Economic Land Research Articles

Financing Outdoor Recreation: An Introduction

The increased use of our public lands raises the question of how to finance them. General revenues, gate fees, and gear taxes are leading candidates, and each has characteristic strengths and weakness. Addressing these issues requires combining public finance and environmental economics as well as historical and institutional knowledge of how public lands are actually managed. The articles in this special issue of Land Economics creatively combine these forms of expertise to address the financing of public lands.

The Ottoman archive and methodological Ottomanism in the history of Iraq

This article explores how Ottoman sources can help us reconsider geographies of belonging in the history of Iraq. Focusing on two figures often excluded from conventional histories of Iraq – Mubārak al-Ṣabāḥ of Kuwait, and Khaz‘al bin Jābir of Muḥammara – it investigates how late imperial belonging was tied to the consolidation of property in land and how the political economy of land was tied to an emerging international system. The article reads these sources alongside non-state sources to understand how competing conceptions of Ottoman space and identity together shaped political and economic belonging in the ‘Gulf of Basra’. At the same time, the article argues that historians should be wary of the pitfalls of ‘methodological Ottomanism’ in using the Ottoman past to rewrite the histories of Ottoman Iraq. The ‘Ottoman’ should be treated as an open question, and bringing together multiple Ottoman archives is one way to do that.

The role of social influence in green travel behavior in rural China

With the rapid growth of rural cars ownership, the environmental pollution caused by rural traffic has become a new problem restricting the sustainable development of social economy. Therefore, encouraging and supporting rural residents’ green travel has become the focus of government and academic circles. Based on the context of China's local rural social culture, by adopting the secondary data from the China Land Economics Survey included 2600 farmers in 52 Administrative Villages from 13 prefecture-level cities in Jiangsu Province, this paper examines the impacts of social influence metrics and the moderation effects of social circle and similarity on the individual’s green travel behavior in rural areas in China. The results show that the significant and different impacts of social influence metrics. Significant and positive impact exist in the social influence from the neighbors who adopt the green travel behavior, while significant and negative impact also exist in the social influence from the neighbors who adopt the non-green travel behavior. Moreover, we also find the significant moderators including the social circle and similarity between the target family and the neighbors who adopt green or non-green travel behavior. This paper has important theoretical and practical significance for enriching and developing the relevant theories of green travel.

Spatial prioritization of tomato cultivation based on water footprint, land productivity, and economic indices

AbstractIn this study, the water footprint (WF) and its components, the water footprint economic value (WFEV), and the economic land productivity (ELP) for tomato cultivation in Iran were determined. These data were used in a multicriteria decision‐making tool (PROMETTEE II) to prioritize tomato production in more agriculturally sustainable regions of the country. The results indicate that the average WF of tomato production in Iran on a national scale is 327.2 m3/t, with a WFEV of 0.49 USD/m3 and an ELP of 3611.31 USD/ha. The green WF of tomato production ranged from 1.5 to 38.8 (average 15) m3/t, the blue WF ranged from 46.2 to 638 (average 273.3) m3/t, and the grey WF ranged from 86.8 to 771.6 (average 327.2) m3/t. Comparing the WFEV, ELP, and WF of tomatoes with 30 major agricultural products in Iran shows that this product holds a higher cultivation priority than grains and cereals. Based on the resulting WF and economic evaluations, the tomato growing areas are classified into eight clusters, from the most to least suitable for growing tomatoes.

Impact of Relationship Governance and Third-Party Intervention on Farmland Transfer Rents—Empirical Evidence from Rural China

The marketization of transfer rent is an important symbol of the development of the farmland factor market. At present, the price formation mechanism of rent in China’s farmland market is not perfect. Based on the theoretical analysis starting with the post transaction cost of leasers, this paper uses 1648 farmland transfer samples collected by the China Land Economic Survey (CLES) in 2020, and employs OLS, 2SLS and CMP methods to empirically test the impact of relationship governance on transfer rent and the role of third-party (including county and township governments and village committees) intervention on the change in relationship governance pattern and rent decisions. The results show that the close relationship between the two sides of transfer represents the strong relationship governance functioned by the constraints of the trust and reputation mechanism, which can reduce the post transaction cost. Additionally, the two sides play a game on this part of the transaction cost, making the transfer rent lower than the market price. Furthermore, the involvement of third parties such as county and township governments and village committees in the transfer has replaced the role of relationship governance in reducing transaction cost, and changed the relationship governance pattern of acquaintance society, which makes the transfer rent close to the market price.

