Douala, which has the highest level of industrial activity in the sub region is used to demonstrate how dealing with land contamination is a public health priority and requires attention in the context of sustainable development. The United Kingdom (UK) regulatory policy framework on land contamination risk management is used to show how land contamination issues and risk management approaches, including conceptual site models, could be introduced into the sustainability discourse in Cameroon. A number of recommendations including proposals for a radical overhaul of the current regulatory policy framework are formulated and presented. Specifically, the creation of an independent Cameroon Environment Protection Agency (CEPA) that will be the main regulatory body responsible for developing and implementing the policy proposals in this paper is advocated.     

Characteristics and land use of contaminated brownfield properties in voluntary cleanup agreement programs

This paper reports exploratory empirical research on the property characteristics and land use of contaminated brownfield properties. This research investigated 1415 contaminated brownfield properties in environmental cleanup programs in the states of New York and Texas in the US. This research attempts to clarify some confusion about contaminated brownfield sites, provide detailed information on the diverse land uses that caused the contamination on these properties, and to provide a better base of knowledge about brownfield sites that may be used in developing and implementing policy to remediate and redevelop contaminated brownfields properties in both older industrial regions and in more recently industrialized regions. This research analyzed land use data for these properties at the time they became contaminated and at the time they entered the environmental cleanup program. It also attempts to identify similarities and differences in the characteristics of the properties in these two states with strikingly different histories of industrialization. Several common assumptions about brownfield properties are extracted from the literature review and tested using the data. Some of our results are surprising, including the variety of past land uses of these contaminated brownfield properties and the differences in the history of land use and the characteristics of the properties in the older versus newer industrial region.     

Anticipating a new conservation bureaucracy? Land and power in Indonesia’s Essential Ecosystem Area policy

As an emerging policy in Indonesia, “Essential Ecosystem Areas” (EEA) is being established as an instrument to expand protections for conservation areas at sites beyond the classical domain of the conservation bureaucracy. The policy impetus is from recent global research identifying high conservation values located outside of formally designated conservation areas. EEA policy provides a foundation for justifying conservation practices at sites based on high biodiversity indicators, but which might not have previously held formal protections. This policy instrument is particularly unique in Indonesia because it is envisioned to support initiatives that emerge voluntarily, even in areas that might not have been historically thought of as conservation areas. This is unusual because it applies to all land categories, including private and public lands. In this article, we introduce the EEA policy and identify the potential applications it might have, considering the possibilities for future conservation area management in Indonesia. In particular, we identify some key principles for researchers and practitioners to follow when assessing EEA implementation. Our organizing framework consists of several elements based on existing land and power characteristics, which we connect to the institutions that might emerge amidst these new policy arrangements. We apply the land and power framework to two emerging EEA sites in Sulawesi to anticipate the extent to which the policy suggests a future trajectory for conservation management, or whether conservation policy will remain tied to existing rigid bureaucratic structures. Findings from the two cases point to the continued primacy of the centralized conservation bureaucracy, indicating that EEA sites are being negotiated through the classical approach for administering conservation areas.     

国外国土资源行政管理与市场和非政府组织的关系

通过介绍英国、美国、德国、澳大利亚、新加坡、日本、加拿大等7个国家的国土资源行政管理机构和非政府组织,就行政管理机构、非政府组织和市场的关系进行了分析。总体而言,国外的行政管理机构与非政府组织和市场之间存在密切联系。市场是非政府组织发展的社会基础,也是国土资源行政管理的重要内容和机构设立调整的重要依据。通过市场和非政府组织,行政管理机构可以更好地进行国土资源管理。同时,政府和市场是非政府组织资金和业务的主要来源。一些非政府组织还为国土资源行政管理提供决策支撑,并为国土资源科学研究和管理事业的发展起了重要的促进作用。     

Land use regulation and urban land value: Evidence from China

Land use regulation has always been regarded as one of the most crucial means of macro-control of urban growth, which can affect a city’s land values directly and further determine related urban economic well-being. Since the New Type Urbanization Strategy proposed by the government in 2014, China’s mode of urban growth has been transformed from addressing “quantity” to “quality" in the urbanization process. In this case, the regulation of land use by the Chinese government plays a more important role in urban growth. With their planned land regulatory scheme, the various instruments employed by Chinese governments have quite different mechanisms influencing land prices. However, there are no rigorous studies focusing on the land use regulation system and its impact on land values to date, particular in China. This study seeks to explore how land use regulation affects urban land values through the systematic lens. We summarize the main land use regulatory instruments based on the analysis of China’s planned land use system and urban land banking system, including the construction land quota, constraints on the allowed floor area ratio (FAR) of each land transaction parcel, and land supply restrictions. A new dataset based on land transaction data from 2007 to 2016 that covers 286 prefectural cities from the country’s coastal, central, and western regions is used in the empirical analysis. The results show that the effects of the floor area ratio (FAR) on land values are significant and positive, with the residential and commercial land supply ratio being a key factor. Moreover, the results imply that the effects of constraints on FAR and commercial land supply vary between regions. These findings indicate that the Chinese land market is considerably distorted by excessive administrative interventions by local governments, in the stage of urban transition guided, the capable regulatory instruments could play an important role in adjusting urban land prices and hence impact on urban growth.     

