Life satisfaction approach to farmers’ compensation for land acquisition:empirical study from the suburbs of Wuhan City

Farmers’ compensation for land acquisition is not only critical to increasing their income and to playing a pivotal role in maintaining rural stability,but also to the promotion of sustainable land use.Based on analysis of Chinese land acquisition policy under the Land Management Law,which provides principles or guidelines for determining compensation according to agricultural land use in regard to farmers’ previous quality of life,the Life Satisfaction Approach is introduced in this article to evaluate farmers’ compensation for land acquisition.Employing data from a questionnaire survey on 346 farming households in Wuhan Suburbs,this article examined the influence of farmland on farmers’ life satisfaction and evaluated the level of compensation for land acquisition.Results show that farmland has a significantly positive impact on life satisfaction,which fell by 0.033 on a five-point scale following a reduction farmland by of 1 mu.Respondents were willing to accept approximately RMB 3066.44 annual household income for the loss of 1 mu farmland;the level of compensation after discounting by 6.2%is RMB 750,000 per hectare.It was found in a further comparative study that the level of farmers’ compensation for land acquisition is decidedly low,and it was also shown that their compensation standards,as well as the actual compensation,could be substantially improved by expanding economic compensation to non-economic compensation to embody farmland multifunction in terms of production and non-production against farmers’ previous quality of life.This article proposes a compensation model that enriches the content of land acquisition compensation,extends the current literature on measuring compensation,and provides economic theory bases for increasing compensation standards and improving policies related to land acquisition.We consider that if this compensation model is applied,it could raise the cost of land acquisition and improve usage of land,reduce the speed of rural-urban land conversion,and improve far     

Income Growth, Urbanization, Changing Life Style and Energy Requirements in China

This paper aims to estimate the effects of changing life style and consumption demands driven by income growth and urbanization on increase of energy requirements in China, and es-timate the impacts of improvement in household consumption on mitigating energy requirements towards 2020, based on input-out-put analysis and scenarios simulation approach. The result shows that energy requirement per capita has increased by 159% for urban residents and 147% for rural residents from 1995 to 2004. Growth in household consumption driven by income growth and urbanization may induce a successive increase in energy require-ments in future. Per capita energy requirements of urban residents will increase by 240% during 2002-2015 and 330% during 2002-2020. Urbanization might lead to 0.75 billion ton of increment of energy requirements in 2020. About 45%-48% of total energy requirements in China might be a consequence of residents’ life styles and the economic activities to support consumption demands in 2020. Under low-carbon life style scenario, per capita energy requirements of urban residents may decline to 97% in 2015 and 92% in 2020 in contrast with baseline scenario. That implies that China needs to pay a great attention to developing green low-carbon life style in order to realize mitigation target towards 2020.     

Impacts of Social and Demographic Factors on Residents＇ Subjective Well-being in Rural China

The objective of social development is to construct a harmonious society.In China,the key to a harmonious society is the happiness of more than 900 million farmers living in the rural areas.This study aimed to measure rural residents' subjective well-being(SWB) through the day reconstruction method,as well as to analyze SWB's influencing factors through a variety of statistical methods.The results showed that the average U index was 12.79%,indicating that respondents were unhappy 12.79% of the time.Twenty-seven percent of the population had a U index greater than 0,with the average value being 47%,indicating that these people were unhappy 47% of the time.The study also found that SWB varied according to the characteristics of the respondents.Logistic regression analysis showed that social and demographic factors,including age,education,county,household size,generation number,per capita income,migration status and social networking,which significantly affected rural residents' SWB.The size of the impact varied with the different factors.     

Cost-Effective Control of Ground-Level Ozone Pollution in and around Beijing

Ground level ozone pollution has become a significant air pollution problem in Beijing. Because of the complex way in which ozone is formed, it is difficult for policy makers to identify optimal control options on a cost-effective basis. This paper identi-fies and assesses a range of options for addressing this problem. We apply the Ambient Least Cost Model and compare the eco-nomic costs of control options, then recommend the most effective sequence to realize pollution control at the lowest cost. The study finds that installing of Stage II gasoline vapor recovery system at Beijing’s 1446 gasoline stations would be the most cost-effective option. Overall, options to reduce ozone pollution by cutting ve-hicular emissions are much more cost-effective than options to "clean up" coal-fired power plants.     