Woodland planting on UK pasture land is not economically feasible, yet is more profitable than some traditional farming practices

Abstract Increasing ecosystem service provision is a key strategy of the UK’s ongoing agricultural and environmental policy reforms. Enhancing forest cover by 4%, particularly on the least productive agricultural land, aims to maximise carbon sequestration and achieve net zero by 2050. Multiple factors affect the sequestration potential of afforestation schemes and landowner participation in them, highlighting the need for spatially explicit research. We used the InVEST Carbon Model to investigate the Loddon Catchment, southeast England as a study area. We assessed the carbon sequestration potential and economic feasibility of three broadleaved woodland planting scenarios; arable, pasture, and stakeholder-approved (SA) scenario. We found that over a 50-year time horizon, woodland planting on arable land has the greatest sequestration potential (4.02 tC ha−1 yr−1), compared to planting on pasture land (3.75 tC ha−1 yr−1). When monetising carbon sequestration at current market rates, woodland planting on agricultural land incurs a loss across all farm types. However, when including the value of unpaid labour, lowland pasture farms presently incur a greater loss (−€285.14 ha−1 yr−1) than forestry (−€273.16 ha−1 yr−1), making forestry a more economical land use. Subsidising up to the social value of carbon (€342.23 tC−1) significantly reduces this loss and may make afforestation of pasture land more appealing to farmers. Woodland planting on lowland pasture land would increase forest cover by up to 3.62%. However, due to the influence of farmer attitudes on participation, it is more realistic for afforestation to occur on lowland pasture land in the SA scenario, equating to a 0.74% increase.

STUDI REDUKSI BANJIR DENGAN KOLAM RETENSI PADA SUNGAI-SUNGAI PARALEL

Flood in Ujungberung region occurs when rainy season. The location of the Ujungberung region is in the Bandung basin area from the upstream river originating at the Mount Manglayang. The impact of floods that occur is disrupting the drainage flow, settlement, traffic and economic land use such as markets, and agriculture in the region. The government has made some prevention efforts by constructing three Retention Basin on the Cinambo River, Cipamulihan River, and Cilameta River. There isn’t analysis on how much the optimal reduction in flood discharge and reservoir volume. In this study using a quantitative approach and descriptive method. Retanding basin analysis is based on the 25-years hydrological flood discharge using the Snyder method HEC-HMS v4.3 software. From the results of the Retention Basin modeling, it was found that in the Cinambo River with the initial discharge of Q25 is 37.70 m3/sec become 11.10 m3/sec can be reduced by 70.56 % with an optimal storage volume of 143,300 m3, in the Cipamulihan River with the initial discharge of Q25 is 19.20 m3/sec become 8.10 m3/sec can be reduced by 57.81 % with an optimal storage volume of 143,300 m3, and in the Cilameta River with the initial discharge of Q25 is 13.40 m3/sec become 9.3 m3/sec can be reduced by 30.60% with an optimal storage volume of 23,100 m3. If the Retention Basin planned to be carried out with an optimal storage volume, it must be adjusted to the available retention land area and with a required dimension.

Does Political Participation Influence the Waste Classification Behavior of Rural Residents? Empirical Evidence from Rural China

Waste classification is an important part of the renovation of rural human settlements, and the renovation of rural human settlements is also of great significance to global sustainable development. Therefore, it is of the utmost importance to study the factors that affect the classification behavior for promoting waste classification behavior. However, few studies have focused on the political participation of rural residents as a driving factor. Therefore, this study aims to explore whether political participation affects rural residents’ waste classification behavior. In particular, this study uses the China Land Economic Survey (CLES), which surveyed 2628 rural households in Jiangsu Province, China, and uses the Probit model to explore the quantitative impact of political participation on farmers’ waste classification behavior. This study finds that: (1) Political participation may significantly improve farmers’ waste classification behavior. Specifically, farmers who participated in the general election were 10.6% more likely to conduct waste classification than those who did not vote in the general election. (2) Groups receiving government subsidies may be more likely to understand the government’s waste classification policy and then carry out waste classification. (3) Residents in areas with high economic development may be more sensitive to opportunity cost than residents in areas with low economic development, so residents in areas with high economic development degree are less willing to participate in waste classification action, and political participation has less influence on waste classification. Therefore, this research helps improve the efficiency of waste classification, ameliorate waste classification behavior, and provide the references for building a more civilized rural living environment.