Strategic use of land policy instruments for affordable housing – Coping with social challenges under scarce land conditions in Swiss cities

For decades, many cities have introduced densification policy objectives to stop urban sprawl or to promote efficient use of natural resources. In the urban housing sector, however, densification projects often intensify social challenges. Due to rising rents after modernization of existing housing stocks as a consequence of densification, low-income tenants are forced to leave their apartments. Risks of social exclusion and segregation increase simultaneously.In this article, we analyze how municipal planning authorities cope with affordable housing shortages in a context of urban densification. Specifically, we ask: How do municipal planning authorities promote affordable housing in densifying cities? To answer this research question, we apply a neoinstitutional analysis approach to better understand (1) the basic mechanisms of how land policy instruments impact affordability, and (2) why specific instruments are activated to defend affordable housing objectives. Through qualitative case study analysis of four Swiss urban municipalities, our results show that the mere availability of land policy instruments is not sufficient but that the strategic activation of specific instruments matters.     

Enhancing ecosystem services through afforestation: How policy can help

We employ an integrated spatial economic model to assess the net private and public benefits of converting marginal agricultural land into forest plantations (afforestation) in New Zealand. For numerous locations, we conduct policy analysis considering the magnitudes of net private and public benefits of land use changes to determine whether a policy response is justified and, if so, to identify the appropriate policy instruments to encourage adoption of afforestation. Net private benefit is commonly negative, so much so, that in most cases no policy response is justified. However, in certain cases, net private benefits are slightly negative and public benefits are significantly positive justifying the use of positive incentives as the most appropriate policy instrument to encourage afforestation in New Zealand. The most commonly used policy instruments for afforestation in New Zealand, extension and awareness training, are found to be appropriate in only a minority of situations.     

Evaluating the conformity of informal land subdivision with the planning law in Benin metropolis

Town planning law is a regulatory framework for guiding the spatial growth of cities. As a land subdivision regulation, it embraces all development parameters in urban areas. But locally adopted land subdivision standards appear incompatible with the existing Planning Law. Evaluating the conformity of informal land subdivision standards for residential and non-residential uses with those of the existing Planning Law, land subdivision attributes were collected from four neighbourhoods and compared with the minimum approved standards. Independent-sample t-test statistics for each of the selected neighbourhoods shows no significant difference in their Mean Scores. The significant values (two-tailed) in the t-test output tables of the selected communities were consistently above the required cut-off of α = 0.05 which suggest that informal land subdivision attributes statistically conform with those of the Planning Law. Key planning implications of unplanned land use patterns that have emerged and policy options to tackle them were suggested.     

Land reuse in support of renewable energy development

Renewable Portfolio Standards are U.S. state-level policies that encourage renewable energy development to meet a proportion of electricity demand. These policies, along with state and federal incentives and private sector demand, have motivated interest in renewable energy capacity, which is a function of available land. As global climate change has been driven by the combination of fossil fuel combustion and land cover change, renewable energy development is best achieved through sustainable land use practices. One option is to site renewable energy installations on land that has been contaminated or degraded. This analysis looks at the degree to which renewable energy demand created by state renewable portfolio standards in the United States could be met by contaminated or formerly contaminated sites. Results suggest that land resources are more than sufficient to meet current and possibly future RPS-generated demand in three out of four regions.     

Measuring regional competitiveness in oilseeds production and processing in Nigeria: a spatial equilibrium modelling approach

The four main resource regions of Nigeria, namely, the East, Middle‐belt, West and North, differ in their endowments in the production and processing of oilseeds. The Federal Government has allocated resources to the oilseeds sub‐sector across the regions without apparent rational basis. Consequently, huge imports of oilseed products, high and unaffordable oilseed product prices, and the establishment of new oil mills in the face of frequent shutdowns and chronic under‐utilisation of existing mills, still characterise the sector. In this paper, a spatial equilibrium model of the Nigerian oilseeds economy is used to determine the optimal location and number of mills across the regions, and to establish regional competitiveness in aid of the planning and development of the oilseeds sub‐sector. In the model, production (farming and milling) activities are tied to arable land and milling capacity constraints. The shadow prices of the arable land and milling capacities are used as a measure of competitiveness. Results indicate that, because of its central location, the Middle‐belt is the most competitive in oilseeds production at a shadow value of N 18,400 per hectare of cultivated land, followed by the North, West and East regions. However, the East is the most competitive in oilseeds milling, followed by the West, due to their close proximity to ports of export. These results suggest that transport cost is the main determinant of the viability of oilseeds production and milling in Nigeria.     

