Land Resources Research Articles

Rural households' livelihood transitions in China: processes, drivers and outcomes

PurposeThis study aims to comprehensively examine the transitions in household livelihood strategies within rural China, including the underlying processes, drivers and outcomes.Design/methodology/approachThis study uses two waves (2010 and 2018) of longitudinal data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), employing latent cluster analysis, regression models and cumulative distribution function within a dynamic household livelihood strategy framework.FindingsThe results show that (1) households’ livelihood strategies can be categorized into four distinct types, i.e. agricultural dominated, agricultural dominated with non-agricultural supplementation, non-agricultural dominated with agricultural supplementation and employment oriented. (2) During 2010–2018, approximately 60% of households underwent transitions in their livelihoods, encompassing both upward and downward trajectories, with a prevalence of upward transitions. (3) Various forms of livelihood capital significantly contribute to upward transitions, while the availability of land resources and exposure to shocks impede the potential for upward mobility. (4) The transition towards non-agricultural livelihood strategies by households leads to a notable enhancement in their livelihood welfare.Research limitations/implicationsIn the context of urbanization, industrialization and globalization, rural areas in China are undergoing a gradual socioeconomic transformation, which has also led to changes in rural households’ livelihood strategies. Nevertheless, a dearth of empirical investigation exists regarding the dynamics of rural households’ livelihood strategies, the determinants behind such transitions and the resulting outcomes on their livelihoods. A comprehensive understanding of livelihood transitions can provide valuable insights for policymakers in their endeavors to promote rural revitalization in China.Originality/valueBased on the nationwide representative datasets in China, it examines the micro-level livelihood transitions of rural households within the broader context of socioeconomic transformation that presents both opportunities and challenges, as well as vulnerable contexts, shaped by various government policies. This exploration would offer valuable theoretical and empirical evidence to advance our understanding of the process, driver and outcome of rural households’ livelihood transition in developing countries.

Spatial–Temporal Evolution Pattern of Soil Erosion and Its Dominant Factors on the Loess Plateau from 2000 to 2020

Global changes have led to significant changes in soil erosion on the Loess Plateau. Soil erosion leads to the degradation of land resources and a decline in soil fertility, adversely affecting agricultural production and the socioeconomic situation. Therefore, revealing the spatiotemporal evolution patterns of soil erosion in the Loess Plateau region and investigating the influencing factors that contribute to soil erosion are crucial for its management and restoration. In this study, the RUSLE monthly model and the Geodetector model were utilized to reveal the spatiotemporal trends of soil erosion in the Loess Plateau from 2000 to 2020 and to determine the dominant influencing factors in different periods. The main results are as follows: (1) From 2000 to 2020, the soil erosion in the Loess Plateau initially weakened and then intensified, indicating that precipitation and precipitation intensity have different effects on surface soil. (2) From 2000 to 2015, the area experiencing slight and mild erosion increased. This is attributed to the increase in vegetation coverage in the Loess Plateau region, which has alleviated soil erosion in the area. (3) From 2000 to 2020, zones of severe soil erosion were mainly located in the cities of Yan’an and Yulin and their surrounding areas. The gravity center of soil erosion shifted northwestward from Yan’an City overall, indicating an improvement in the soil erosion conditions in the Yan’an area. (4) The predominant level of soil erosion across different land-use types was slight erosion, accounting for over 40%. This may be a result of forestry ecological projects that effectively reduce soil loss. (5) In slope zones of 0–5°, slight erosion accounted for the largest area proportion. As the slope increased, the area proportion of severe and extremely severe erosion also increased. This is attributed to the protective role of vegetation on soil in gentle slope areas. (6) From 2000 to 2020, vegetation was the dominant single factor influencing the spatiotemporal changes in soil erosion, while the interactions between vegetation and land use had the largest explanatory power, indicating that changes in land-use types partially affect variations in vegetation coverage. Our research findings could provide important data support for soil erosion control and eco-environment restoration in the Loess Plateau region.

