On Land and Other Related Concepts
This paper presents the concepts of land, land use, and land use planning from different standpoints. It seeks to provide a clearer understanding of the said concepts by identifying the characteristics and many uses of land.
The Complexities of Land and Its Meaning
Different people define and describe “land” in various ways, depending on their perspectives, interests, or purposes. Commonly known and accepted definition of land is that it refers to the solid part of the earth where human beings can walk, build structures, grow trees, or raise animals. The term “land” is also used to denote “a nation, a people, or a political division of the earth’s surface” (Barlowe, 1958:7).
Apart from the above-stated definitions, there are more technical explanations concerning “land.” In his book Land Use, Kenneth Davis adopts a rather short yet comprehensive definition of land that captures the physical, legal, and economic concepts of land. Defined by The Random House Dictionary of the English Language, land is “any part of the earth’s surface, which can be owned as property, and everything annexed to it, whether by nature or by hand of man” (quoted in Davis, 1976: 11).
Associated with the physical concept of land are useful concepts, which include “space” and “nature.” Land as a space represents a room or a surface where life takes place. This pertains not only of the earth’s surface but also of the cubic space. In other words, it includes the space beneath the surface, the space that human beings and other life forms occupy, and the space above and around the surface. As a nature, on the other hand, it encompasses all the natural resources such as mountains, oceans, rivers, and plains (Barlowe, 1958). Clearly, water areas are also considered land or part of the broader concept of land.
Another important point that needs clarification is related to the concept of land as a property that can be owned. To some extent, the landowner can exercise control over its use. This concept can be traced back to the Judeo-Christian tradition in the Western world that established the thought that the earth and all upon it were for people. Hence, human beings had exercised supremacy over natural resources. In many occasions, however, such idea has resulted in conquest and exploitation of land and other natural resources (Davis, 1976).
From the economic standpoint, land may be viewed as the following: a factor of production, a consumption good, a capital, and a situation. As a factor of production, land is considered to be the main source of raw materials that humans use to produce goods and services. Accordingly, it is also looked at as a consumption good because people use land to satisfy most, if not all, of their needs to survive. As Barlowe puts it, “it has value as a consumer’s good in its own right” (1958: 8).
Although land, as a factor of production, is separate from capital, it is still regarded as capital to some extent. From the perspective of an average investor, for instance, land is to be purchased or leased just like capital goods (Barlowe, 1958).
The concept of land as a situation is also of crucial importance especially in modern economic affairs and world politics. It suggests location “with respect to markets, geographic features, other resources, and other countries” (Barlowe, 1958: 8).
The Characteristics of Land
An understanding of the characteristics of land is deemed relevant because these have impacts, not only on the natural and man-made resources, but more importantly, on the human beings and other life forms.
One characteristics of land is that it is immobile. It is fixed in place, thus can be identified accordingly. This, according to Davis, is the basis for establishing land ownership (1976).
Relative to the immobility of the land and to the concept of land as a situation, land is said to have “strategic value associated with a particular location” (Davis, 1976:11). This is because the control of a specific piece of land may determine and affect the use of other land areas.
Still another characteristic of land is that it is finite and not reproducible (Davis, 1976). Nevertheless, its surface character can be transformed to a certain extent such that the increasing needs and demands of the people may be accommodated and addressed. In this respect, it must be noted that such land transformation may not always result in desirable outcomes. Hence, proper control and utilization of land are of extreme importance to strike a balance between the capacities of land and the necessities of humans.
Physical and climatic characteristics of land likewise influence and limit its use. Regarding topography, land may be “flat, steep, irregular, rocky, etc.” (Davis, 1976: 12). With modern technological equipment, the topography of an area can be renewed. For instance, mountains can now be razed but there is no guarantee that the benefits of such will outweigh the costs, both in tangible and in intangible terms.
The Many Uses of Land
Land has been classified based on the uses it offers. Rural lands are commonly devoted for agricultural purposes. These include cropland, pasture and grazing land, forest land, and wildland. Cropland embraces all cultivated areas used in the production of food, fibers, feeds and other crops (Barlowe, 1958).
