The Effects of Greenbelt Policies on Land Development: Evidence from the Deregulation of the Greenbelt in the Seoul Metropolitan Area

Haoying Han, Chen Huang, Kun-Hyuck Ahn, Xianfan Shu, Liyun Lin and Derong Qiu ()
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Haoying Han: Department of Urban and Regional Planning, College of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
Chen Huang: Institute of Land Science and Property Management, School of Public Affairs, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
Kun-Hyuck Ahn: Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, College of Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul 08826, Korea
Xianfan Shu: Institute of Land Science and Property Management, School of Public Affairs, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
Liyun Lin: Institute of Land Science and Property Management, School of Public Affairs, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China

Sustainability, 2017, vol. 9, issue 7, 1-17

Abstract: Greenbelt policies are important urban containment policies. On the one hand, they can effectively control the disorderly growth of a city; on the other hand, they can cause other social problems because of their strict control over land development. This paper uses data from 2000 and 2010 and the difference-in-differences (DID) method to evaluate the effects of greenbelt deregulation policies on urban land development in the Seoul metropolitan area (SMA) through a quasi-natural experiment. The results show that first, the deregulation of the greenbelt has significantly furthered urban land development that was not caused by economic development or other factors. Second, the greenbelt deregulation had no significant effects on urban land development in the city centers, but has furthered urban land development near the boundary of Seoul City and greenbelt boundaries. Third, in terms of the effects on land development, the greenbelt deregulation has resulted in regional heterogeneity. Specifically, the greenbelt deregulation has had a significant impact on the urban land development in the southern section of the Han River, whereas the effects of the greenbelt deregulation in the northern area of the Han River are not as obvious.

Keywords: greenbelt policy; greenbelt deregulation; urban containment policy; land development; difference-in-differences method; sustainable urban development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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