The pattern of available construction land along the Xijiang River in Guangxi, China

The assessment of construction land potential is a key foundation in the processes of future urbanization, development, and industrialization. Given the rapid economic growth, large population and scarce percapita land in China, the assessment of construction land potential would be significant to diagnosing land resources and making sound development strategies. This paper assesses the amount, grade and spatial pattern of available construction land based on a multifactor distributed algorithm, an extraction process of potential land suitable for construction, and GIS spatial analysis techniques using 1:50,000 DEM and 1:100,000 land use data. A 20 km band and seven urban regions along the Xijiang River in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China were selected for this case study. The results show that available construction land in the study area amounts to 1962.64 km(2), or 4.82% of the total land area (0.66% more than current construction land). Although there are obvious spatial disparities in the location of available construction land and current development demands, these discrepancies can be resolved by combining the Requisition-Compensation Balance policy for cultivated lands in different regions with layout planning adjustments. Overall, there is a high concentration of land suitable for construction located on the eastern side of the Liujiang River, bordering Laibin and Liuzhou cities. This zone is also well-suited for the longer-term development of a Liuzhou-Laibin New Town. In contrast, the limited potential for suitable construction land in the surrounding areas of Baise, Chongzuo, Laibin, Guigang and Wuzhou indicate the need for directional and site-specific development during future exploitation and construction. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.