Pasture and grazing land includes two types of land use – arable pasture and range and grazing land. Arable pasture points to the improved and rotation pasture area that can be plowed and be easily altered into cropland use. On the other hand, range and grazing lands “applies to those lands which produce forage cover for grazing by domestic animals and game mammals, but which are generally unsuited for cultivation because of inadequate rainfall, rough topography, or high altitude” (Barlowe, 1958: 10-11).
Forest land covers the areas used for commercial timber production, noncommercial woodlands, farm woodlots, cutover lands with timber growth potential, and some brushland. Meanwhile, wildlands in rural areas have recreational value. Outdoor activities such as horseback riding, stream fishing, and camping are usually held in recreational lands such as racetracks, parks and the like.
Both urban and rural lands are used for residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional purposes but the former is more widely used than the latter in said aspects. There are also areas utilized for transportation purposes where roads, railways, harbors, wharves, and similar types are built. Some areas are used to extract minerals while others accommodate service uses such as “reservations, prisons, cemeteries, reservoirs, and hydroelectric power sites” (Barlowe, 1958: 11). The residual land areas that do not have apparent uses or that remain idle are identified as barren and waste land.
The Concept of Land Use
Another way of understanding land is by taking into consideration the reversibility of its use. Land use can be irreversible or reversible. According to Davis, in some cases, it is impracticable, if not impossible, to reverse to the former use of the land once changes to its original character or quality has been made (1976). These uses are described as irreversible. The following are good examples of irreversible use of land:
§ the transformation of a certain parcel of land into a city or industrial area;
§ the transformation of coastal and inland wetlands and water areas for agricultural purposes;
§ the transformation of reservoir area;
§ the extraction of mines from the land; and
§ the use of land for the major roads highways and railroads.
In other cases, however, there are uses of land wherein the soil cover and land form have not been converted. These uses are said to be reversible (1976). To illustrate, the following are good examples of reversible use of land:
§ the use of agricultural land as cropland or pasture;
§ the use of forest lands; and
§ the use of urban lands.
When dealing with land use, it is important to be aware of certain concepts that promotes the welfare of both the user or manager (human) and the one being used or managed (land). One notion is that of stewardship. From the Biblical origin, stewardship refers to the “responsibility for continuing and prudent management of something held in trust, as an agent for another, without impairment to what is being managed - and also, it is hope, with improvement and augmentation. It also suggest the idea of dominion over that which is managed and can include the concept of harmony of opinion and interests, which well describes the goal of good land use” (Davis, 1976: 8).
Another concept closely associated with land use is that of posterity. Davis explains that posterity or the idea of passing on an estate to the next generation is strongly supported in societies where land tenure and inheritance is stable. This is, however, quite less important in societies with more mobile, urban populations (1976).
The concepts of stewardship and posterity alone, nevertheless, do not guarantee proper and just land use. A more effective concept to address the changing needs and demands of the present and future generations is that of conservation. Central to the concerns of conservation is the maintenance and improvement of environmental quality that includes land and other natural resources that are crucial as bases of economic activities and as integral parts of life support system.
As previously mentioned, in varying degrees, human beings have a control over the use of land. However, with the underlying aim of putting things in order and of putting order in things, the use of land has been greatly regulated by the State to ensure that land promotes the general welfare of the public.
The State has been employing regulatory measures and incentive systems to influence the decisions of individual landowners towards the promotion of the common good in the use of land. Among the mechanisms and strategies used by the State to influence the decisions of the landowners include the following: the delineation of particular areas where certain activities may or may not be allowed; setting of criteria and standards for development activities; use of fiscal instrument such as taxation schemes to generate funds for improving and maintaining public services, infrastructures, and environmental quality; expropriation of privately owned lands for public use such as government infrastructure projects, which will benefit the society in general; and distribution of public and private lands to emancipate the peasants and to promote social justice and equity. (Guidebook on the Preparation of SLUP, 1997). These initiatives aim at using land in the most effective way where the public will truly benefit.
Land Use Planning
As earlier presented, the State plays a crucial role in governing and managing the use of land resources in such a way that it does not jeopardize the land’s natural qualities as well as the general welfare of the human beings and other life forms that depend on land. Hence, land use planning.
