The role of urban planning in China's sustainable development

摘要

Sustainable development has become China's national development strategy since 1994. As the 2003 figures suggested, the 5,658 'development zones' provide a total of 35,000 square kilometres of investment areas, which is greater than the total planned built-up areas within existing cities. It is, therefore, not surprising to find that 43 per cent of these investment areas are left vacant (Zou, 2004, 4). These figures reveal just how difficult it is to pursue sustainable urban development in the transitional economy of China.