Research On Land Reclamation Planning On The Basis Of Integrated Development Of Urban And Rural Areas

Along with the "Reform and Opening-up", started in the1980s, China has embarked on a transition from planned economy to socialist market economy. In this process, various interest relations are adjusting and the worker-peasant relations as well as urban-rural relations are undergoing unprecedented profound changes. The "three agriculture" issues have become increasingly prominent and the urban-rural gap has been more significant. In this context, balancing urban and rural development and accelerating the construction of "new countryside" have been proposed as important strategies to deal with these issues. Balancing urban and rural development is based on the concept of an integrated development of urban and rural areas and dismantling the urban-rural dual structure which was a result of historical reasons and institutional arrangements. It is a systematic project with the aims to develop urban areas and meanwhile, to construct rural areas, and through which to reduce the urban-rural gap and achieve common prosperity of urban and rural areas. Therefore, it is a very important issue to find out how to achieve an integrated development of urban and rural areas and facilitate the construction of "new countryside". In the Chinese context, land reclamation, as an important link to connect urban and rural land use, has become a major strategy in this regard.With the social and economic development, issues regarding the use of various kinds of land have become evident and land reclamation is proposed on the basis of land development and consolidation. Connotation and extension of land reclamation have undergone profound changes, and therefore, there should also be innovations in the contents of land reclamation planning. County-level land reclamation planning provides the most fundamental plan in the whole planning system, and it is directly used to guide and regulate land reclamation activities and projects. Land reclamation at different levels will finally be achieved through county-level land reclamation. Under the context of implementing an integrated development of urban and rural areas and facilitating the construction of new countryside, land reclamation planning is bound to combine the requirements of integrated development of urban and rural areas, take the opportunity in new countryside construction, introduce innovations in planning, to carry out county-level land reclamation scientifically and rationally to deal with problems in land use.From the perspective of an integrated development of urban and rural areas, this thesis has focused on specific theories about and methods of county-level land reclamation. First, the research reviews development of land reclamation domestically and internationally and the impacts of new urbanization construction of "new countryside" on land reclamation, and defines the connotations of land reclamation on the basis of integrated development of urban and rural areas. It then proceeds to evaluate problems in current land development and reclamation planning, makes it clear about the concepts of land reclamation planning and framework, proposes the contents of county-level land reclamation on the basis of integrated development of urban and rural areas, and develops a land reclamation plan making method-focusing on the planning process-that can be applied to the Chinese situation. In the meantime, the research also suggests ways to collect funds for land reclamation on the basis of integrated development of urban and rural areas and connecting increasing and decreasing of construction land in urban and rural areas, and develops an evaluation method for land reclamation planning based on the ecological service value model. The research also uses Tidu, in Hubei Province, as a case study to investigate land reclamation planning.The thesis has the following research findings and innovative points:1) As China has not published technical procedures and standards for land reclamation planning, research on land reclamation issues can provide reference in this regard for the national government.2) With a distinctive perspective of integrated development of urban and rural areas, the research has discussed principles, impact factors, contents and methodological systems for county-level land reclamation. This can be better to meet the practical needs of integrating development of urban and rural areas in contemporary China. 3) The thesis has proposed the contents of county-level land reclamation on the basis of integrated development of urban and rural areas. This includes balancing supply and demand of urban and rural land and evaluating land reclamation potential, arrangement for connecting increasing and decreasing of construction land in urban and rural areas and layout for land reclamation projects, ways for connecting land reclamation funds. The thesis has also established a land reclamation plan making method-focusing on the planning process, and developed a method for evaluating the environmental impacts of land reclamation planning based on the ecological service value.4) The research has designed a new model for running land reclamation funds. Through estimating funds needed for county-level land reclamation and detailed analysis of ways for connecting funds, the research has pointed out problems in current land reclamation funds and suggested new models for arranging urban and rural funds for land reclamation.