For Spatial Planning and Land Consolidation Issue

Planning the rational use of land's potential capabilities is one of the most important functions in Georgia. When developing the state policy in this area, it is essential to take into account that the implemented policy directly affects the country's socio-economic development. The given article states that determining the land status is part of the country's territory planning and development plan, moreover, changing the status of the land is almost impossible without making changes to the spatial planning of the territory. The article states that in most European countries, changing the designation of land is within the competence of the government and describes the needs to be addressed by various European countries (permit of the relevant state institution, compliance with the spatial development plan, imposition of a tax on the change of category, with certain exceptions, a general ban on changing the category of land, etc.). It also discusses examples of various mechanisms for land consolidation in Eastern and Central European countries. At the end of the article, the conclusion is made that under the conditions of Georgia, the state should develop a plan for the privatization of the remaining agricultural land in its possession, the primary goal of which should not be the increase of budget revenues, but rather ensuring the effective use of land resources. This process should consider: registering the landownership for the actual owner, registering land ownership for municipalities, and the alienation of land remaining in state ownership, which should ultimately contribute to the consolidation of small farms. Keywords: land, land categories, land disposal, agricultural policy, spatial planning, land consolidation, land management, agrarian territories.

Exploring the Path of Balanced Development: The Decoupling Evaluation of Agricultural Production Efficiency and Land Carrying Capacity

ABSTRACTHigh‐quality development in agriculture is crucial for maintaining the harmonious balance between human society and the natural environment, and promoting this development model is one of the key measures to alleviate land degradation issues. This study, grounded in the PRED theory (Population, Resources, Environment, and Development theory) framework, establishes an evaluation system for high‐quality agricultural development by selecting 128 cities within the Yangtze River Economic Belt as its samples. It quantifies land carrying capacity, utilizes the Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) model to assess agricultural production efficiency, and applies the Tapio decoupling model to analyze the interplay between these two factors. The results reveal that the land resource carrying index has risen from 1.245 to 1.70, indicating an escalating tension between population and food resources. Furthermore, agricultural production efficiency has seen a 16.56% increase, reflecting positive advancements in agricultural production across the region. Spatial distribution analysis shows that the standard deviation ellipse is concentrated in the mid and lower reaches, centered in Changde, Hunan, and expanding westward, with a broader coverage area and perimeter. Additionally, the decoupling relationship between land carrying capacity and agricultural production efficiency primarily manifests in three forms: strong negative decoupling, weak decoupling, and expansive negative decoupling. This research offers significant insights for effectively mitigating the strain between population growth and resource‐environmental carrying capacity.

Effects of Artisanal Mining on Land Degradation in Zamfara North-West, Nigeria

This paper analyzed the effects of artisanal mining on land degradation. It took critical look on both legal and illegal mining activities in the study areas and their level of devastated effects on land texture and structure over space. The method implored is both probability and non-probability approaches. The purposive targeted populations for the study were licensed and unlicensed small scale gold mining operators in the study areas, with a sample population of 100 person, and types of data used is both primary and secondary sources. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistic and frequency chart that indicated major challenges was illiteracy 31% and lack of coordination among miners 23%, major effect of land degradation was water pollution and deforestation had 30% and 23% respectively, and effects of artisanal mining on land degradation was degradation of arable land had 20% and exposing the soil to wind and chemical had 18%. It had a serious implication on ecosystem. The paper concluded that artisanal mining of mineral ores had caused serious damages on the land resources both soil and rivers. Therefore, to ensure sustainability in mining activities and to secure a quality environment, the following recommendations are hereby suggested, Educating local miners on the dangers of open cast mining and grinding of gold ore using the same grinder for grains to be consumed and Policy makers should avoid politicizing vital issues that will threaten peace and security of people in Zamfara and its environs.