In the Philippine context, land use planning is founded on the social philosophy enunciated in the current Constitution that “the use of property bears a social function” and that private decisions on the use of their property are subject to the“…duty of the state…to intervene when the common good so demands” (quoted in Guidebook on the Preparation of SLUP, 1997).
Relative to the concept of conservation, at present, concerns on land use planning tend to be towards sustainability. Thus, the term sustainable land use planning is used to refer to “the rational and judicious development, utilization and management of land resources in a sustainable manner, to ensure that the needs of the present generation are met without compromising the needs of future generation” (Guidebook on the Preparation of SLUP, 1997).
Based on the above, land use planning consists of technical, political and ideological dimensions. The technical dimension deals with the approaches, methods and techniques applied to determine the proper location and allocation of different land using activities. Meanwhile, the political aspect relates to the development policies, guidelines and criteria for proper management of land, plus the willingness and the capability to implement them. The ideological dimension gives emphasis on the underlying philosophy of land that is grounded on the value the society attaches to land, the notion of land as a property, and the role of the State in the overall regulation of land (Serote, 1992).
It has been observed that the convergence of the three dimensions results in effective land use planning.
The Complexities of Land and Its Meaning
Different people define and describe “land” in various ways, depending on their perspectives, interests, or purposes. Commonly known and accepted definition of land is that it refers to the solid part of the earth where human beings can walk, build structures, grow trees, or raise animals. The term “land” is also used to denote “a nation, a people, or a political division of the earth’s surface” (Barlowe, 1958:7).
Apart from the above-stated definitions, there are more technical explanations concerning “land.” In his book Land Use, Kenneth Davis adopts a rather short yet comprehensive definition of land that captures the physical, legal, and economic concepts of land. Defined by The Random House Dictionary of the English Language, land is “any part of the earth’s surface, which can be owned as property, and everything annexed to it, whether by nature or by hand of man” (quoted in Davis, 1976: 11).
Associated with the physical concept of land are useful concepts, which include “space” and “nature.” Land as a space represents a room or a surface where life takes place. This pertains not only of the earth’s surface but also of the cubic space. In other words, it includes the space beneath the surface, the space that human beings and other life forms occupy, and the space above and around the surface. As a nature, on the other hand, it encompasses all the natural resources such as mountains, oceans, rivers, and plains (Barlowe, 1958). Clearly, water areas are also considered land or part of the broader concept of land.
Another important point that needs clarification is related to the concept of land as a property that can be owned. To some extent, the landowner can exercise control over its use. This concept can be traced back to the Judeo-Christian tradition in the Western world that established the thought that the earth and all upon it were for people. Hence, human beings had exercised supremacy over natural resources. In many occasions, however, such idea has resulted in conquest and exploitation of land and other natural resources (Davis, 1976).
From the economic standpoint, land may be viewed as the following: a factor of production, a consumption good, a capital, and a situation. As a factor of production, land is considered to be the main source of raw materials that humans use to produce goods and services. Accordingly, it is also looked at as a consumption good because people use land to satisfy most, if not all, of their needs to survive. As Barlowe puts it, “it has value as a consumer’s good in its own right” (1958: 8).
Although land, as a factor of production, is separate from capital, it is still regarded as capital to some extent. From the perspective of an average investor, for instance, land is to be purchased or leased just like capital goods (Barlowe, 1958).
The concept of land as a situation is also of crucial importance especially in modern economic affairs and world politics. It suggests location “with respect to markets, geographic features, other resources, and other countries” (Barlowe, 1958: 8).
The Characteristics of Land
An understanding of the characteristics of land is deemed relevant because these have impacts, not only on the natural and man-made resources, but more importantly, on the human beings and other life forms.
One characteristics of land is that it is immobile. It is fixed in place, thus can be identified accordingly. This, according to Davis, is the basis for establishing land ownership (1976).
Relative to the immobility of the land and to the concept of land as a situation, land is said to have “strategic value associated with a particular location” (Davis, 1976:11). This is because the control of a specific piece of land may determine and affect the use of other land areas.