CO_2 Emission Induced by Urban Household Consumption in China

Household consumption is one of the important factors that induce COL emission. Based on input-output model, this article calculated the intensity of CO2 emission of different income groups and seven provinces in China, and then estimated total CO2 emission induced by urban household consumption from 1995 to 2004 in China based on statistic data of household living expenditure. The results show that CO2 emission per capita induced by household consumption had increased from 1583 to 2498 kg CO2 during 1995-2004. The ratio of consumption-induced CO2 emission to total CO2 emission had risen from 19% to 30% in the past decade. Indirect CO2 emission accounted for an important part of the consumption-induced emission, the ratio of indirect emission to consumption-induced emission had risen from 69% to 79% during the same period. A significant difference in consumption-induced CO2 emission across different income groups and different regions has been observed. COs emission per capita of higher income groups and developed regions increased faster than that of lower income groups and developing regions. Changing lifestyle has driven significant increase in CO2 emission. Especially, increases in private transport expenditure （for example, vehicle expenditure） and house building expenditure are key driving factors of growth in consumption-induced COL emission. There are big differences in the amount of CO2 emission induced by change in lifestyle across different income groups and provinces. It can be expected that lower income households and developing regions will increase consumption to improve their livings with income growth in the future, which may induce much more CO2 emission. A reasonable level of CO2 emission is necessary to satisfy human needs and to improve living standard, but a noticeable fact is that CO2 emission per capita induced by household consumption in developed areas of China had reached a quite high level. Adjustment in lifestyle towards a low-carbon society is in urgent need.     

Policy options to promote Chinese new energy vehicles consumption

Inspired by the green revolution,new energy vehicles(NEVs)provide a fresh,alternative mode of transportation for Chinese consumers mat reduce their reliance on traditional,gasoline/diesel-based cars.However,despite strong government support for NEVs in China,the level of uptake by consumers remains slow.Using Shanghai as a case study,this article provides a much-needed insight into local consumers’motivations to invest in NEVs through a survey of 100 Shanghai residents.Results indicate that current NEV promotion policies do not have a significant impact on the cognitive trade-off of NEV consumption under the"Integrated Consumer Behavior Model,"mainly due to inconvenient charging facilities,technical concerns regarding battery,higher prices,and wait-and-see attitudes regarding the pilot policy environment.Drawing on experiences from Sweden and New Zealand,this research serves to enhance knowledge on consumer attitudes towards NEVs and assist policy makers in developing more effective green consumption promotion campaigns in the future.     

Factors influencing the quality of rural human settlements in a peripheral metropolitan area based on a structural equation model:A case study from Beijing

Rural human settlement is a significant indicator of the living standards of rural residents,and its improvement can contribute to promoting the positive interaction between inhabited environment and the social,economic,and resource environment in the countryside.Based on 557 valid questionnaires of satisfaction evaluation of human settlement in the peripheral metropolitan area of Beijing,this paper analyzed the elemental characteristics and factors influencing human settlement quality using multivariate statistical analysis and a structural equation model.The result shows that,first,the rural residents in a peripheral metropolitan area of Beijing are generally satisfied with the quality of human settlement(satisfaction rate is 66.2%).Specifically,the natural and social environment of the countryside is excellent and harmonious and corresponding standard of countryside infrastructure is advanced,but the quality of public services and follow-up management of facilities are in urgent need of improvement and the imbalance between revenue and expenditure of rural households has led to a continuous increase in the pressures of life.Second,factors such as social atmosphere,appearance of the village,entertainment,living costs,fundamental public services,and production costs have significant effects on human settlement quality in this peripheral metropolitan area,with social atmosphere as the main one.Living costs and supporting services are the main constraints to improvement in the quality of human settlement.     

