A Prefectural Comparison of Land-Use Zoning in Japan; With Special Reference to the City Planning Area

Abstract

Land use ofJapan is controlled by various zoning acts. For example, the city planning area is established by the 1968 City Plauning Act in order to restrict urban sprawl, and an agriculture promotion area by the 1969 Agriculture Prornotion Act in order to promote agriculture and to protect effectively agricultural land from urban developments. In decision making process of their zonings, prefectures play an important role, for they draw up plans for the land within their boundaries. Therefore, their zonings refiect circumstances and interests of each prefectures. The present paper intends to establish the regularity and difference in management of the city planning area and various area within it. The city planning area are generally established in the cities with populations of ten thousand or more. The area is divided into four types in respect of land-use control ; (1) urbanization promotion area (U. P. A.), in which conversions irom agricultural land to urban use are promoted, generally without permission, (2) urbanization control area (U. C. A. ), in which conversions of agricultural land to urban use are prohibited in general, (3) unzoned city plauning area with special use district, that has looser restriction than U. P. A. , (4) unzoned city planning area except special use district, that has looser restriction than U. C. A. , The flrst and second types of the areas are generally established within the cities with populations of one hundred thousand or more . The results of the investigations are as follows ; (1) The city planuing area is 25 percent of Japan, and increases gradually in area. The area is wider in the prefectures within the Pacific Coastal Belt than others. Thirty nine prefectures which have less than six hundred peoples per square kilometere, have high correlation with gross population, DID (Densely Inhabited District) population, DID area of them. Thus, C.P. A. increased as population increased in these prefectures. On the other hand, C. P. A. didn't increase in other prefectures (for example Tokyo, Kanagawa and Osaka), although populatlon of them increased. Some prefectures have high rate increase of the area from 1975 to 84, which is 6. I percent in national level. (2) U. P. A. area which is 14.5 percent of the city planning area, has extremely high correlation with DID area in all prefectures. Thus, in general, U. P. A. has 1.2 times of DID in area. (3) U. C.A. which is 40. I percent of the city planning area, has high correlation with gross population increase of population, DID population and DID area in 39 prefectures. Peripherai prefectures of the metropolitan region have wide U. C. A. On the other hand, Tokyo. Kanagawa and Osaka have extremely small U. C.A. area in proportion to gross population. The area has 2.7 times of U. P. A. in area. (4) Unzoned city planning area, both with special use district and except of it, which is 45.4 percent of the city planning area, has not high correlation with any variables. In the Pacific Coastal Belt, many cities under one hundred populations (the criteria of zoning) have U. P. A. and U. C. A. , due to the regional city plauning area with adjoirring cities. (5) From the relatlonship between U. P. A. , U. C. A. and unzoned city planning area, it is established four groups of prefectures. These groups correspond to the degree of urbanization of their prefectures in general. A. Tokyo, Kanagawa and Osaka, which are the center of two metropohtan regions. In the city plauning area of them. U. P. A. is 40 percent or more, and have few unzoned city planning area. B. The 5 prefectures in the metropolitan regions without group A, have few unzoned city planning area like group A, but U.P. A. is less than 40 percent. C. The 12 prefectures in the Pacific Coastal Belt, have unzoned city planning area more than 50 percent. D. Others, which includes 27 prefectures, have few U.P. A. and U. C.A..