IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/lauspo/v147y2024ics0264837724003053.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A sacrifice for the greater good? On the main drivers of excessive land take and land use change in Hungary

Author

Listed:
  • Csomós, György
  • Szalai, Ádám
  • Farkas, Jenő Zsolt

Abstract

Despite continuous population decline or stagnation, many Central and Eastern European cities experience urban sprawl and expansion, accompanied by excessive land take and land use change. This paper investigates recent trends in land take and land use change in Hungarian cities, aiming to identify the drivers of these processes. The study utilizes the Urban Atlas (UA) databases from 2006 and 2018 to analyze land use change in selected Hungarian cities, employing QGIS software to compile the database and MS Excel to conduct the statistical analysis. A linear trajectory model is employed to project land use change by 2026, based on 2006–2018 UA data. Additionally, via the in-depth analysis of Debrecen, the study highlights the recent acceleration of land use change to compare the projected trend with the forecasted one. Local climate strategies focus on addressing environmental concerns, including changes in land use at the city level. Therefore, this study reviews the relevant documents associated with each city to assess its commitment to reducing land take. The results indicate that despite its declining population, Hungary has seen a significant expansion in artificial surfaces, primarily due to industrialization and population policies introduced by the central government, which is likely to continue in the coming years. Unfortunately, local climate strategies have been insufficient in preventing cities from experiencing urban sprawl and expansion and preserving local ecosystem services. This underscores the inability of municipalities to defend local interests against central government directives. The findings of this study indicate that the current central policies are the main drivers of land take and urban sprawl and expansion. Prioritizing the compact city model and brownfield developments could effectively mitigate these issues. Finally, the paper advocates that complete jurisdiction over land use decisions be restored to local governments, enabling them to reject investments that may jeopardize local environmental goals.