The trace of the trees: a historically situated geospatial assessment of deforestation in Bosawas biosphere reserve

ABSTRACT Deforestation is often framed as one of Nicaragua’s most pressing ecological challenges. Historically, the country has addressed the issue by relying on fence-and-control approaches to conservation. This is the case of Bosawas, the largest biosphere reserve in Central America. Despite advancements in remote sensing data, few spatially explicit attempts have been made to assess how this type of conservation scheme interacts with the country’s deforestation trends. This research combines two independently generated high-resolution land cover maps and agrarian census data to assess the extent of deforestation that has taken place in Bosawas from 1990 to 2022. Our findings indicate that the establishment of the biosphere reserve has proven ineffective in preventing deforestation and evidence that its current trend is closely related to the encroachment of capitalistic agrarian-based modes of production. This encroachment is rooted in a long history of state-led interventions, which has led to the gradual dissolution of local customary social orders, allowing the penetration of new ones that privilege individualistic and profit-oriented forms of land tenure and resources exploitation. Hence, conservation strategies that neglect the historical and political-economic roots of deforestation in Bosawas risk aggravating territorial conflicts and facilitating land dispossession modalities affecting mostly local inhabitants.

Evaluating China’s urbanization trajectory: an overextension or still in progress?

China’s urbanization has undergone a transformative journey since the initiation of the reform and opening-up policy in 1978, catalyzing economic growth while profoundly impacting its ecological and demographic landscapes. This study offers a systematic evaluation of China’s urbanization trajectory over the past 4 decades through the development of an indicator system encompassing three key dimensions: population urbanization, land urbanization, and economic urbanization. Using the entropy method for weight assignment, the analysis reveals a consistent upward trend in China’s comprehensive urbanization, with occasional sharp increases. Although population urbanization influences the overall index, land urbanization has outpaced both population and economic urbanization, indicating a pronounced dependence on land resources. This trend poses a potential risk of unsustainable urban growth if left unaddressed. The findings indicate that to achieve sustainable urban development, China must prioritize balancing the interplay between population and land, moving away from land-dependent strategies, and adopting a more balanced approach to urbanization. The quantitative analysis provides key insights into this imbalance, indicating that policies should integrate land use planning with population dynamics to promote holistic urban growth. Future research should investigate the long-term socio-economic and environmental impacts of land-centric urbanization and propose innovative strategies to guide China towards a sustainable urban future.

Characteristics and development of steepland gullies in the dry valleys of Southwest China

In semi-arid and arid areas, gully erosion is one of the most destructive forms of erosion and causes serious land degradation and resource destruction. Steepland gullies are widely distributed in the dry valleys of southwest China, and their formation is one of the main causes of soil erosion and the destruction of sloping farmland in the region. Previous research on the development of steepland gullies is limited, and further study is needed. In this study, 11 steepland gullies at various stages of development located in Guobu Village, Xide County, Liangshan, Sichuan Province, were selected for investigation using a digital elevation model (DEM) derived from unmanned aerial vehicle data as the primary data source. These data had a spatial resolution of 0.1 m. Fundamental parameters such as the gully length, width, depth, area, and volume were extracted from the remote sensing data. Other characteristic parameters, including the coefficient of main and tributary gullies, vertical gradient, gully elongation, and gully openness, were also investigated. The results indicate a significant linear positive correlation between the gully’s degree of openness and elongation as the gully’s length, width, and depth increase. Furthermore, the vertical gradient and coefficient of main and tributary gullies exhibit power-law relationships with these gully dimensions. The development of steepland gullies was divided into infancy, youth, maturity, and old age based on the use of the gully length as an ergodic indicator in space-for-time substitution. The morphological characteristics of these different stages were quantitatively analyzed, and a proposed mechanism for how the evolution of the gullies proceeds was developed. An empirical model of volume–length erosion was established to investigate the development process of steepland gullies in the dry valleys. It has been observed that the development law of steepland gullies is essentially consistent with the very active stage of typical gully formation, suggesting that steepland gully may represent the initial stage of gully development. The results show that these steepland gullies have their origin in high-intensity rainfall events that are accompanied by the formation of steps and drop water. The effects of gravity erosion and hydraulic erosion then cause the gullies to expand rapidly, forming gullies with a large head and a small tail before they gradually stabilize. The results of this study will help with the understanding of the formation and evolution of steepland gullies and will be of practical significance for the prevention of gully erosion and the protection of sloping farmland in the dry valley region of southwest China.

