Land Consolidation Process Research Articles

Specific features of development of selected agricultural problematic areas in the land consolidation process

AbstractDevelopment of the Polish agriculture and its production abilities are spatially diversified. At present, in Poland agricultural areas may be distinguished which may successfully compete with the agriculture in the European Union countries. However, areas where private farms run their businesses on the verge of profitability or below also exist in Poland. Those areas are called agricultural problematic areas (OPR), depression areas, areas not useful for agricultural purposes, marginal lands etc. It is estimated that OPR covers over 60-70% of our country. Land consolidation is the process which improves the spatial structure of rural areas, including problematic areas. When this geodetic process is performed it is possible to interpret specific features of selected agricultural problematic areas and to propose alternative and the most effective ways of development of the discussed areas. As a result of those agricultural-and-development operations rural areas are becoming competitive and improve the living conditions. However, they are performed on a very small scale, in recent years this area is about 5900 hectares per year.

Organizacja przestrzenna gruntów w województwie wielkopolskim a możliwości wykorzystania środków UE na jej poprawę na przykładzie wsi Brudzewek

W Polsce systematycznej poprawie struktury obszarowej gospodarstw, towarzyszy coraz intensywniejsza fragmentacja gruntów. Skutecznym sposobem ograniczania szachownicy gruntów są scalenia. Tego typu prace były wspierane przez PROW 2007–2013 (Działanie 125. Poprawianie i rozwijanie infrastruktury związanej z rozwojem i dostosowaniem rolnictwa i leśnictwa). W artykule dokonano próby oceny wpływu środków unijnych na organizację przestrzenną gruntów we wsi Brudzewek, położonej w gminie Chocz (powiat pleszewski w województwie wielkopolskim). Analizie poddano również proces rozwoju szachownicy gruntów w województwie wielkopolskim.

Promoting change or preserving the status quo? The consequences of dominating local politics by agricultural interests

Though there is a vibrant debate about the determinants of structural change in the agricultural sector, the broad consensus is that it is mainly driven by economic environment and farmers’ characteristics. In this paper, we show that the pattern of farm exits can also be importantly shaped by rural politics. Using municipality-level data for Poland and the period 1996–2010, we find a persistent correlation between the outflow from farming and the distribution of political power at the local level. Our results suggest that in municipalities where local governments were captured by agricultural interests there were fewer exits from farming and the land consolidation process was slower. While we cannot rule out that some omitted factors might be responsible for the documented statistical association, our findings are robust across different specifications and to focusing attention on various subsamples.

ANALYSIS OF THE DIFFERENT LAND REALLOCATION RESULTS IN LAND CONSOLIDATION PROJECT: A CASE STUDY IN ÜÇHÜYÜKLER NEIGHBORHOOD, ÇUMRA-KONYA-TURKEY

ABSTRACT: The most important, complex and time-consuming process of land consolidation is known as the reallocation phase. Reallocation processes in land consolidation projects in Turkey is made according to farmer preferences (interview). Besides, the optimization studies based on the mathematical models for the reallocation process in many scientific researches in addition to reallocation model based on interview have been conducted. But, because there isn’t a precise mathematical model for the reallocation process, many different solutions have been suggested . In this study, importance of reallocation in land consolidation and interview-based and block priority-based reallocation models has been described. Also, the results of the block priority-based reallocation model that makes land reallocation by being take into account respectively the largest parcels belong to the farmers have been obtained. The results which are obtained from the block priority-based reallocation model has been compared with the results which are obtained from the interview-based reallocation model. In the consolidation area of the Uchuyukler neighborhood Cumra-Konya-Turkey, previously the number of cadastral parcels were 265, the number of interview-based reallocation method parcels were 243. The number of this parcels according to the block priority-based reallocation model that is applied in this study have decreased to 237. Average parcel size was 3.30 hectares before consolidation in this region. Average parcel size has increased to 3.60 hectares according to the interview-based reallocation model and to 3.36 hectares according to the block priority-based reallocation model.