Still another characteristic of land is that it is finite and not reproducible (Davis, 1976). Nevertheless, its surface character can be transformed to a certain extent such that the increasing needs and demands of the people may be accommodated and addressed. In this respect, it must be noted that such land transformation may not always result in desirable outcomes. Hence, proper control and utilization of land are of extreme importance to strike a balance between the capacities of land and the necessities of humans.
Physical and climatic characteristics of land likewise influence and limit its use. Regarding topography, land may be “flat, steep, irregular, rocky, etc.” (Davis, 1976: 12). With modern technological equipment, the topography of an area can be renewed. For instance, mountains can now be razed but there is no guarantee that the benefits of such will outweigh the costs, both in tangible and in intangible terms.
The Many Uses of Land
Land has been classified based on the uses it offers. Rural lands are commonly devoted for agricultural purposes. These include cropland, pasture and grazing land, forest land, and wildland. Cropland embraces all cultivated areas used in the production of food, fibers, feeds and other crops (Barlowe, 1958).
Pasture and grazing land includes two types of land use – arable pasture and range and grazing land. Arable pasture points to the improved and rotation pasture area that can be plowed and be easily altered into cropland use. On the other hand, range and grazing lands “applies to those lands which produce forage cover for grazing by domestic animals and game mammals, but which are generally unsuited for cultivation because of inadequate rainfall, rough topography, or high altitude” (Barlowe, 1958: 10-11).
Forest land covers the areas used for commercial timber production, noncommercial woodlands, farm woodlots, cutover lands with timber growth potential, and some brushland. Meanwhile, wildlands in rural areas have recreational value. Outdoor activities such as horseback riding, stream fishing, and camping are usually held in recreational lands such as racetracks, parks and the like.
Both urban and rural lands are used for residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional purposes but the former is more widely used than the latter in said aspects. There are also areas utilized for transportation purposes where roads, railways, harbors, wharves, and similar types are built. Some areas are used to extract minerals while others accommodate service uses such as “reservations, prisons, cemeteries, reservoirs, and hydroelectric power sites” (Barlowe, 1958: 11). The residual land areas that do not have apparent uses or that remain idle are identified as barren and waste land.
The Concept of Land Use
Another way of understanding land is by taking into consideration the reversibility of its use. Land use can be irreversible or reversible. According to Davis, in some cases, it is impracticable, if not impossible, to reverse to the former use of the land once changes to its original character or quality has been made (1976). These uses are described as irreversible. The following are good examples of irreversible use of land:
§ the transformation of a certain parcel of land into a city or industrial area;
§ the transformation of coastal and inland wetlands and water areas for agricultural purposes;
§ the transformation of reservoir area;
§ the extraction of mines from the land; and
§ the use of land for the major roads highways and railroads.
In other cases, however, there are uses of land wherein the soil cover and land form have not been converted. These uses are said to be reversible (1976). To illustrate, the following are good examples of reversible use of land:
§ the use of agricultural land as cropland or pasture;
§ the use of forest lands; and
§ the use of urban lands.
When dealing with land use, it is important to be aware of certain concepts that promotes the welfare of both the user or manager (human) and the one being used or managed (land). One notion is that of stewardship. From the Biblical origin, stewardship refers to the “responsibility for continuing and prudent management of something held in trust, as an agent for another, without impairment to what is being managed - and also, it is hope, with improvement and augmentation. It also suggest the idea of dominion over that which is managed and can include the concept of harmony of opinion and interests, which well describes the goal of good land use” (Davis, 1976: 8).
Another concept closely associated with land use is that of posterity. Davis explains that posterity or the idea of passing on an estate to the next generation is strongly supported in societies where land tenure and inheritance is stable. This is, however, quite less important in societies with more mobile, urban populations (1976).
The concepts of stewardship and posterity alone, nevertheless, do not guarantee proper and just land use. A more effective concept to address the changing needs and demands of the present and future generations is that of conservation. Central to the concerns of conservation is the maintenance and improvement of environmental quality that includes land and other natural resources that are crucial as bases of economic activities and as integral parts of life support system.