Advances in Land Consolidation and Land Ecology

The health of our planet’s ecosystems is deeply linked to how we manage land resources [...]

Impact of continuous cropping on tobacco growth, stress resistance, and soil microecological structure

Tobacco fields have been continuously cropped for several years because of the high demand for tobacco leaves and limited land resources. To explore the effects of continuous cropping on tobacco growth and soil microecological community structure, this study compared the agronomic traits and physiological resistance characteristics of tobacco plants grown in noncontinuous cropping soil and soil with different continuous cropping years. High-throughput sequencing technology was used to analyze and predict the microbial community structure and functional gene variation patterns of tobacco soil. The results demonstrated that continuous cropping significantly impacted the average height, leaf area, and stem diameter of tobacco plants, as well as the contents of malondialdehyde, hydrogen peroxide, and glutathione in tobacco leaves that were continuously cropped. The relative abundances of Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, and Gemmatimonadetes in tobacco soil decreased with an increase in continuous cropping years, while relative abundance of Acidobacteria increased. The biodiversity index of tobacco soil samples showed a decreasing trend with an increase in continuous cropping years, with the sample with the longest continuous cropping year (33 years) having the lowest biodiversity index. Prediction of the potential functions of soil samples with different continuous cropping years revealed that the Z-scores of each pathway in noncontinuous cropping soil samples ranged from 1.12 to 0.078, while those in 33-year continuous cropping samples decreased from −0.10 to −1.41. Our findings indicate that continuous cropping has negative impacts on soil health and microecology, leading to a reduction in beneficial microbial population and microbial diversity.

CIrrMap250: annual maps of China's irrigated cropland from 2000 to 2020 developed through multisource data integration

Abstract. Accurate maps of irrigation extent and dynamics are crucial for studying food security and its far-reaching impacts on Earth systems and the environment. While several efforts have been made to map irrigated area in China, few have provided multiyear maps, incorporated national land surveys, addressed data discrepancies, and considered the fractional coverage of cropland within coarse-resolution pixels. Here, we addressed these important gaps and developed new annual maps of China's irrigated cropland from 2000 to 2020, named CIrrMap250 (China's irrigation map with a 250 m resolution). We harmonized irrigation statistics and surveys and reconciled them with remote sensing data. The refined estimates of irrigated area were then integrated with multiple remote sensing data (i.e. vegetation indices, hybrid cropland products, and paddy field maps) and an irrigation suitability map by means of a semi-automatic training approach. We evaluated our CIrrMap250 maps using ∼ 20 000 reference samples, high-resolution irrigation water withdrawal data, and existing local to nationwide maps. Our CIrrMap250 maps demonstrated an overall accuracy of 0.79–0.88 for the years 2000, 2010, and 2020 and outperformed currently available maps. The CIrrMap250-estimated irrigation area explained 50 %–60 % of the variance in irrigation water withdrawal across China. CIrrMap250 revealed that China's irrigation area increased by about 180 000 km2 (or 25 %) from 2000 to 2020, with the majority (61 %) occurring in the water-unsustainable regions facing severe to extreme water stress. Moreover, our product unveiled a noticeable northward shift of China's irrigation area, attributed to substantial expansions in irrigated cropland across northeastern and northwestern China. The accurate representation of irrigation extent in CIrrMap250 will greatly support hydrologic, agricultural, and climate studies in China, aiding in improved water and land resources management. CIrrMap250 can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.24814293.v2 (Zhang et al., 2023a).

