Spatio-temporal variation of agricultural land consolidation in China: case study of Huangshi, Hubei Province

Abstract

<p>Land fragmentation and soil degradation are major barriers to agricultural production. Agricultural land consolidation (ALC) can effectively address these problems. A regional case study in Central China was used to analyze the spatial characteristics of the implemented ALC projects (ALCPs) from 2003 to 2010, and the planned ALCPs from 2011 to 2020. ALCPs were classified into basic farmland construction projects (BFCPs) and low-hilly land consolidation projects (LHLCPs). The spatial distribution of BFCPs and LHLCPs was presented on maps with a 1:10,000 scale. A comparative analysis showed that the landscape indices of the project areas varied significantly in different phases. The implemented BFCPs are more centralized in space than the implemented LHLCPs. The proportionality (<i>p</i>) was proposed to evaluate the rationality of ALC planning at the town level. Results showed an apparent imbalance of <i>p</i> values among different towns. Shape regularity and centrality are important criteria for selecting ALCPs at spatio-temporal level. The maps provide a patch-based overview of the distribution and aggregation of ALCPs from 2003 to 2020. The findings have implications on assessing rationality and time scheduling of ALCPs.</p