A novel approach for automated land partitioning using genetic algorithm

Land consolidation is an important tool to prevent land fragmentation and enhance agricultural productivity. Land partitioning is one of the most significant problems within the land consolidation process. This process is related to the subdivision of a block having non-uniform geometric shapes. Land partitioning determines the location of new land parcels and is a complex problem containing many conflicting demands, so conventional programming techniques are not sufficient for this NP optimization problem. Therefore, it is necessary to have an intelligent system with a standard decision-making mechanism capable of processing many criteria simultaneously and evaluating a number of different solutions in a short time. To overcome this problem and accelerate the land partitioning process, we proposed automated land partitioning using a genetic algorithm (ALP-GA). Besides the parcel's size, shape and land value, the proposed method evaluates fixed facilities, and the degree and location of cadastral parcels to generate a land partitioning plan. The proposed method automated the land partitioning process using an intelligent system and was implemented over a real project area. Experimental study shows that the proposed method is more successful and efficient than the designer with respect to the results meeting the objective function. In addition, the land partition process is greatly simplified by the proposed method.

MODERN TRENDS IN ROAD NETWORK DEVELOPMENT IN RURAL AREAS

Activities aimed at the improvement of instruments of rural development have been undertaken in Europe for many years. Those focusing on the changing the ownership structure, implemented through the traditional process of land consolidation, are gradually replaced by multifunctional activities for rural development, considering elements of environmental protection, agricultural landscape management, and solutions concerning soil and water protection. Such development must be accompanied by the application of new pro-ecological design and material-technological solutions regarding the construction of rural roads. The roads should be designed with possibly the fullest consideration of a rich resource of data on a given area, performance of many spatial analyses, and decision making in the scope of selection of the most appropriate solutions acceptable to all stakeholders (e.g. residents, farmers, local authorities, entrepreneurs, and investors). The article presents the concept of a model solution of the development of the rural road network based on the multiple-criteria model of spatial analyses with the application of the Analytic Hierarchy Process method. The research process was conducted in the geographic information systems environment. The importance of the proposed methodology was verified in actual conditions based on the example of the Harta village located in the southern part of Poland. The obtained results suggest that the process of development of rural roads with the application of the multiple-criteria model of spatial analyses is more accurate, more efficient than the traditional design method, and considers the requirements of the sustainable development of rural areas. Moreover, it permits presentation of solutions in the form of maps to the local community, almost in real time, and making excellent decisions with its active participation.

Socio-spatial conflicts caused by an unfavourable rural structure and out-of-date Land and Property Register

Abstract This article addresses the issue of conflict situations caused by an out-of-date Land and Property Register (LPR) and the disadvantageous structure of rural areas in southern Poland. In this part of the country, holdings are very fragmented and scattered, made up of a large number of small surface area plots located far from the headquarters of the holding. The aim of the article is to present actions that can help improve rural spatial structure and validity of the land register. The authors have, therefore, analysed the problems that may result in both spatial and social conflicts. The following were analysed in particular: discrepancies between data in the LPR and the existing factual state, plots without access to public roads, property ownership structure, the necessity to regulate property boundaries, and problems with the procedure for taking land out of agricultural production. The article presents both positive and negative effects of the land consolidation and exchange process, modernisation of the Land and Property Register, and their impact on socio-spatial conflicts. Its results indicated that the land consolidation procedure and LPR modernisation have a significant impact on socio-spatial relations in rural areas. It has been found that despite the fact that both these activities may give rise to new disputes in addition to resolving conflicts, the overall balance is positive. It is because more positive aspects of these actions were found than negative consequences.

Exchanging Land, Explaining Power: Land Consolidation in Peri-urban Hanoi

How do economic growth and the spread of housing and facilities affect cities’ peri-urban land and peoples? In many cases around the world, agricultural land is being converted and repurposed rapidly for urban uses through the process of land consolidation. However, how does land consolidation actually affect farmers and communities? What role do they have in the process? How do they evaluate results? Using participant observation and semi-structured interviews with thirteen local farmers in Soc Son, a peri-urban district of Vietnam undergoing land consolidation in 2010, this article illuminates four major conflicts that affect the outcome of land consolidation. These conflicts are (1) between the state’s strategy of decentralization and the disparate human resources on the ground, (2) between the ideology of equity and the efficiency of land redistribution, (3) between the promise of mechanization and unequal access to machines, and (4) between infrastructural improvements and actual needs. I argue that the failure of policymakers to account for existing inequalities and local context in Soc Son villages has led to unfulfilled promises of land consolidation and further stratification within the farmer community.