Modeling Land Use and Land Cover Changes and Its Atmospheric Pollutant Concentration in the Coal Mining Area of Ramgarh District of Jharkhand, India, Using Multi‐Layer Perceptron Neural Networks (MLPNN)

ABSTRACTLand use refers to anthropogenic phenomena in the natural environment; humans utilize land resources for their developmental activities. On the other hand, the ecosystems of land use and land cover alter the natural world—the artificial infrastructure leads toward a busted concrete jungle instead of a green footprint. The global green footprint is continually shrinking owing to overutilization of natural resources. The present research examines the land use pattern that changes from 1990 to 2021 and projected projections for 2041 and 2061 in the Ramgarh District. The study also focuses on how artificial modifications alter the concentration level of pollutants in the atmosphere. The Landsat data utilized for 1990, 2000, 2011, and 2021 were incorporated into the LULC map using supervised classification and for analysis of future predictions for 2041 and 2061 using an ANN‐based on MLPNNs (multi‐layer perceptron neural networks) for Ramgarh District. It also focuses on the trend and patterns of atmospheric pollutants from data using NASA‐GIOVANNI MERRA‐2. The current study reveals that in 1990, water bodies, coal mining, vegetation, built‐up, agriculture, and barren land were 3.01%, 2.24%, 54.07%, 3.64%, 36.85%, and 0.18 %. However, in 2021, water bodies decreased to 1.61%, vegetation to 45.47%, barren land to 0.65%, and an increasing tendency was observed in built‐up areas to 6.65%, coal mining to 2.43%, and farmland to 43.19%. A significant trend in atmospheric pollutants, such as CO2, SO2, SO4, NO2, and dust, is observed in the Ramgarh district. The importance of this study is to attain the maximum level of environmental sustainability; it would also encourage the local level planning fitted during the extraction of natural resources.

PARADIGM DEVELOPMENT OF LAND RELATIONS AND HIGH-TECHNOLOGICAL LAND USE

The study substantiates that land resources are a strategic resource, the socio-economic development of society depends on the rationality and efficiency of their use. The economic content of the concept of «land relations» is generalized and it is revealed that they are a component of social relations, arise in the process of interaction of society with natural resources and regulate the norms of behavior of business entities of the agricultural sector of the economy within the framework of land legislation. The basis of land relations is the category of land ownership, therefore changes and development of organizational and legal forms of land ownership are perhaps the most important condition. It is worth noting that land relations in agriculture are part of production relations and can be both stimulating and restraining factors for the rational use of agricultural land and high-tech land use. It was found that land legislation in Ukraine remains fragmentary and often inconsistent between all regulatory acts, and changes to individual regulations and legal mechanisms cause risks for investors and landowners, which creates legal uncertainty and complicates the implementation of the efficiency of land resources use. High-tech land use is a direction of modern agrarian development aimed at increasing the efficiency of agriculture, preserving natural resources and ensuring food security. Systematizing the problems and directions of development of land relations and high-tech land use, it was highlighted that the main priority remains the implementation of the social function of land ownership and land use, which ensures the most efficient land use of land plots for their intended purpose. Thus, the main guidelines of land policy are the stability and effectiveness of the functioning of the system of land relations and agricultural land use, aimed at ensuring the country's food security and increasing the well-being of the population. The development of land relations and high-tech land use should be based on maximum consideration of natural, economic and social conditions and environmental requirements for preserving the environment, protecting land resources and restoring their fertility, increasing the productivity of the land fund, as well as limiting the negative impact of economic activity on flora and fauna, etc.

Pitfalls of PTOs in land ownership and control: Rethinking access for rural development in South Africa

Permission to Occupy (PTOs) was viewed by the apartheid regime as an important mechanism for addressing inequalities in South Africa (SA). The African National Congress (ANC) government has ruled over SA for the past 30 years but has been unsuccessful in dealing with the country’s racialised land inequalities. The land reforms introduced by the ANC government have not addressed the challenges of land in the country in a timely manner. Thus, tackling the issue of land inequalities remains crucial. A desktop review was conducted to critically examine the pitfalls of PTOs in the context of rural development and advocates for a re-evaluation of access mechanisms to promote more equitable and sustainable land tenure systems. The results show that these pitfalls perpetuate socio-economic inequalities, hinder investment in land improvements, and contribute to conflicts over land resources. In response, the article proposes alternative approaches to enhance access to land for rural development, such as community-driven land governance mechanisms, participatory land-use planning, and the recognition of customary land tenure systems. These alternative strategies prioritise rural local empowerment, strengthen tenure security, and foster inclusive decision-making processes.