The impact of the New Cooperative Medical Scheme in Sangzhi County,Hunan Province

In August 2011,the Sangzhi County government,Hunan Province,adopted a series of new health care policies as a national pilot of the New Cooperative Medical Scheme(referred to as 2011 NCMS).These policies were designed to further resolve illness-led poverty and the poor state of health care in the local area.The program had a positive impact and spread to other regions in Hunan Province.This paper will discuss the progress made as a result of the policies and several issues that challenge the scheme in practice.A total sample of 1212 individuals and 303 households were included in the analysis,and98 interviews were conducted with people related to the scheme.Our major findings indicate that the 201!NCMS has significantly reduced the out-of-pocket medical payment of rural residents,and also increased the township hospitals’patient flow.However,the medical scheme still faces many challenging issues during the implementation.With the increasing interest among the Chinese policy makers in strengthening and promoting the Sangzhi Model,the impacts of the scheme deserve greater attention in practice so as to further improve NCMS in rural China.     

Public Attitudes Towards Policy Instruments for Congestion Mitigation in Shanghai

Congestion causes many externalities for the society, including time delays, excessive fuel consumption, air pollution, noise and safety concerns. In Shanghai, various policy options have been explored, piloted or applied; however, not all of them may be understood and accepted by the public. A survey was conducted to investigate people＇s attitudes towards several policy options. The main findings reveal that Shanghai residents are resistant to certain policies, such as congestion charges, higher parking charges in congested areas and car restrictions. Instead, they favor public transport provisions. The paper suggests that there is a case for promoting public transport and more efficient trips when the car ownership is still low, and for investing in a policy of educating the public on the ＇true＇ costs and causes of congestion before embarking on ,an intensive policy of congestion charges or restrictions.     

Profile of Methane Concentrations in Soil and Atmosphere in Alpine Steppe Ecosystem on Tibetan Plateau

The methane concentration profile from -1.5m depth in soil to 32m height in air was measured in alpine steppe located in the permafrost area. Methane concentrations showed widely variations both in air and in soil during the study period. The mean concentrations in atmosphere were all higher than those in soil, and the highest methane concentration was found in air at the height of 16m with the lowest concentration occurring at the depth of 1.5m in soil. The variations of atmospheric methane concentrations did not show any clear pattern both temporally and spatially, although they exhibited a more steadystable state than those in soil. During the seasonal variations, the methane concentrations at different depths in soil were significantly correlated （R^2〉0.6） with each other comparing to the weak correlations （R^2〈0.2） between the atmospheric concentra- tions at different heights. Mean methane concentrations in soil significantly decreased with depth. This was the compositive influence of the decreasing production rates and the increasing methane oxidation rates, which was caused by the descent soil moisture with depth. Although the methane concentrations at all depths varied widely during the growing season, they showed very distinct temporal variations in the non-growing season. It was indicated from the literatures that methane oxidation rates were positively correlated with soil temperature. The higher methane concentrations in soil during the winter were determined by the lower methane oxidation rates with decreasing soil temperatures, whereas methane production rates had no reaction to the lower temperature. Relations between methane contribution and other environmental factors were not discussed in this paper for lacking of data, which impulse us to carry out further and more detailed studies in this unique area.     

China＇s Land Carrying Capacity Based on Man-grain Relationships

With population growth and increasing pressure on land resources, land carrying capacity （LCC） and food safety have been attracting great attention worldwide. From the point of man-grain relationship and by establishing LCC and land carrying capacity index （LCCI） models, this article firstly analyzes the spatial-temporal dynamics of LCC of China from 1949 to 2005 at county, provincial and national levels. Choosing 2005 as a representative year, this article then evaluates the LCC of 264 pastoral regions （semipastoral regions）, 663 urban regions and 592 poverty stricken regions of the country. The results show that： （1） from 1949 to 2005, with the increase of grain production, the LCC of China has been improved conspicuously, but due to the rapid population growth, the production can only maintain a low level grain consumption; （2） over the past 25 years （1980-2005）, the number of population overloading provinces decreased from 23 to 15 and the mangrain relationship has been improved gradually, but there were more overloading provinces than surplus provinces in China; （3） at county level, there were 1572 overloading counties in 1980 accounting for 68.26% of the total counties of the country and where were 649 million people lived, while in 1990, 2000 and 2005, the number of overloading counties were 1066, 1133 and 1087 respectively, which shows that the man-grain relationship has been improved obviously during the past 25 years; as for spatial distribution, the surplus counties were mainly concentrated in agriculture developed regions, such as Northeast Plain, North China Plain, middle and lower Reaches of the Yangtze River Plain, and overloading counties were mainly located in regions with poor natural environment and low grain production capacity, such as Northwest China, Tibetan Plateau and Loess Plateau and economically developed urban regions, such as Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai; （4） animal husbandry improved greatly the LCC of pastoral and semi-pastoral regions, while urban regions were overloading for increasing population pressure and more than half of poverty stricken regions were overloading due to critical natural environment and poor economic conditions.     