Suggested Citation

  • Csomós, György & Szalai, Ádám & Farkas, Jenő Zsolt, 2024. "A sacrifice for the greater good? On the main drivers of excessive land take and land use change in Hungary," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 147(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:lauspo:v:147:y:2024:i:c:s0264837724003053
    DOI: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2024.107352
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264837724003053
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.landusepol.2024.107352?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hudecová, Ľubica & Kyseľ, Peter, 2023. "Legislative protection of agricultural land," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    2. Maksymilian Solarski & Robert Krzysztofik, 2021. "Is the Naturalization of the Townscape a Condition of De-Industrialization? An Example of Bytom in Southern Poland," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(8), pages 1-20, August.
    3. Marc Helbling & Daniel Meierrieks, 2023. "Global warming and urbanization," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 36(3), pages 1187-1223, July.
    4. Alexandra Sandu, 2024. "The post-socialist cities from Central and Eastern Europe: Between spatial growth and demographic decline," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 61(5), pages 821-837, April.
    5. Sylvia Szabo, 2016. "Urbanisation and Food Insecurity Risks: Assessing the Role of Human Development," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 44(1), pages 28-48, January.
    6. Hagen Kruse & Emmanuel Mensah & Kunal Sen & Gaaitzen Vries, 2023. "A Manufacturing (Re)Naissance? Industrialization in the Developing World," IMF Economic Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Monetary Fund, vol. 71(2), pages 439-473, June.
    7. Boyu Feng & Ying Zhang & Robin Bourke, 2021. "Urbanization impacts on flood risks based on urban growth data and coupled flood models," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 106(1), pages 613-627, March.
    8. Guangdong Li & Chuanglin Fang & Yingjie Li & Zhenbo Wang & Siao Sun & Sanwei He & Wei Qi & Chao Bao & Haitao Ma & Yupeng Fan & Yuxue Feng & Xiaoping Liu, 2022. "Global impacts of future urban expansion on terrestrial vertebrate diversity," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-12, December.
    9. Decoville, Antoine & Feltgen, Valérie, 2023. "Clarifying the EU objective of no net land take: A necessity to avoid the cure being worse than the disease," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    10. Aron Buzogány & Benedetta Cotta, 2022. "Post-accession backsliding and European Union environmental policies," Post-Communist Economies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 34(5), pages 647-665, July.
    11. Imre Lengyel & Zsofia Vas & Izabella Szakalne Kano & Balazs Lengyel, 2017. "Spatial differences of reindustrialization in a post-socialist economy: manufacturing in the Hungarian counties," European Planning Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 25(8), pages 1416-1434, August.
    12. Cegielska, Katarzyna & Noszczyk, Tomasz & Kukulska, Anita & Szylar, Marta & Hernik, Józef & Dixon-Gough, Robert & Jombach, Sándor & Valánszki, István & Filepné Kovács, Krisztina, 2018. "Land use and land cover changes in post-socialist countries: Some observations from Hungary and Poland," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 1-18.
    13. Debela, Diriba Dadi & Stellmacher, Till & Azadi, Hossein & Kelboro, Girma & Lebailly, Philippe & Ghorbani, Mehdi, 2020. "The Impact of Industrial Investments on Land Use and Smallholder Farmers’ Livelihoods in Ethiopia," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    14. Kurowska, Krystyna & Kryszk, Hubert & Marks-Bielska, Renata & Mika, Monika & Leń, Przemysław, 2020. "Conversion of agricultural and forest land to other purposes in the context of land protection: Evidence from Polish experience," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    15. Szalavetz, Andrea, 2022. "Transition to electric vehicles in Hungary: A devastating crisis or business as usual?," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    16. Stankovics, Petra & Montanarella, Luca & Kassai, Piroska & Tóth, Gergely & Tóth, Zoltán, 2020. "The interrelations of land ownership, soil protection and privileges of capital in the aspect of land take," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    17. Niklas Harring & Sverker C. Jagers & Simon Matti, 2019. "The significance of political culture, economic context and instrument type for climate policy support: a cross-national study," Climate Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(5), pages 636-650, May.
    18. Alcantara, Camilo & Kuemmerle, Tobias & Baumann, Matthias & Bragina, Eugenia V & Griffiths, Patrick & Hostert, Patrick & Knorn, Jan & Müller, Daniel & Prishchepov, Alexander V & Schierhorn, Florian & , 2013. "Mapping the extent of abandoned farmland in Central and Eastern Europe using MODIS time series satellite data," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 8(3), pages 1-9.
    19. Agnieszka Wnęk & Dawid Kudas & Premysl Stych, 2021. "National Level Land-Use Changes in Functional Urban Areas in Poland, Slovakia, and Czechia," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(1), pages 1-16, January.
    20. György Csomós, 2012. "Regions and regional centres in Hungary: The critical interdependence of public administration and regional development," Society and Economy, Akadémiai Kiadó, Hungary, vol. 34(4), pages 599-618, December.
    21. Piotr Michoń, 2021. "Deservingness for "Family 500 +" Benefit in Poland: Qualitative Study of Internet Debates," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 157(1), pages 203-223, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Erica Maria Lovello & Donatella Valente & Irene Petrosillo, 2025. "Mitigating Land Degradation Through Sustainable Urban Landscapes Planning," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-18, January.