Spatio-Temporal Differentiation and Driving Factors of County-Level Food Security in the Yellow River Basin: A Case Study of Ningxia, China

Food security is the primary condition for the development of human society. The Great River Basin is very important to ensure the accessibility and availability of agricultural irrigation, which is vital for food security. The Yellow River Basin plays a significant role in China’s food security, with counties serving as key administrative units for guaranteeing this security. This study uses the Yellow River Basin in China as a case study to construct an evaluation index system for county-level food security. It assesses the food security of 22 counties (districts) in Ningxia from 2013 to 2022, applying spatial correlation theories and driving factor analysis methods to explore the factors influencing county-level food security. The results reveal the following: (1) Overall, the food security index in Ningxia has been on the rise, but there is significant internal variation among counties. (2) Spatially, the food security index is relatively low in administrative centers, while the irrigation areas along the Yellow River play a crucial role in maintaining food security, and the overall food security index in the central arid areas is improving. (3) Food security is driven by multiple factors including economic, social, and climatic influences. To enhance food security in the Yellow River Basin, it is necessary to manage land resources systematically, improve grain production technology, and balance ecological protection with food security.

Land rights, resource allocation and urban settlement choices of migrant workers in Yunnan, Western China

Using the cross-sectional data from the 2015 and 2021 Yunnan Migrant Workers Urban Integration Survey, this study assesses the different effects of the three types of land rights that migrant workers possess in their rural hometowns on their urban settlement choices in Yunnan, western China. Specifically, it examined the existence of migrant workers moving between urban and rural areas in response to the importance of land rights for rural migrant workers, in western China, a region with the lower level of economic development and fastest growing number of migrant workers in China. After controlling for the impact of other variables, the multinomial Probit model was used to estimate the impact of the migrant workers' land rights in their rural hometowns on their settlement choices in urban areas. We found that rural land rights significantly increased migrant workers' willingness to return to their hometowns. This indicates that land right security is a key factor affecting Yunnan migrant workers' urban settlement intentions, although it is conditional in terms of age groups and places of origin. Importantly, we found that migrant workers in western China are more inclined to keep their dual identities as both urban migrant workers and rural residents. They, hence, are more inclined to rationally allocate their resources between urban and rural areas to maximize their economic outputs. Particularly, they prefer to only working - rather than settling - in urban areas, while retaining their rural land as assets and income sources. Instead of settling in either urban or rural areas, the older migrant workers who migrate to smaller and economically underdeveloped cities are more inclined to drift between urban and rural areas without permanent settlement. This confirms the argument of livelihood resource maximization and migratory bird-type migration as important mechanisms via which land right ownership affects migrant workers’ urban settlement intentions. This study suggests that policymakers should consider the land rights of rural migrant workers when making urban settlement policies, especially for small and medium-sized cities, where migrant settlement intention is weaker. Policymakers should also promote the flexibility of rural land use rights transfer and explore reforms concerning the separation of the three types of land rights to achieve a balance between urbanization and land use efficiency, particularly in small and medium-sized cities.

Impact of Land Use and Land Cover Changes on Soil Physico-Chemical Properties in Southern Tigray, Northern Ethiopia

Soil quality declines due to the conversion of natural vegetation into farmland and grazing areas. The response of soil properties to land use and land cover changes (LULC) exhibits both spatial and temporal variations. This study aimed to assess the effects of LULC changes on the physico-chemical properties of soil in the Wojic watershed. Soil samples were collected from natural forests, bushland, shrubland, and cultivated lands across three landforms of the watershed (upper, middle, and lower) to evaluate the physical and chemical properties of the soil associated with different LULC types. The LULC categories were compared using mean values and critical thresholds for selected physicochemical soil properties. Soil analysis was conducted using R software, employing one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA). A normality test was performed before the post hoc analysis, and Tukey’s honest significance difference (HSD) test was utilized for mean separation among the LULC types. Additionally, a normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was calculated for the years 1997 and 2017. A simple linear regression model was developed to estimate soil physico-chemical properties over the past 20 years, using laboratory soil parameters and the NDVI for 2017. The pH values showed a slight decrease in cultivated land (from 5.7 to 5.4), bushland (from 7 to 6.6), and shrubland (from 6.5 to 6.2) over the study period. The analysis indicated a declining trend in physico-chemical properties, attributed to changes in vegetation cover and management practices. Consequently, the government needs to enforce policies and regulations that promote effective land resource management and utilization, with particular emphasis on the proper management and conservation of forests, bushlands, and shrublands, as well as measures to prevent increased land resettlement.

