Land use and the state of the natural environment

Land use and land cover are important determinants of the state of the natural environment. As a result, measures of land use and land cover change have been widely used as indicators of environmental condition and quality. This review explores the range of measures that have been applied in the UK at national, regional and local scales, and their sensitivity to particular drivers of change. The extent to which these indicators are important properties in themselves or are surrogates for wider environmental qualities is considered.The discussion focuses on the evolving frameworks used to analyse the relationships between land use and the state of the natural environment. The limitations and strengths of the DPSIR reporting and analytical framework are explored. Recent approaches to the assessment of the impacts of future land use change on the natural environment using model-based scenario methods are examined, and the need to develop new types of aggregate measure of land use function is identified. There is also a pressing need to link assessments of trends to the analysis of sustainability thresholds or limits. It is concluded that the concept of a socio-ecological system offers a more fruitful approach to the analysis of the relationships between land use and the state of the natural environment than the simplistic cause–effect models that have been used in the past.     

Land use dynamics and planning problems in a rurban fringe environment: The case of Onitsha,Nigeria

This article discusses the land use dynamics in the urban fringe of Onitsha—one of the fastest growing towns in Nigeria. It analyses the land conversion process In the city's rurban fringe and looks at the characteristic features of such a fringe environment, namely the loss of prime agricultural land in the urban fringe areas, the dysfunctional use of land in the zone and a confused administrative set-up to handle these problems. The land use planning implications associated with these characteristics are looked at.     

经济高速发展时期河南省土地利用变化分析研究

以河南省为研究区,对不同年份的土地利用数据进行分类系统整合,在此基础上,对河南省1996~2009年土地利用类型进行了对比分析,分析得出耕地、城镇村及工矿用地、林地、交通运输用地面积在增加,园地、草地、水域及水利设施用地、其它土地面积在减少,在各类土地类型转换中,林地是变化最为激烈的土地利用类型,其次是其它土地,变化最稳定的地类是交通运输用地,其次是耕地。     

Land use,waterlogging and irrigation management

Waterlogging occurs when the level of the groundwater table rises and causes a reduction of oxygen available to plant root systems. It also results in increased salinity as it brings the dissolved salts and minerals of the soil to the surface. Although it is a global phenomena, waterlogging has received very little attention because of the desire of the concerned decision makers to increase the area under irrigation. About 10% of the area under irrigation —about 22 million hectares — suffers from this problem. This article examines the issue of waterlogging in a holistic perspective.     

Land use conflict in Kajiado District, Kenya

This study explores land use conflict in S.E. Kajiado District, Kenya. The conflict reflects ongoing competition over access to scarce land and water resources between herding, farming and wildlife, that has been conspicuous for over 30 years and is intensifying. While the complexity of the dynamic interactions and land use conflicts can be described, and significant driving forces identified, future outcomes are uncertain. The existing land use pattern represents the contemporary imprint of these interactions and it sets the basis for the future. Understanding the conditions that have created the present should, therefore, assist in devising future development strategies.     

The West African middle belt: Land use patterns and development problems

The West African Middle Belt is an area of limited resources, low population density and a severe agricultural climate. Many reasons have been given for the poor state of agriculture in this region, but a look at the agricultural communities of tropical Africa clearly shows that land use cannot be explained by physical and environmental factors alone. For this reason, decision makers must increasingly take into account socioeconomic factors when making policy decisions for development in these peripheral zones.     

土地,应从开发转向整理

2005年2月7日,国土资源部下发了《关于加强和改进土地开发整理工作的通知》。该《通知》进一步明确了当前和今后一个时期内土地开发整理工作方向和重点是,以提高农业综合生产能力为出发点,大力开展基本农田整理,促进补充耕地数量、质量、生态三者统一。我认为,当前,土地开发向土地整理方向转变,主要基于以下几方面原因。现有后备耕地资源质量差据国土资源部的年度土地利用变更统计数据,1999年～2004年,补充耕地数量略大于建设占用耕地的数量,实现了耕地在数量上的占补平衡。然而,许多补充耕地的质量难以达到被占用耕地的质量,违背了耕地占补…     

内蒙古退耕土地生态建设调查与思考

调查了内蒙古土地开垦与退垦情况解放后出现4次开荒高潮,共开垦5700多万亩.全区近10年开垦草原587万亩、林地735万亩,水土流失面积超过4亿亩,导致生态环境恶化,土地荒漠化扩展.论述了退耕的必要性、可行性,及退耕后的实效;提出问题及措施建议.     

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.     

