Is Cultivated Land Increased by Land Consolidation Sustainably Used in Mountainous Areas?

Jian Zhou, Chao Li (), Xiaotong Chu and Chenying Luo
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Jian Zhou: Northwest Land and Resource Research Center, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi’an 710119, China
Chao Li: China Land Surveying and Planning Institute, Beijing 100035, China
Xiaotong Chu: Northwest Land and Resource Research Center, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi’an 710119, China
Chenying Luo: School of Geography and Tourism, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi’an 710119, China

Land, 2022, vol. 11, issue 12, 1-14

Abstract: Land consolidation (LC) in China is an important means by which we can increase the quantity and improve the quality of cultivated land. At present, large areas of cultivated land are abandoned in mountainous areas. It is unclear whether the increased cultivated land from LC in mountainous areas is sustainably used. Data from 64 land consolidation zones completed in 2016 in the Qinba Mountain Area were collected. The land-use status was obtained from high-resolution remote sensing images by the method of visual interpretation, and land-use changes were analyzed. According to our results, the increased cultivated land by LC is mainly terrace, accounting for 92.22% of the total area of increased cultivated land. The increased cultivated land is mainly distributed in the Qinba Mountainous Area, and terrace is the main type of increased cultivated land in both the Hanzhong Basin Area and Qinba Mountainous Area. The transformation rate of cultivated land from LC, especially terrace, is small. The transformation rates of terrace in the Hanzhong Basin Area and Qinba Mountainous Area are 0.36% and 0.09%, respectively. The socioeconomic development in mountainous areas is relatively lagging, and the per capita cultivated land area is small. Many farmers are still engaged in agricultural production and earn a basic income. Thus, high-quality cultivated land with convenient transportation is sustainably used. LC remains a key avenue for increasing cultivated land area, improving agricultural productivity, increasing farmers’ incomes, and promoting rural development in the mountainous areas.

Keywords: increased cultivated land; cultivated land transformation; land consolidation; Qinba Mountain (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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