Building up a compensation-oriented transferable development right mechanism: A theoretical and empirical exploration in Hubei, China

Abstract

Regulated areas defined by planning are fundamental for land consumption constraints and environmental preservation, yet the restrictions on these areas' economic development and the resulting trends of regional economic imbalance are contested. Some countries, including China, have been exploring the possibility of adopting market-based solutions in the context of implementing authority-exerted planning regulations to compensate the regulated areas. To make it realizable, from the economic input–output perspective and taking the city as the research scale, this study builds up a compensation-oriented transferable development rights (CO-TDR) mechanism by investigating the compensation direction, quantity and value of the land development rights (LDRs) among cities based on the differences in their synthetic regulation intensity per capita (SRIC) of territorial space. In this study, an intuitive method to quantify the regional SRIC of territorial space is put forward, the restricted quantity, compensation direction and amounts of LDRs are revealed, and the implementation of the CO-TDR mechanism is proved to be economically feasible for local governments. As a promising tool, the CO-TDR extends the application of TDR in different countries and planning systems. It may be helpful for promoting coordinated development among regions and ultimately achieving the integrative goal of environmental improvement and social equity.