    2. Zhenyu Li & Aibo Jin & Weijie Zhuang & Hui Li, 2025. "Human–Nature Relationships in Country Parks at the Urban–Rural Fringe: A Case Study of the Huitian Region, Beijing," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-24, May.
    3. Bence Szabó & Tamás Kovalcsik & Zoltán Kovács, 2025. "Regeneration of Military Brownfield Sites: A Possible Tool for Mitigating Urban Sprawl?," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-25, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Edita, Abalikstiene & Dalia, Perkumiene, 2022. "Challenges and problems of agricultural land use changes in Lithuania according to territorial planning documents: Case of Vilnius district municipality," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 117(C).
    2. Iváncsics, Vera & Filepné Kovács, Krisztina, 2021. "Analyses of new artificial surfaces in the catchment area of 12 Hungarian middle-sized towns between 1990 and 2018," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    3. Nausheen Masood & Alessio Russo, 2023. "Community Perception of Brownfield Regeneration through Urban Rewilding," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(4), pages 1-15, February.
    4. Chong Jiang & Wei Song, 2021. "Degree of Abandoned Cropland and Socioeconomic Impact Factors in China: Multi-Level Analysis Model Based on the Farmer and District/County Levels," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(1), pages 1-25, December.
    5. Linghua Qiu & Junhao He & Chao Yue & Philippe Ciais & Chunmiao Zheng, 2024. "Substantial terrestrial carbon emissions from global expansion of impervious surface area," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 15(1), pages 1-13, December.
    6. Kanó Izabella Szakálné & Vas Zsófia & Lengyel Imre & Sávai Marianna & Vida György, 2025. "Spatial Disparities in Economic Structural Change in Central and Eastern Europe During Integration," Intereconomics: Review of European Economic Policy, Sciendo, vol. 60(2), pages 126-134.
    7. Sonu Thaivalappil Sukumaran & Stephen J. Birkinshaw, 2024. "Investigating the Impact of Recent and Future Urbanization on Flooding in an Indian River Catchment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(13), pages 1-22, July.
    8. Gean Carlos Gonzaga da Silva & Priscila Celebrini de Oliveira Campos & Marcelo de Miranda Reis & Igor Paz, 2023. "Spatiotemporal Land Use and Land Cover Changes and Associated Runoff Impact in Itaperuna, Brazil," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(1), pages 1-19, December.
    9. Lohwasser, Johannes & Bolognesi, Thomas & Schaffer, Axel, 2025. "Impacts of population, affluence and urbanization on local air pollution and land transformation – A regional STIRPAT analysis for German districts," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 227(C).
    10. Andi Syah Putra & Guangji Tong & Didit Okta Pribadi, 2020. "Spatial Analysis of Socio-Economic Driving Factors of Food Expenditure Variation between Provinces in Indonesia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-18, February.
    11. Nerajda Feruni & Eglantina Hysa & Mirela Panait & Irina Gabriela Rădulescu & Alina Brezoi, 2020. "The Impact of Corruption, Economic Freedom and Urbanization on Economic Development: Western Balkans versus EU-27," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-22, November.
    12. Justyna Wójcik-Leń & Przemysław Leń, 2021. "Evaluation of the Symmetry of Statistical Methods Applied for the Identification of Agricultural Areas," Land, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-13, June.
    13. Tong Xu & Zhiqiang Xie & Fei Zhao & Yimin Li & Shouquan Yang & Yangbin Zhang & Siqiao Yin & Shi Chen & Xuan Li & Sidong Zhao & Zhiqun Hou, 2022. "Permeability control and flood risk assessment of urban underlying surface: a case study of Runcheng south area, Kunming," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 111(1), pages 661-686, March.
    14. Corpus, John Paul & Cassimon, Danny, 2025. "Effects of external capital inflows on industrialization in developing countries: evidence from ASEAN-4 economies," IOB Working Papers 2025.05, Universiteit Antwerpen, Institute of Development Policy (IOB).
    15. Furgała-Selezniow, Grażyna & Jankun-Woźnicka, Małgorzata & Mika, Mirosław, 2020. "Lake regions under human pressure in the context of socio-economic transition in Central-Eastern Europe: The case study of Olsztyn Lakeland, Poland," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 90(C).
    16. Ikudayisi, Adesola & Okoruwa, Victor O., 2021. "Urban Differential Effects on Food Demand in Nigeria," 2021 Conference, August 17-31, 2021, Virtual 315142, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    17. Martina Giorio & Rossana Paparella, 2023. "Climate Mitigation Strategies: The Use of Cool Pavements," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-26, May.
    18. Huaibin Wei & Liyuan Zhang & Jing Liu, 2022. "Hydrodynamic Modelling and Flood Risk Analysis of Urban Catchments under Multiple Scenarios: A Case Study of Dongfeng Canal District, Zhengzhou," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(22), pages 1-18, November.
    19. Vera, Ivan & Wicke, Birka & Lamers, Patrick & Cowie, Annette & Repo, Anna & Heukels, Bas & Zumpf, Colleen & Styles, David & Parish, Esther & Cherubini, Francesco & Berndes, Göran & Jager, Henriette & , 2022. "Land use for bioenergy: Synergies and trade-offs between sustainable development goals," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    20. Xu, Dingde & Deng, Xin & Huang, Kai & Liu, Yi & Yong, Zhuolin & Liu, Shaoquan, 2019. "Relationships between labor migration and cropland abandonment in rural China from the perspective of village types," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:lauspo:v:147:y:2024:i:c:s0264837724003053. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Joice Jiang (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/land-use-policy .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.