Presently, peri-urbanisation is one of the most pervasive processes of land use change in Europe with strong impacts on both the environment and quality of life. It is a matter of great urgency to determine strategies and tools in support of sustainable development. The book synthesizes the results of PLUREL, a large European Commission funded research project (2007-2010). Tools and strategies of PLUREL address main challenges of managing land use in peri-urban areas. These results are presented and illustrated by means of 7 case studies which are at the core of the book. This volume presents a novel, future oriented approach to the planning and management of peri-urban areas with a main focus on scenarios and sustainability impact analysis. The research is unique in that it focuses on the future by linking quantitative scenario modeling and sustainability impact analysis with qualitative and in-depth analysis of regional strategies, as well as including a study at European level with case study work also involving a Chinese case study.

This annotated bibliography was compiled as one of the early steps in an economic appraisal of impacts of urban growth on rural land use.

Land use transition is the manifestation of land use and land cover change (LUCC) and is also a major research focus of the Global Land Project (GLP), as well as land system science (LSS). Land provides essential resources to society, and its changes have large consequences for the local and global environment and human well-being. The past, current, and projected state and dynamics of land use represent the major focus of land use science, which is influenced by long-term anthropogenic changes. The concept of land use transition highlights the fact that land use change demonstrates a non-linear process and is related to other societal and biophysical disturbances through a series of transitions. Land use transitions can be seen as the primary forces driving the transformation and development of the rural-urban territorial system and bringing about direct socioeconomic and environmental effects on regional sustainability. Land use transitions can be measured by changes in both the dominant morphology (e.g., quantity, structure, and spatial patterns) and the recessive morphology (e.g., quality, property rights, management mode, fixed input, productive ability, and function) of land use. The aim of this book was to detect or examine the processes, patterns, and socioeconomic and environmental effects of land use transitions and the mechanisms of human-land interactions against the context of rapid urbanization and industrialization from a wide range of perspectives, as well as the provision of solutions for sustainable land use based on scientific findings.

First Published in 2004. Presents a broad analysis of land use patterns and processes in urban areas. Land has the greatest significance for the spatial patterning and functioning of modern urban settlements and societies - providing the basic morphological elements of the city, it is a source of social and economic power, is intimately bound up with environmental issues and lies at the heart of planning. This book examines the way in which land is allocated and used in both theoretical and practical senses. The author examines the empirical data to reveal the sources and nature of land, how land is used and how those uses are changing in the contemporary city. Particular attention is paid to the misuse of land through vacancy or dereliction. He also explores the importance of land ownership and the principles of land policy using case studies. Finally, he assesses the land use implications of major urban change - deindustrialization, counter-urbanization and new technology. For the first time the overall significance of land use and ownership are examined in an urban geographical and planning context.

This book presents recent estimates on the rate of change of major land classes. Aggregated globally, multiple impacts of local land changes are shown to significantly affect central aspects of Earth System functioning. The book offers innovative developments and applications in the fields of modeling and scenario construction. Conclusions are also drawn about the most pressing implications for the design of appropriate intervention policies.