The optimization of ecological service function and planning control of territorial space planning for ecological protection and restoration

With the rapid advancement of industrialization and urbanization, the scale of cities has continued to expand, the crisis of resource shortages has appeared, and the pressure on the ecological environment has increased. Land is a natural substance that exists before humans, and it is also the first objective object that humans come into contact with after being separated from nature. When land is invested in human social production activities, it becomes a necessary and irreplaceable material condition for any social material production sector. The quality of the ecological environment in some cities continues to decline, and the ecological space is gradually compressed. This research mainly discusses the optimization of ecological service functions and planning control of land and space planning based on ecological protection and restoration. In the past, the selection of evaluation indicators for research mostly only started with some basic service functions of the ecosystem. Based on the basic service functions of the ecosystem, this paper takes into account the direct economic benefits of the ecosystem, and adds the evaluation of the importance of ecological support functions to evaluate the ecological service functions more comprehensively. From the perspective of man-land relationship and structuralism, this paper constructs an ecological space evaluation plan based on the perspective of ecosystem services. It constructs a reasonable index system and selects an appropriate scale, and sets the weight of each index for the three leading functions of supply and support service function, adjustment service function, and social service function. According to the principle of regional differences and the consistency of zoning indicators, the factors that play a leading role in various plans are integrated and selected. It transfers elements of different themes such as society, economy and ecological environment of land and space to the expression of land and space functions through indicators. This research discusses in detail the methods of using important control lines to control the main space and the design of relevant policies and regulations to solve the problems of overlapping control areas of land and space planning, mixed objects, and ambiguous powers. In order to ensure the feasibility of the downward transmission of the important control line control system, it provides reference policies, regulations and technical basis for the preparation and implementation of the entire territory and space planning. Finally, the red line area of the importance of ecological service function is delineated. The area of the red line area is 192.79km2, accounting for 20.38% of the study area. This study will provide reference for the planning of land and space.

The return of the ‘Black Swan’? Christian pilgrimage to the Holy Land and the Covid-19 pandemic

This article’s first goal is to propose an interpretation of a historical event of major economic, political, and religious significance with attributes resembling those of the current Covid-19 pandemic: the Roman Empire’s conversion to Christianity. The second goal is to explain and analyze the Christian pilgrimage market and to suggest that, due to its unique nature and attributes, this specific segment has the potential to serve as a preferred focus and an exit strategy from the Coronavirus crisis. The research offers a historical interpretation of Christian pilgrimage to the Holy Land using the theory of the ‘Black Swan’, an economic term introduced by Professor Nassim Nicholas Taleb in 2007. Here we attempt to compare two Black Swans: one that occurred in the year ad 325 and the current Covid-19 pandemic. The economic Black Swan of 325 was the Roman Empire’s conversion to Christianity, a process that caused fatal damage to the myrrh and frankincense economy and completely changed the economy of the southern Land of Israel. In the case of the current crisis, this article suggests that the present conditions may transform the tourism industry in Israel. Based on an analysis of the unique attributes of the Christian pilgrimage sector, it also posits that this specific segment may provide a preferred focus and an exit strategy from the current Coronavirus crisis. The contribution of this article lies in its contemplation of a connection between current and past events, as well as in its consideration of specific market segments (pilgrimage) in the context of national and global exit strategies. The article’s broader goal is to gain a better understanding of the pandemic’s impact not only on the tourism industry as a whole but on its specific segments.

Institutional supply, market cultivation, and the development of marine strategic emerging industries

Strategic emerging marine industries have become a new economic growth pole, and countries worldwide seek to transform their land economy into a marine economy. Institutional supply is the primary way for governments worldwide to support the development of strategic emerging marine industries. To study the impact of market cultivation on the supply efficiency of China's marine strategic emerging industry system, this study established a regression model of market cultivation and marine strategic emerging industry system supply efficiency based on the data of marine strategic emerging industries from 2006 to 2018. The empirical results show that market cultivation inhibits the efficiency of the institutional supply of strategic emerging marine industries. This indicates that China's strategic emerging marine industries still need government funding support at this stage, and premature market cultivation is not conducive to their development.