Analysis of spatio-temporal evolution and influencing factors of land dividends in China.

This paper explores the classification, formation, measurement, evolution, and influencing factors of land dividends in China.It analyzes the nature of land value dividends and efficiency dividends, examines their spatio-temporal evolution, and investigates influencing factors via a regression model, providing insights for future development. The paper posits that changes in land use patterns primarily contribute to land value dividends, while efficiency dividends stem from improving land use efficiency within existing patterns. Presently, China is transitioning from a phase dominated by land value dividends to one marked by efficiency dividends. In terms of spatio-temporal dynamics, efficiency dividends display a fluctuating upward trajectory, whereas land value dividends and the overall quantity of land dividends demonstrate an initial ascent followed by a gradual decline, with the central region exhibiting the most pronounced changes. The analysis of influencing factors reveals a significant positive correlation between value dividends, the overall quantity of land dividends, and factors such as land transfer and capital investment, while efficiency dividends exhibit a significant positive correlation with urbanization. Consequently, the government should implement measures to sensibly regulate land quantity and layout, promote intensive and efficient land use, activate dormant land resources, and propel the optimization and high-quality development of land dividends.

Spatial change under the institution of land rights: A research note on the double-tragedy in the Wanhua Railway Station redevelopment zone, Taipei

Equalization of land rights is a noble goal for societies to pursue. The reform of farmland to the tiller has significantly transformed Taiwan’s agricultural economy and paved the way for rapid industrialization. Nevertheless, market-led equalization of urban land rights may result in unfavorable effects that prevent scarce urban land resources from optimal utilization. The research of Wanhua Railway Station redevelopment zone has discovered the phenomenon of the double-tragedy of the commons and anti-commons. Fragmented land rights hamper redevelopment efforts and induce illegal construction instead. Double-tragedy leads to social segregation that amplifies inequality between urban neighborhoods.

Evaluation of the Suitability of Horticultural Crops under Prevailing Environmental Conditions - A Case Study of Punjab

Alternate land use options such as horticultural crops help in ensuring efficient land resource utilization. Thus, it is essential to evaluate the agri-environmental conditions for economically viable and sustainable horticultural production. A study was carried out for land use planning of Rajpura block in Patiala district of Punjab. Under this study, soil-site suitability of horticultural crops were evaluated by considering key soil parameters such as texture, depth, slope, EC, pH, organic carbon content, erosion, drainage, and climate factors viz., rainfall and temperature, etc. The soils of the block were interpreted to assess their suitability for various horticultural crops viz., mango, grapes, banana, sapota, guava, pomegranate and citrus fruits. The mango cultivation was found suitable for almost 50% area and moderately suitable for 34% area. Soil-site suitability characteristics evaluation for grape cultivation revealed that around 34% area of the block is suitable while 50% area is moderately suitable. The banana and sapota crop cultivation was found to be highly suitable for approximately 45% area, whereas moderately suitable for 40% area. In context of guava and pomegranate, nearly 34% area was covered under suitable class and 50% area was covered under moderately suitable class, respectively. The citrus crops are highly suitable for this block which covers the maximum area of the block about 61% and moderately suitable for almost 23% area, respectively. The small fraction of the block, only 1.68% (476 ha) exhibits marginal suitability for the cultivation all fruit crops. The horticultural crop suitability maps were generated by using remote sensing and GIS tools. Hence, it can be concluded, the Rajpura block has vast dimensions for the horticultural farming which will lead to land resource management, sustainable land use planning and livelihood security of farmers of the block. This study will also help policy makers and stake holders for the horticultural developmental planning of this block.