近年来中国土地政策调控效果评价

研究目的：从直接效应和间接效应两个层面对近年来土地政策参与宏观调控的效果进行测度和评价。研究方法：文献资料法、因果分析法和统计推断法。研究结果：近年来土地宏观调控取得显著成效,基本达到预期的政策目标。研究结论：今后应进一步调整和完善土地宏观调控政策,把促进就业和人口城市化纳入土地宏观调控政策的目标控制体系。     

Land use and nuclear power: an introduction

This article introduces Land Use Policy's special feature on land use and nuclear power. After outlining the world status of nuclear power the author examines the nuclear power-land use nexus. There are many connections between land use and nuclear power and, although the prime focus is on the UK and USA, the issues discussed are recognized as important policy matters in most nuclear states. The issues addressed in the main articles are then introduced—site selection, emergency planning, waste disposal and decommissioning.     

Environmental impact assessment of urban land use transitions—A context-sensitive approach

Land consumption due to residential development, economic growth and transportation belongs to the most serious environmental pressures on landscapes worldwide, in particular in urbanised areas. Accordingly, the aim of containing the development of land is rated increasingly high on the agenda of environmental policy, at least in densely populated countries such as Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands or the UK. As a result, different strategies and instruments to prevent excessive land consumption are being discussed. However, many of these strategies and instruments adopt a rather general approach, while it seems more effective to define the particular areas where the goal of reducing land consumption is to be pursued. Such an approach must draw on information about how detrimental specific land use transitions are with regard to, for instance, the functionality of soils, water balance or habitat quality at specific locations. This paper introduces a conceptual framework for the impact assessment of land use transition in urban areas which highlights how such information can be acquired. This framework includes the differentiation of two levels of impact assessment: the level of the single land unit and the context level which takes into account regional and aggregated impacts of land use transition bound to the spatial context. The conceptual framework provides a basis to disaggregate (supra-)national policy targets regarding land use, to scale them down to the regional level, and thus to clarify the spatially explicit implications of land use policies.     

论土地政策参与宏观调控的机制建设

土地政策作为我国宏观调控的手段,参与到国民经济宏观调控中,并取得了很大的成效。但如何充分发挥土地政策的宏观调控作用,成为迫切需要研究解决的问题。文章主要分析了当前土地政策在参与宏观调控中存在的问题,提出应加强土地政策参与宏观调控的机制建设,建立健全土地政策的宏观调控职能。     

土地税费政策参与宏观调控的实践研究

通过分析耕地占用税、城镇土地使用税、土地增值税、新增建设用地有偿使用费（简称新增费）、土地闲置费等土地税费政策参与宏观调控实践效果,反应出我国土地税费政策参与宏观调控过程中存在税制结构不尽合理、土地取得环节税负偏低、保有环节征税范围过窄、流转环节税费政策实施难度大等问题。对策建议：优化土地税制设计,加强调控作用;在土地取得环节实行差别化税额标准;提高土地保有环节的税负;在土地流转环节加强税费征管。     

New environmental policy instruments to realize forest expansion in Flanders (northern Belgium): A base for smart regulation?

This paper evaluates the current instrument mix, designs options for smart regulation and estimates the support base of new instruments for the forest expansion policy in Flanders (northern Belgium). The framework applied is a combination of theories on instrument choice (ICT), policy transfer and legitimacy. The ICT points out that there is a need for new environmental policy instruments (NEPI) oriented to private actors that inform them or create win–win situations for all involved parties. The need is especially high for farmers, who are key actors. The policy transfer analysis suggested instruments currently in use in the Netherlands, England and Denmark that can fulfill these needs. However, the acceptability – or legitimacy – of the suggested instruments in Flanders is only high for three of these, notably the carbon fund, flexible grant scheme and expert advice (especially by forest groups). This largely fills some smart regulation gaps, like the need for information (expert advice), the involvement of other institutional actors (certifiers, forest groups) and the higher involvement of the private sector (all). However, some gaps, such as flexible land purchase through cooperation with real estate agents or other private agents and opportunities for win–win outcomes with farmers, remain. Thus, it is not possible to fully optimize the instrument mix in accordance with the smart regulation requirements in Flanders’ forest expansion policy at this moment. However, as continuity or incremental change is characteristic of most public policy, this does not mean that the suggested changes will be impossible in the near future, especially with the changing character of the rural space.     