As previously mentioned, in varying degrees, human beings have a control over the use of land. However, with the underlying aim of putting things in order and of putting order in things, the use of land has been greatly regulated by the State to ensure that land promotes the general welfare of the public.
The State has been employing regulatory measures and incentive systems to influence the decisions of individual landowners towards the promotion of the common good in the use of land. Among the mechanisms and strategies used by the State to influence the decisions of the landowners include the following: the delineation of particular areas where certain activities may or may not be allowed; setting of criteria and standards for development activities; use of fiscal instrument such as taxation schemes to generate funds for improving and maintaining public services, infrastructures, and environmental quality; expropriation of privately owned lands for public use such as government infrastructure projects, which will benefit the society in general; and distribution of public and private lands to emancipate the peasants and to promote social justice and equity. (Guidebook on the Preparation of SLUP, 1997). These initiatives aim at using land in the most effective way where the public will truly benefit.
Land Use Planning
As earlier presented, the State plays a crucial role in governing and managing the use of land resources in such a way that it does not jeopardize the land’s natural qualities as well as the general welfare of the human beings and other life forms that depend on land. Hence, land use planning.
In the Philippine context, land use planning is founded on the social philosophy enunciated in the current Constitution that “the use of property bears a social function” and that private decisions on the use of their property are subject to the“…duty of the state…to intervene when the common good so demands” (quoted in Guidebook on the Preparation of SLUP, 1997).
Relative to the concept of conservation, at present, concerns on land use planning tend to be towards sustainability. Thus, the term sustainable land use planning is used to refer to “the rational and judicious development, utilization and management of land resources in a sustainable manner, to ensure that the needs of the present generation are met without compromising the needs of future generation” (Guidebook on the Preparation of SLUP, 1997).
Based on the above, land use planning consists of technical, political and ideological dimensions. The technical dimension deals with the approaches, methods and techniques applied to determine the proper location and allocation of different land using activities. Meanwhile, the political aspect relates to the development policies, guidelines and criteria for proper management of land, plus the willingness and the capability to implement them. The ideological dimension gives emphasis on the underlying philosophy of land that is grounded on the value the society attaches to land, the notion of land as a property, and the role of the State in the overall regulation of land (Serote, 1992).
It has been observed that the convergence of the three dimensions results in effective land use planning.
Final Note
Despite its finiteness in quantity, the concept of land and its uses seem to increase as people and people needs and demands escalate in different time and perspectives. In general, human beings should take the lead in maintaining and improving land and natural resources primarily because it is these resources sustain their lives. This calls for effective land use planning with the state and the people. Land use planning must be sustainable – one that can meet the needs of the present generation and beyond – and this can only be undertaken with the harmonious convergence of its technical, political, and ideological dimensions.
References
1997. Guidebook on the Preparation of Sustainable Land Use Plan. Vol. I. Sustainable Development Models and Systems Subprogramme (SDMS). Integrated Environmental Management for Sustainable Development (IEMSD) Programme.
1958. Barlowe, Raleigh. Land Resources Economics: The Political Economy of Rural and Urban Resource Use. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.
1976. Davis, Kenneth. Land Use. New York: McGraw Hill Book Co.
1992. Serote, Ernesto. “Review and Prospects for Land Use Planning in the Philippines under the 1991 Local Government Code” in A Study of Regional and Local Planning System Bk. II. LDAP Project No. 492-0436. USAID/Philippines.
1997. Guidebook on the Preparation of Sustainable Land Use Plan. Vol. I. Sustainable Development Models and Systems Subprogramme (SDMS). Integrated Environmental Management for Sustainable Development (IEMSD) Programme.
1958. Barlowe, Raleigh. Land Resources Economics: The Political Economy of Rural and Urban Resource Use. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.
1976. Davis, Kenneth. Land Use. New York: McGraw Hill Book Co.
1992. Serote, Ernesto. “Review and Prospects for Land Use Planning in the Philippines under the 1991 Local Government Code” in A Study of Regional and Local Planning System Bk. II. LDAP Project No. 492-0436. USAID/Philippines.
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