Estimating Ecological Value of Small Hydropower Using Contingent Valuation Method:An Application to Tongjiqiao Reservoir in Zhejiang Province,China

The small hydropower(SHP) will be less competitive in the absence of environmental value.The lack of information has become an important obstacle challenging decision-makers in resource-use choices.This paper is an application of contingent valuation method(CVM) in rural China to estimate the willingness-to-pay(WTP) for environmental services provided by exiting hydropower station.Using the single-bounded and dichotomouschoice CVM,the ecological value of Tongjiqiao Reservoir(TJQR) is estimated,and the annual mean WTPs of single-bounded and double-bounded CVM estimation are 141.05 and 219.52 Yuan(RMB)/a,respectively.The 95% confidence interval of annual WTP on an average is 118.47,166.79 Yuan(RMB)/a and 204.41,236.22(Yuan RMB)/a,respectively.In contrast,double-bounded model could obtain much more information of WTP of the investigated,thus reducing the confidence interval of estimation,and enhancing the estimation accuracy of the WTP.According to the estimated mean WTP of the double-bounded CVM,the total ecosystem service value of the TJQR is 15.54 million Yuan(RMB).Compared with the conventional electricity of fossil power and large hydropower,the SHP will be less competitive in the absence of non-market value,ignoring that the environmental impacts of existing SHP will undermine the healthy development of clean energy sector.     

Regional Disparities in China＇s Mainland at Provincial Level Between 2000 and 2005

Based on the methodology provided by Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, we analyze regional disparities in China＇s mainland at provincial level between 2000 and 2005. It regards regional GDP growth as the joint result of contribution of a number of factors, i.e. capital productivity, capital per manpower, specialization, employment rate, active population, and population. The results show that for all provincial units, capital per manpower is a dominant contributing factor to the growth of GDP per capita during the period from 2000 to 2005 while capital productivity has quite significant negative impacts. Specialization contributes differently in different provinces. In most provincial units, employment rate and age activity have a positive impact on growth of GDP per capita, though not very significantly.     

Factors associated with financial support in old age for young and middle-aged rural residents in China

This study examined the factors associated with financial support in old age from three primary mechanisms-personal savings,family support,and social insurance-to explore the implications for the future development of China’s rural social welfare system.Cross-sectional surveys of 1392 young and middle-aged rural residents were conducted in July and August2012.The results showed that while social insurance was increasingly acceptable,personal savings and family support still had fundamental value.Combining the three mechanisms,the rural old-age welfare system presented nontraditional features.China’s new rural endowment insurance is discussed as a means to address the need for financial support among the rural aging population.     

Population Growth,Available Resources,and Quality of Life:China’s Post-Reform Economic Development

Two opposing intellectual traditions and their contem-porary developments regarding the relations among population, available resources, and quality of life as reflected in economic growth are reviewed. What is at issue is whether population growth is detrimental to or beneficial for economic development. Neither of the extreme views gives a complete picture of the interplay among population, resources, and quality of life. Following previous literature on the topic, this paper establishes a more balanced approach that considers the function linking population and quality of life not constant but variable and regards the limitedness of resources as not absolute but relative to regions and societies. The proposed approach is more flexible in better explaining the relation between population and economic growth. China is examined as a case in point to shed light on the interaction of population growth, economic development, and available resources, and its recent post-economic reform experiences showcase the appropriateness of the synthetic approach.     

Effects of the adaptations to climate changes on the income of herdsmen in Qinghai Province

This study aims to implement the empirical analysis of the effects of the adaptive measures on the income of herdsmen in the context of the climate change with the positive mathematical programming(PMP)model.The survey was first implemented in three counties in the Three Headwaters Region.Finally the measures and recommendations suitable for the economic development in the ecologically fragile areas were proposed.The main conclusions are as follows:priority can be given to the measures to prevent the damage from rats and the engineering measures for pasture maintenance in Zeku County,where the geological conditions and grass quality are inferior,while the fiscal subsidy can be prioritized in Tongde County where the grassland area is relatively less.These recommendations can not only provide good reference for the protection of grassland resources,but they also lay a foundation for the implementation of more suitable measures to help the herdsmen in the ecologically fragile areas to adapt to the climate change.     