Land disasters and farmers’ private credit

Using data from the China Land Economic Survey (CLES), we study the impact of land disasters on farmers’ private credit. The results show that land disasters significantly promote the probability of farmers’ private credit. The mechanism is that land disasters reduce farmers’ incomes and increase farmers’ expenditures for restoring production, which directly increase farmers’ demand for credit. In addition, the frequent occurrence of land disasters force farmers to unite to resist disasters, which increase mutual trust among farmers and provide a social foundation for the development of private credit. Finally, farmers have certain stratified characteristics in response to land disasters.

Do Mixed Pinus yunnanensis Plantations Improve Soil’s Physicochemical Properties and Enzyme Activities?

Many survival and ecological problems have emerged in Pinus yunnanensis pure pine forest plantations that are usually assumed to be solved by creating mixed plantations. On this basis, we determined the physicochemical properties and enzyme activities of three soil layers in pure and three types of mixed P. yunnanensis plantation stands (admixed species: Alnus nepalensis, Celtis tetrandra, and Quercus acutissima) in Southwest China. We used one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s test to analyze the effects of plantation type and depth on the soil’s properties and variations among different depths. Principal component analysis combined with cluster analysis was used to evaluate the soil quality of different forest types comprehensively. The results showed that the stand with a mixing proportion of 2:1 of P. yunnanensis and A. nepalensis, C. tetrandra, and Q. acutissima had higher total porosity, moisture content, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, total phosphorus, sucrase, urease, and catalase enzyme activities than other proportions of mixed forest and P. yunnanensis pine pure forest. In general, the mixed P. yunnanensis plantation could improve the soil quality, especially its chemical properties and enzymes. This study provides a basis for creating a mixed-mode of P. yunnanensis and other tree species that can not only improve the economy of forest land but also enhance the ecological value.

Problems of value-time social dimension of economic-informational and production processes of marketing of enviromental management in the agrosphere of Ukraine

Experimental-analytical researches of problems of value-time measurement of economic-informational and production processes of marketing of nature management in agrosphere of Ukraine are carried out. The main prerequisites and ways to solve existing problems through the functioning of the system of socially oriented marketing (SSSM) — in the process of land reform in Ukraine — based on current Constitution of Ukraine as a new paradigm that takes into account the objective laws of animate and inanimate nature and society. It is proved that constitutionally motivated socio-economic development in Ukraine can take place on the basis of acquired scientifically based knowledge of «constitutional pragmatism» within the cognitive land economy, the essence of which is clearly embedded in the pyramid model of the cognitive land economy — the so-called Cognitive Kovaliv. It is established that the expansion of domestic and foreign markets by domestic highly liquid products, especially organic and environmentally friendly food, in the formation of which natural resources participate as natural objects of property of the Ukrainian people, generates unborrowed investment capital of the nation domestic products, and as a consequence — an increase in national net income. It is proved that SSSM plays the role of a crucial stimulator of growth of well-being of all citizens of Ukraine who are absolute co-owners of land and its natural resources as natural objects of law of the Ukrainian people, forming a comfortable space for their (citizens of Ukraine) state.

Colonial Financial Infrastructures and Kenya’s Uneven Fintech Boom

AbstractKenya is a widely cited case for proponents of fintech for development. This article shows how Kenya’s fintech boom replicates patterns of uneven development inherited from the colonial era. In particular, fintech use is unevenly distributed between urban and rural areas, and heavily concentrated on Nairobi and Mombasa in particular. The article seeks to explain these patterns by situating them in relation to the spatiality and political economy of settler‐colonial agriculture, tracing successive (unsuccessful) efforts at reforming the financial system to ameliorate social and spatial disparities inherited from the colonial era. It does so drawing on recent debates about “financial infrastructures”, alongside considerations of the political economy of land, property relations, and the state.