A Model of Automatic Block Reallocation in the Land Consolidation Projects Using Artificial Bee Colony Algorithm

Equitably reallocating of blocks among land owners has been one of the most important tasks in Land Consolidation studies. This task has to be fairly solved among landholdings for a land. This complicated problem is difficult to solve using linear methods. Therefore, a method is needed to solve this non-linear problem among land owners impartially. There are many applications employing optimization algorithms for solving the complicated and non-linear problems in literature. When we examine the literature, it is seen that Genetic Algorithm has been only used to overcome the block reallocation problem. Artificial Bee Colony (ABC) algorithm is one of the optimization algorithms that have been used to solve the non-linear and complicated problems in literature. Furthermore, this method has better performance when it is compared with the other optimization algorithms. In this study, we have aimed to fairly reallocate the landholding areas to blocks in a land by developing an algorithm using Artificial Bee Colony optimization method. When we develop the steps of the algorithm, we give priority to landholdings preferences and places of fixed installations. Data tables have been arranged by taking land consolidation data of DOT Village in Adiyaman, Turkey that into consideration. DOT Village land consolidation project includes 143 blocks and 225 landholders. Consequently, we have introduced the steps of an algorithm solving the block reallocation problem automatically using ABC for a sample land. Also, we have observed the applicability of the proposed method for automatic block reallocation problem in this study. This study is a preliminary study helping us to develop software providing to automatically solve complicated block reallocation problem in real time land consolidation process.

Analysis of land consolidation projects and their impact on land use change, landscape structure, and agricultural land resource protection: case studies of Pilsen-South and Pilsen-North (Czech Republic)

Within the countries of the former socialist bloc, the changes in the politico-economic system at the end of the 1990s created a situation where it was (and still is) necessary to restore agricultural land resource property rights, to adjust the structure of agricultural land to current needs and to improve the current state of environmental resources. This case study covers 19 cadastral areas in the western part of the Czech Republic that were affected by the land consolidation process during 2000–2006. The main task of this study was to document how land consolidation processes could affect the change of land use and landscape structure and whether the land consolidation planners take into account the protection of natural resources. The increased acreage of grasslands was the most important change which has occurred in the land use in the 19 analysed cadastral areas, before and after land consolidations. In the studied area, the changes of land use involved 6.8 % of the total land consolidation area. This area of grassland significantly increased the protection of agricultural land from water erosion. In terms of changes in the landscape structure, the construction of new field road networks is the most important result. The results confirm the importance of land consolidation processes not only for the organization and recovery of ownership and cadastral records but also for the improvement of agricultural use of landscape and protection of natural resources such as soil, water and plant and animal communities.

Determining Consistency of Tillage Direction with Soil Erosion Protection Requirements as The Element of Decision-Making Process in Planning and Applying Land Consolidation

Water erosion is one of the factors which have negative effect on soil productivity. It often leads to irreversible soil degradation, making soil worthless for agricultural activities. One way of preventing water erosion is making the direction of cultivation perpendicular to the direction of rainwater run-off. Matching the direction with the shape of parcels boundaries in small and extended ones is often possible only through changes in the configuration of property boundaries, which is possible only in the process of land consolidation. The article presents methodology of qualifying the areas for changes in boundaries configuration and cultivation direction in view of existing erosion risk. A computation process was suggested that uses, among others, LIDAR data to model the terrain shape precisely as well as cadastral data that defines the geometry of parcels and, resulting from it, the direction of cultivation and form of use. The suggested process includes also the information on the texture of soil upper horizons from soil agricultural maps. The RUSLE erosion model was applied and the computation process took place in ArcGIS environment with the use of dedicated algorithms suggested and implemented to solve the formulated problem. Computations were conducted for test area of several hundred hectares which was characterized by vast diversity of soil types and landforms. The results prove the usefulness of the suggested method as an element of systems that support decision-making processes used in the stage of determining objects chosen for the realization of consolidating processes (including local consolidation, which covers only chosen fragment of a village). They can also be used in the stage of completing detailed plans of parcels distribution in land consolidation process. The importance of the method is particularly seen in the analysis of areas where land fragmentation indices are unfavourable. Especially in these cases, without the reorganization of boundaries, it is impossible to adapt the direction of cultivation to the requirements of protection against erosion.