Fuelwood assessment at the micro-watershed level:a case study in Garhwal Himalaya,India

Biomass,as fuelwood,is one of the major sources of energy in rural areas,especially in the mountainous regions of the world.As the increasing human population exerts more pressure on the forest thereby inducing an adverse effect on the sustainability of the ecosystem,which consequently causes fuelwood crisis at a local level,this crisis is spatio-temporal in nature.Thus,the major objective of this study is to assess the sustainability of fuelwood at different probable scenarios at a micro watershed level.The present study was conducted in the Phakot watershed,the Tehri Garhwal district of central Himalaya in India,during 2006-2008.Based on the vegetation composition in the study area,the net primary productivity(NPP)value of the Oak forest,and mixed oak and sal forests,was used for the quantification of fuelwood availability in evergreen and deciduous forests,respectively.The fuelwood demand was calculated on the basis of seasonal fuelwood consumption values.Nine probable permutations for availability-demand scenarios assuming the existence of high(H),low(L)and average(A)conditions were analyzed for evaluating the stress.The available annual harvestable fuelwood in the watershed is in the minimum and maximum ranges of 2283.28 to 4066.00 tons,respectively,per year whereas it has a demand of 110.76 tons as the minimum to 3659 tons as the maximum annually.This shows that in the current availabilitydemand scenario,the watershed does not have fuelwood crisis in the present situation but needs to maintain the sustainability of the system.Based on our study,it is concluded that,globally,more spatio-temporal study is required to understand the issues at the local level.     

Evaluation of ecotourism development in rural regions of China

The current status of ecotourism in rural China was analyzed in this paper.Empirical surveys covering the whole country indicate that ecotourism in rural China has attracted a large number of tourists who,however,didn’t generate revenues that can match the number.Although the environmental quality of those rural ecotourism destinations is high with little negative impacts,several problems have already appeared,suggesting a need to monitor those areas.The current practice of interpretation in most rural ecotourism destinations did not provide environmental education opportunities to the tourists.And local communities need more effective ways to decide on the prospects of local ecotourism development by themselves.Finally,a few recommendations for improving the sustainability of ecotourism destinations were provided.     

Regional Disparities in China’s Mainland at Provincial Level Between 2000 and 2005

Based on the methodology provided by Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development,we analyze regional disparities in China’s mainland at provincial level between 2000 and 2005.It regards regional GDP growth as the joint result of contribution of a number of factors,i.e.capital productivity,capital per manpower,specialization,employment rate,active population,and population.The results show that for all provincial units,capital per manpower is a dominant contributing factor to the growth of GDP per...     

Smoke-haze pollution: a review of the 1997 episode in Southeast Asia

In the second half of 1997, large areas in Southeast Asia were severely affected by a smoke-haze pollution episode caused by the emissions of an estimated 45,600 km² of vegetation that burnt on the Indonesian islands Kalimantan and Sumatra. To document the impacts of these fires on air quality, data for total suspended particulate matter (TSP) and for particulate matter below or equal to 10 microns in diameter (PM₁₀) from selected sites in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore are analysed in this paper. These data are supplemented by meteorological data, satellite images and a summary of related research. TSP was above 2,000 μg m^–3 for several days in Indonesian locations close to the most extensive fire activity. In Malaysia and Singapore, ambient particle concentrations increased to several times their average September levels. Characteristically for emissions from vegetation burning, the additional atmospheric particle loading during the smoke-haze episode was predominantly due to an increase of the fraction below or equal to 2.5 microns in diameter (PM_2.5). Due to the dominance of respirable particles (PM_2.5) in the smoke-haze, air quality reporting based on TSP or PM₁₀ may be inadequate to assess the health risk. Upgrading of PM_2.5 monitoring facilities is therefore needed. Reducing the probability of similar smoke-haze events in future would require appropriate fire use and smoke management strategies. Electronic Publication