Effect of Spacing and Pruning Methods on Root Yield and Yield Parameters of Cassava (Mahinot esculenta Crantz) in Fedis District, East Harerghe Zone, Ethiopia

Due to the long duration of cassava roots maturity, drought and disease problems, intercropping grain and legumes in cassava should be developed. To intercrop component crops, it is important to reduce cassavas’ canopy through the evaluation of the pruning effect on root yields. The study was aimed to determine the effects of different plant spacing and pruning methods on root yield and root yield parameters of cassava grown in Eastern part of Ethiopia. Cassava variety ‘Kello’ was used for the experiment as a test crop. Five cassava plant intra-row spacing (0.60, 0.80, 1.00, 1.20 and 1.40 m) were assigned to main plots while pruning methods (cutback, debranching and no pruning) were assigned to sub plots. The experiment was laid out in randomized complete block design (RCBD) in a factorial arrangement with three replications. The result revealed that there were highly significant differences for number of roots per plant, root length, average root weight and unmarketable due to the effect of pruning, while significant differences was observed for total root yields due to intra-row spacing. There were also highly significant interaction effects for marketable and total root yields due to the effects of intra-row spacing and pruning. Cassava with no pruning recorded about, 21.9 and 25.7%, 10 and 26.4%, 17.2 and 19.9%, 43.5 and 58.7% over cassava with debranching and cutback for number of roots per plant, root diameter, root length and root weights, respectively. Cassava pruning and intra-row spacing also interacted and the highest root yield was recorded at 80 cm with cassava no pruning. Averagely, cassava with no pruning provided the highest marketable and total root yield by about 39.3 and 44.7%, 35.8 and 41.6% over cassava with debranching and cutback, respectively. Therefore, considering the land scarcity of the area intra-row plant spacing of 80 cm and cassava with no pruning was recommended for the study area and similar agro-ecology for land economy in eastern Harerghe zone.

Succession planning among palm oil farmers in Nigeria

ABSTRACT This article assesses palm oil farmers’ succession planning in the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria. A multi-stage procedure was used to select 169 farmers in Delta, Edo, Rivers and Cross River states. Data analysis presents descriptive and inferential statistics. Results further prior research showing most African farmers are male, with women excluded due to economic land inheritance practices. Medium-scale agricultural entrepreneurs operated as sole proprietors. The majority were full-time palm oil farmers, and most chose and engaged their successors. Plantation farm ownership status, farming status, level of formal education, farm size, farming experience, monthly farm income, ownership of palm processing facilities, level of motivation, notably intrinsic motivation to farm, and perceptions of succession planning affected farmers’ decision to embark on succession planning. Findings are contextualised in global research literature and recommendations to guide future agriculture policymaking are offered.

Ecological and economic organization of crowning territory and arrangement of existing land in the Right-bank Forest-and-Steppe of Ukraine

The article analyzes the current land use of Dzendzelivske LLC of Mankivka village community of Uman district of Cherkasy region (former Dzendzelivska village council), which showed that the agro-ecological condition of agricultural lands before the project was in deteriorating condition and required sound land use solutions. The purpose of the work is to assess the ecological and economic justification of the organization of the territory of LLC "Dzendzelivske", ensuring the rational use and protection of land, creating a favorable ecological environment and improving agricultural landscapes. The proposed project solutions are based on the provisions of the regulatory framework and take into account environmental and economic requirements for the rational use of agricultural land. Based on the qualitative characteristics of agricultural groups of soils and their economic evaluation, the classes of suitability of arable lands for growing crops have been identified. Within the limits of the allocated classes of arable lands on ecological and economic suitability of soils for cultivation of agricultural crops introduction of soil protective (grassland) crop rotation is provided. During the implementation of ecological and economic land management of the territory, the natural resources of the allotted land plot should be mobilized, which will provide an opportunity to obtain quality plant products and at the same time preserve the natural environment and organize environmentally friendly production.

