Farmers lack the right to sell their land, and the supply of land for residential development near urban areas is tightly controlled.

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The fourth site is for eight residential pitches on green belt land on the edge of urban development at Throop Road, between Woodbury Avenue and an area of allotments.

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Establishment of industrial-development zones, urban expansion and road building are all shrinking agricultural land.

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Lowenstein also says that most farmers plant up to three new trees for each one that is cut down and vast tracks of land set aside for trees mean thousands of acres are saved from urban development.

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This problem of landless peasants is likely to grow as more land is set aside for urban and industrial development.

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The land in dispute here, near the capital city of Guangxi, was swallowed up for urban development under the principle of eminent domain.

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Reason: Their land had been sold for urban development but they were being denied compensation because they had moved out of the village after they got married.

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