Land use and climate change in the UK

This paper reviews the relationships between land use and climate change. It explores how land use decisions will be affected by future changes in the climate, but also the feedbacks from land use change to the global climate system through greenhouse gas (GHG) fluxes. Past changes in land use were characterised by decreasing areas of agricultural use and increasing areas of forested and urbanised land. This has led to UK land use being a net sink for GHGs, mostly due to forestation. However, existing forests have on average passed their age for maximum net removals of carbon from the atmosphere. In the next decade at least, net removals from UK forests are likely to decrease significantly.Longer term scenarios of future land use change are consistent in their expectation of further declines in the agricultural area used for food production – offset to some extent by increased bioenergy cropping – along with increases in forested and urban areas. These trends are broadly consistent with the observed past land use change, but are calculated from various assumptions about future changes in drivers rather than by extrapolation from the past. Socio-economic and technological changes are likely to be the most important drivers for land use, with climate change having a smaller influence. The land use changes represented in these scenarios would likely reduce GHG emissions and enhance carbon sinks. These trends would be reinforced by small future changes in the climate, but large climatic changes are likely to cause net GHG fluxes to switch from being a sink to a source. Land use change will also be moderated by potential policy goals that seek to reduce GHG emissions from land and/or increase the size of land-based sinks. This includes strategies to reduce carbon and nitrogen emissions through increased efficiency, afforestation and biofuel production.     

Modelling the impacts of policy on entry into organic farming: Evidence from Danish–UK comparisons, 1989–2007

This paper analyses organic farming entry decisions using a piece-wise linear depiction of policy. Our goal is to ascertain, from the available but limited information, whether Danish and UK policy measures toward organic agriculture have affected participation. Despite considerable interest in the growth of organic farming there has been little systematic analysis of it, although it is commonly believed that enhanced income levels have played a part. Whilst analyses of organic farming policy have provided extensive reviews of instruments applied, generally speaking, the spirit of those enquiries takes as datum that organic policies have had the desired impacts. Yet such conjectures remain mostly untested. Hence, there is a need to examine systematically if there exist relationships between the introduction of organic farming policies and the growth of organic farming, and whether particular policy measures are more effective than others. Here, we take a first step in this endeavor by undertaking an econometric analysis of the relationship between 14 organic farming policy measures and participation rates in Denmark and the UK during 1989–2007. Using two response variables – the numbers of farmers converted to organic production and the total land area under organic practice – we implement a simple, Bayesian methodology and evaluate the stepwise-linear impacts of policy. Extensions for future work are discussed. Six policy measures in the two study countries were found to be significant influences on participation, five of them direct supply-side instruments. For the UK, all of the policies are annual subsidies for organic farmers once conversion was complete. For Denmark, the policies are the introduction of organic subsidies for non-dairy farms, the extension of subsidies beyond 1997 and support for the costs of marketing services.     

UK Land Use Futures: Policy influence and challenges for the coming decades

This paper, originally contributed as part of the government's Foresight investigation of Land Use Futures, considers the likely shape of policies affecting UK rural land use up to 2060, based on literature review, analysis of past and current trends and drivers, and discussion with selected policy experts. The postwar, centralised approach to spatial planning and countryside management has come under increasing challenge from domestic and international needs and concerns. European policy influence has increased in respect of agriculture and the natural environment. Zoning of land-use and a restrictive approach to built development have gradually weakened, and land-use drivers have become more multifunctional. Policy has moved away from a ‘top-down’ process designed in Whitehall towards a multi-layered structure within which international agreements and negotiations must be reconciled with regional and local, partnership-based approaches to planning and management, via national frameworks and a complex mix of regulatory and market-based instruments. Climate and energy policy, as well as policies on food and health, will require new and more diverse forms of development. A major challenge for the future could be the extent to which current, multi-layered spatial planning policies can accommodate the scale of change implied by the new mix of drivers from other policy areas. There is the possibility of an increasingly differentiated response across the UK countryside, as well as much more radical change in the system driven from the centre, as pressures increase.

While the Government Office for Science commissioned this review, the views are those of the author, are independent of Government, and do not constitute Government policy.     

统筹城乡的建设用地空间重构机制与对策研究

统筹城乡发展要求重构建设用地空间。分析了我国土地政策促进城乡统筹的现实困境,表现为城乡用地供需错位、土地要素缺乏流动性、置换指标区际交易机制不健全、收益共享机制不完善等;以此为基础,从农村建设用地整理模式转换、置换指标跨县区流转、土地增值收益共享、规划引导4个方面构建了统筹城乡的建设用地空间重构机制;并提出要加强土地政策与相关政策的衔接,强化监管及保障体系建设,以充分发挥土地政策的宏观调控作用。