Щодо розгляду господарських спорів за участі фермерських господарств

The article is devoted to the analysis of the practice of economic courts in resolving litigations involving farms. The article sets the task to specify the provisions on the consideration of economic litigations involving farms and the development of areas for improving the current legislation. Based on the analysis of scientific views on agrarian litigation, it was concluded that a farm can be a participant in any such litigations, but not all of them are subject to consideration by economic courts. Attention is paid to the division of litigations into public law and private law, the definition of an economic litigation. Based on the analysis of the array of practice of considering economic litigations with the participation of farms, economic land litigations, farm management litigations and other litigations related to violation of the corporate rights of farm members are singled out, since these litigation s have certain specifics or problems in their resolution. Based on the analysis of the practice of considering land litigations, the problem of determining the subject jurisdiction is stated and it is specified that the criteria for classifying these litigations as economic jurisdiction are the fact of state registration of a farm as a legal entity or an individual entrepreneur at the time of filing a claim and the dominance of private interest. Summarizing the analysis of the consideration of cases on litigations regarding farm`s members and other violations of the corporate rights of members of such a farm, the problem of applying the analogy of the law by the courts is identified and it is specified that the analogy of the law is applied by the economic courts to overcome gaps in the regulation of relations between the activities of the farm in order to protect the violated rights and in case if the relevant relations are subject to general legal regulation, but there is no special legal norm or norm is incomplete. To improve legislative regulation, it is proposed to secure the right of the proper tenant of the land plot to crops and harvest, which is to be harvested after the expiration of the land lease agreement, and to regulate the issues of convening, holding, and making decisions by the general meeting of the farm.

International conference «Soil as interlink for functioning of natural and anthropogenically transformed ecosystems» devoted to the 90th anniversary of the department of pedology and land resources estimation, Irkutsk State University and year of Baikal

From August 23 to August 29, 2021, Irkutsk hosted the Vth International Scientific and Practical Conference "Soil as interlink for functioning of natural and anthropogenically transformed ecosystems" (hereinafter – the conference) dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the Department of Soil Science and Land Resources Assessment of the Irkutsk State University (ISU) and the Year of Baikal. The total number of participants of the conference was 130 from 27 regions of Russia and 6 other countries (the Republic of Belarus, Bulgaria, Georgia, Moldova, Lebanon and Lithuania). The article presents a brief review of plenary and sectional reports on the following research topics: 1) theoretical soil science: genesis, evolution, classification problems; 2). multidisciplinary approaches of soil science related to the use of soil science methods in other research areas and scientific and industrial areas; 3) Soil resources and land assessment (fertility, degradation, land reclamation, qualitative and economic assessment, ecology and land protection). A total of 43 presentations were given at the conference: 8 plenary and 35 sectional. The interested reader will find a detailed description of the reports presented in this review, as well as other and other conference materials in the collection "Soil as interlink for functioning of natural and anthropogenically transformed ecosystems" (2021).
 A brief description of two excursions is given: (1) one excursion to the beautiful scenery at the shore of the Lake Baikal, held on August 23, 2021; (2) and another excursion at the Bratsk Reservoir on August 26-29, 2021. The purpose of the excursions wass to get acquainted with the nature and historical and cultural heritage of the Irkutsk region, Lake Baikal, as well as with soils, soil-forming rocks and natural features of the Southern Angara region. During the excursion tour, landscapes, rock outcrops and soil sections were presented: soils on a bumpy-depression relief; Paleolithic site of ancient man "Malta" with sections near the geoarchaeological objects "Malta-Bridge 3"; alluvial gray-humus soil in the floodplain of the Belaya River; exposure of Lower Cambrian rocks near the village Novomaltinsk; Cheremkhovsky coal mine; dispersed-carbonate gypseous chernozem near the Unga River; Novonukutsky gypsum mine; gray metamorphic soil and micellar-segregational chernozem on the bank of the Bratsk reservoir near the village Balagansk. At the end of the tour, the conference participants held a roundtable discussion about the problems of genesis and classification of the soils of the south of the Near-Angara region. The classification position of all the presented soils was justified within the framework of two classification systems: Classification of soils of Russia (2004) and Classification and diagnostics of soils of the USSR (1977). For scientific and informational support of the excursion, the guide "Southern Pre-Angara region: features of soil formation on rocks of different ages" (2021) was prepared and published.
 The conference aroused great interest among a wide range of specialists in the field of soil science, agrochemistry and ecology, land resource assessment, landscape studies, etc. The organization of such events promotes exchange of experience and strengthens the cooperation between researchers from leading universities and research centers, advancing the effective development of soil science, research methodology and practice, generalizing the information about soil as a link between the functioning of natural and anthropogenically transformed ecosystems.