Relations between the process of land consolidation and socio-economic conditions in municipalities in Lower Silesia

Relations between the process of land consolidation and socio-economic conditions in municipalities in Lower Silesia

A new approach for automating land partitioning using binary search and Delaunay triangulation

One of the most important, yet time-consuming steps of the land consolidation process, which is related to pooling fragmented lands together, is the production of land partitioning plans. After the land redistribution process is finished, the land partitioning process begins. In that process, the locations of parcels within the blocks are determined. Due to the non-uniform geometric shapes of the blocks, the areas of the parcels cannot be divided directly. The production of an ideal land partitioning plan is not suitable automatically unless a quick, accurate process to divide the lands is secured. In this study, production of a pre-land partitioning plan is realized using both the binary search method and the Delaunay triangulation method, taking into consideration shape, size, value and road access criteria. The result of the experimental study shows that the proposed approach for dividing the parcels makes the process take place more quickly. Thus, a solid base for creating an automatic land partitioning plan—one that is closest to an ideal plan—will be provided with this study.

Evaluasi Proses Konsolidasi Tanah Kawasan Permukiman Kumuh Bantaran Sungai Kurau Klaster 1 Desa Kurau Berdasarkan Persepsi Masyarakat

Settlement condition of the River Plate Kurau Cluster 1 Kurau slum village made arrangements with land readjustment, but in the implementation of the case back by the public rejection of the result of an agreement or a consensus that settlements be halted. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the land consolidation process in order to assess the success of land readjustment process and the factors that hamper implementation. This study uses a mix method with a two-stage procedure. Results of the analysis showed that the land land readjustment process successfully, supported by the success of the equity (score 638), effectiveness (score 631), responsiveness (score 617) and efficiency (579). The success of land land readjustment is caused by, among others, people's desire to stay or do not want to be relocated / displaced, not the status of land ownership society, high support and commitment of local governments and legislators. whereas the factors that hinder the implementation of the agreement of land land readjustment triggered by the inequity in the distribution of location / position of the lots after the land land readjustment of the small percentage of people, causing rejection back public the results of land land readjustment, among others, less efficient and less fair to the size distribution and financing schemes recovery.

Vyhodnocení komplexních pozemkových úprav v povodí Litavy

Under the project New procedures of optimization of integrated protection area systems in the context of their economic sustainability, analysis of plans of collective equipment was done within the complex process of land consolidation based on data from all branches of the State Land Office in the Litava basin.

Evaluation of Land Consolidation Process by Rural Stakeholders

Abstract The paper is focused on the current status of land consolidation in Czechia. The survey is based on a questionnaire distributed electronically to municipalities and related subjects (agricultural organizations, farmers) in areas where the land consolidation has been completed, is in progress, or is under preparation. Small farmers and municipality representatives perceive the land consolidation as a measure facilitating permeability of the landscape and protection from erosion and/or from flooding. Land consolidation is important for companies in clarification of the land ownerships and as a remedy for the landscape needs. About half of the respondents believe that the measures have rather brought benefits, whereas 41% of respondents mainly highlight problems. The negative side of the land consolidation is mostly seen in the time delays and demanding administration; agribusinesses also point out complications with land management. Nevertheless, 75% of small farmers and municipalities and 62% of agribusinesses are interested in land consolidation. The main differences between small farmers and large companies consist in their attitude to reduction of the acreage of large plots and their division by common facilities.

Strategic planning framework for land consolidation in China: A top-level design based on SWOT analysis

China is in the midst of an unprecedented and critical period of strategic opportunities for land consolidation. In this process, the country has been confronted with new situations, opportunities, and serious challenges, all of which urgently require top-level design of strategic planning framework for land consolidation. Based on an SWOT analysis, we propose a strategic planning framework for land consolidation at the national level, with a focus on clarification of internal Strength–Weakness strategies and external Opportunity–Threat strategies involved in the land consolidation process. Whereas it can be concluded that land consolidation in China has not yet entered the stage of landscape-ecological pattern, it is on the brink of that stage. Thus, the proposed strategic plan should provide strong protection for continuous promotion of land consolidation through the application of a top-down and comprehensive design considering agriculture production, livelihood and ecology as comprehensive targets. Meanwhile, it should also unswervingly adhere to the “red line,” optimize the layout of urban and rural land use and propel a new landscape-ecological pattern of land consolidation. In this way, strategy-oriented support can be provided to improve land consolidation implementation and ensure that it is stable, coordinated and effective.