马鞍山市土地利用与生态环境

介绍了马鞍山市的概况、土地利用现状及土地利用结构、空间布局、城市用地、土地开发整理、重大生态建设工程对生态环境的影响;提出了促进该市生态环境建设的一些政策和管理措施。     

Land use policies and biotic conservation : Problems and prospects for forestry development in Nigeria

Forestry projects in Nigeria have experienced growing land use competition, conflicts and a widening communication gap between foresters and traditional landowners. Land use is influenced by short-term financial benefits and a trial and error approach to the conservation of forest resources which eventually leads to destructive use of resources and the environment. However, reliable conservation of resources can be achieved through a review of forest policies, improved enforcement, adequate funding and involvement by rural communities In planning and execution of forestry projects.     

Land use in Africa

With high and accelerating population growth and with low and declining efficiency in the use of resources, Africa is currently facing a long-term declining trend. Since agriculture accounted for 41% of the GDP of Africa in 1982, formulation and implementation of efficient land use policies are prerequisites if the long-term adverse trend is to be reversed.     

Land and water use in India

The author pinpoints India's current land and water use problems. Various solutions are suggested taking into account the demands of the expanding population and the importance of agricultural land to India's development. India's climatic variations and the ways in which they affect land and water supplies and planning, are covered in detail. The many serious difficulties which the two natural resources face and which the planners must overcome if land and water are to be put to optimal use, are outlined separately, yet the interrelations between land and water and the need to develop them are also stressed.     

Land use,water management and future flood risk

Human activities have profoundly changed the land on which we live. In particular, land use and land management change affect the hydrology that determines flood hazard, water resources (for human and environmental needs) and the transport and dilution of pollutants. It is increasingly recognised that the management of land and water are inextricably linked (e.g. Defra, 2004). “Historical context, state of the science and current management issues” section of this paper addresses the science underlying those linkages, for both rural and urban areas. In “Historical context, state of the science and current management issues” section we discuss future drivers for change and their management implications. Detailed analyses are available for flood risk, from the Foresight Future Flooding project (Evans et al., 2004a,b) and other recent studies, and so we use flooding as an exemplar, with a more limited treatment of water resource and water quality aspects. Finally in “Science needs and developments” section we discuss science needs and likely progress. This paper does not address the important topic of water demand except for some reference to the Environment Agency's Water Resources Strategy for England and Wales (Environment Agency, 2009).     

《京都议定书》-中国的能源、环境和可持续发展

我国的能源短缺在相当程度上是由加工业能耗过高造成的;我国即使不承担温室气体减排国际义务,也要理智对待环境问题;通过计算说明我国每百人拥有小客车9．9辆也是不可思议的事,发展公共交通是我国的唯一选择;建议实施小型乘用车和营运汽车排放权交易;我国应实行适度消费、资源节约型的现代化,发展循环经济;只有实行定量化、可操作化,才可能实现环境、经济的可持续发展。     

Land use and biodiversity relationships

The relationships between land use and biodiversity are fundamental to understanding the links between people and their environment. Biodiversity can be measured in many ways. The concept covers not only the overall richness of species present in a particular area but also the diversity of genotypes, functional groups, communities, habitats and ecosystems there. As a result, the relationships between biodiversity in its broadest sense and land use can be complex and highly context dependent. Moreover, the relationships between them are often two-way, so that simple relationships between cause and effect can be difficult to identify. In some places, specific land uses or land management practices may be important in sustaining particular patterns of biodiversity. Elsewhere, the uses to which land can be put are highly dependent on the biodiversity resources present.The review will consider how changes in the quantity, quality and spatial configuration of different aspects of land use can impact on different components of biodiversity, and what direct and indirect factors might drive these changes. The need to distinguish between land cover and land use will be discussed in relation to the economic and social drivers of land use change. The review will also consider whether framing biodiversity objectives involves society in placing constraints upon the types of land use and management practice that are possible, and will consider such arguments in relation to assessments of the costs of biodiversity loss. It would seem that while considerable progress has been made in mapping out plausible futures for land use and biodiversity at global and regional scales, closer integration of modelling, scenario and field-based monitoring is needed to strengthen the evidence base available to decision makers. Challenges that face us include how we take account of the qualitative changes in land cover, and the impacts of such modifications on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Broader perspectives on the value of biodiversity and ecosystem services are also needed as the basis for developing adaptive and flexible approaches to policy and management.     

Land market,land development and urban spatial structure in Beijing

The paper first examines urban spatial patterns of the gradients of housing and land prices and land development intensity, and then tests the relationship between the land price gradient and housing price gradient. Urban theory predicts the former is steeper than the latter based on the notion of derived demand for land from the provision of housing services. Finally the paper examines the impact of the property of housing production function on urban spatial structure. For the property of housing production function, we are particularly interested in the elasticity of capital-land substitution. The paper concludes (1) market influences over spatial structure, (2) the derived demand for land, and (3) it is the actual (or expected) housing price increases that cause skyrocketing land prices, not the other way around.