Golf course ban fails to save land
By Claire Wang |
June 21, 2011, Tuesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
MORE than 400 golf courses in the guise of sport parks, ecological parks and greenery projects have been built in China since the country imposed a ban on their construction to protect farmland in 2004.
More than 70 golf courses, most of them illegal, occupied up to 3.4 square kilometers of land in Beijing and the number was growing rapidly despite the ban, yesterday's People's Daily reported.
By the end of last year, nearly 600 golf courses had been built nationwide, 400 of them after the ban was imposed by the State Council, Han Liebao, director of the Golf Education and Research Center of Beijing Forestry University, told the newspaper.
However, of the 600, only about 10 courses were officially approved and authorized, an unnamed insider said.
The illegal golf courses claimed to be sports parks, ecological parks or other greenery projects and were approved as such by local authorities after the green light from several central government departments, including the National Development and Reform Commission, the country's top economic planner.
The online registration of one famous sports club in Beijing said it organized sports events, operated a gym and sold sportswear. But a visit revealed the club was actually a golf course, the report said.
Some local governments considered golf courses a good opportunity to promote the economy and turned a blind eye to their construction on farmland. Developers and government departments conspired to conceal the construction, Yan Jinming, vice dean of the School of Public Administration and Policy of Renmin University of China, told the newspaper.
Yan called for more transparent application and hearing processes so that land authorities could review applications case by case. Meanwhile, a crackdown on inspection departments was needed to cool the construction boom.
Han said that as the popularity of the sport grew in China, "public golf courses should be constructed to meet the growing demand."
The only exception to the golf course ban is in Hainan Province, China's southernmost island, which is being built into an international tourist destination.
More than 70 golf courses, most of them illegal, occupied up to 3.4 square kilometers of land in Beijing and the number was growing rapidly despite the ban, yesterday's People's Daily reported.
By the end of last year, nearly 600 golf courses had been built nationwide, 400 of them after the ban was imposed by the State Council, Han Liebao, director of the Golf Education and Research Center of Beijing Forestry University, told the newspaper.
However, of the 600, only about 10 courses were officially approved and authorized, an unnamed insider said.
The illegal golf courses claimed to be sports parks, ecological parks or other greenery projects and were approved as such by local authorities after the green light from several central government departments, including the National Development and Reform Commission, the country's top economic planner.
The online registration of one famous sports club in Beijing said it organized sports events, operated a gym and sold sportswear. But a visit revealed the club was actually a golf course, the report said.
Some local governments considered golf courses a good opportunity to promote the economy and turned a blind eye to their construction on farmland. Developers and government departments conspired to conceal the construction, Yan Jinming, vice dean of the School of Public Administration and Policy of Renmin University of China, told the newspaper.
Yan called for more transparent application and hearing processes so that land authorities could review applications case by case. Meanwhile, a crackdown on inspection departments was needed to cool the construction boom.
Han said that as the popularity of the sport grew in China, "public golf courses should be constructed to meet the growing demand."
The only exception to the golf course ban is in Hainan Province, China's southernmost island, which is being built into an international tourist destination.
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