Evaluating the double effect of land fragmentation on technology choice and dairy farm productivity: A latent class model approach

Land fragmentation affects dairy farming through its influence on foodstuff production. As its impact on extensive farms (which use a large land area per cow) is expected to be larger than on intensive farms, land fragmentation could also constitute an obstacle to adopting an extensive production technology. Given that extensive farming is being encouraged by direct payments from the Common Agricultural Policy to protect the environment and preserve rural heritage, land fragmentation may reduce the effectiveness of this rural development aid. We provide an empirical application using a sample of Spanish dairy farms located in a region where land is highly fragmented. Using a stochastic frontier latent class model, we find a significantly larger impact of land fragmentation on the productivity of extensive farms compared to intensive ones. Moreover, land fragmentation significantly reduces the probability of using extensive production processes. Our simulation analyses shows that a reduction in the number of plots similar to that already achieved by previous land consolidation processes in the region would improve the variable profits of extensive farms by 16% compared to 6% for intensive farms. Additionally, up to 84% of intensive farms would switch to extensive production processes.

Acción colectiva, identidades políticas y conflicto armado: la etnización de una comunidad negra en el norte del Cauca

This article aims to analyze the production process of nonviolent collective action in a Afro-Colombian community in response to the social, political, environmental, labor conflicts that have jeopardized their stay in the territory. The artvile presents elements of analysis of ethnographic work conducted by the author in 2012 and 2013 in the municipality of Santander de Quilichao are presented. The theoretical development of the paper takes the concept proposed by Elisabeth Wood on “social processes of the Civil War” (2010) to establish correspondences between social dynamics generated by conflict –increased since 2008 in the region– and processes of collective action and identity agency of Afro-Colombians. Some of these conflicts are territorial tensions between different social actors in the processes of legalization and expansion of ethnic territories, mining, the process of Land Consolidation; and the strengthening of interethnic organizational alliances, and organizational process of black communities in the area. Under these conditions, the narratives of “ancestral”, “being black” and “autonomy” have become guiding axes of collective action that legitimizes the territorial presence of the study community and its demand in the access to rights such as collective ownership and consultation.

Public perceptions of rural landscapes in land consolidation procedures in Poland

A high level of fragmentation of farms exists in many parts of Poland, which leads to inefficiency in farm management and a range of logistical problems. Land consolidation is a process that reverses fragmentation by enabling an exchange of plots of equivalent value between participants. The primary aim of land consolidation is to improve spatial and economic conditions for farming by decreasing the number of separate plots that belong to a given farm, adjusting the shape of plots to enable mechanized cultivation of soil, and decreasing the distance between dwellings and cultivated plots. Contemporary consolidation works, performed in compliance with the principles of sustainable development, enable creation of legal and spatial conditions that allow the multifunctional development of rural areas and may be used as an instrument to shape rural landscapes. However, the implicit value of landscape is often not taken into consideration during the plot valuation that is undertaken as part of consolidation procedures.The aim of this research is to determine the perceptions and attitudes toward rural landscape elements held by three groups of landscape users: (i) visitors, (ii) farmers who live in areas that are not subject to landscape consolidation processes and (iii) farmers who are engaged in consolidation processes. The focus group method and the L-sort (Landscape sort) method were used to assess attitudes and perceptions, with particular focus on whether there are the differences between the groups and how the perception of landscape value is influenced by: (i) the land consolidation process itself; (ii) the development of farm tourism; and (iii) European Union policies. The results revealed a traditional pattern of landscape appraisal that is strengthened by a utilitarian approach to the value of land in the consolidation procedure. This pattern has the potential to change due to a developing awareness that optimally shaped landscapes may contribute to attracting visitors and/or allow the landowner to obtain financial support under European Union programs. The paper concludes that the esthetic and cultural value of landscape elements should be taken into consideration when evaluating land during the consolidation procedure.