Land-Use Control
Land-use control is a relatively new concept. For most of human history, it was assumed that people could do whatever they wished with their own property. However, societies have usually recognized that the way an individual uses private property can sometimes have harmful affects on neighbors.
Land-use planning has reached a new level of sophistication in developed countries over the last century. One of the first restrictions on land use in the United States, for example, was a 1916 New York City law limiting the size of skyscrapers because of the shadows they might cast on adjacent property. Within a decade, the federal government began to act aggressively on land control measures. It passed the Mineral Leasing Act of 1920 in an attempt to control the exploitation of oil, natural gas, phosphate, and potash. It adopted the Standard State Zoning Act of 1922 and the Standard City Planning Enabling Act of 1928 to promote the concept of zoning at state and local levels. Since the 1920s, every state and most cities have adopted zoning laws modeled on these two federal acts.
Often detailed, exhaustive, and complex zoning regulations now control the way land is used in nearly every governmental unit. They specify, for example, whether land can be used for single-dwelling construction, multiple-dwelling construction, farming, industrial (heavy or light) development, commercial use, recreation or some other purpose. Requests to use land for purposes other than that for which it is zoned requires a variance or conditional use permit, a process that is often long, tedious, and confrontational.
Many types of land require special types of zoning. For example, coastal areas are environmentally vulnerable to storms, high tides, flooding, and strong winds. The federal government passed laws in 1972 and 1980, the National Coastal Zone Management Acts, to help states deal with the special problem of protecting coastal areas. Although initially slow to make use of these laws, states are becoming more aggressive about restricting the kinds of construction permitted along seashore areas.
Areas with special scenic, historic, or recreational value have long been protected in the United States. The nation's first national park, Yellowstone National Park, was created in 1872. Not until 44 years later, however, was the National Park Service created to administer Yellowstone and other parks established since 1872. Today, the National Park Service and other governmental agencies are responsible for a wide variety of national areas such as forests, wild and scenic rivers, historic monuments, trails, battlefields, memorials, seashores and lakeshores, parkways, recreational areas, and other areas of special value.
Land-use control does not necessarily restrict usage. Individuals and organizations can be encouraged to use land in certain desirable ways. An enterprise zone, for example, is a specifically designated area in which certain types of business activities are encouraged. The tax rate might be reduced for businesses locating in the area or the government might relax certain regulations there.
Successful land-use control can result in new towns or planned communities, designed and built from the ground up to meet certain pre-determined land-use objectives. One of the most famous examples of a planned community is Brasilia, the capital of Brazil. The site for a new capital—an undeveloped region of the country—was selected and a totally new city was built in the 1950s. The federal government moved to the new city in 1960, and it now has a population of more than 1.5 million.
Bureau of Land Management; Riparian Rights
Resources
Books
Becker, Barbara, Eric D. Kelly, and Frank So. Community Planning: An Introduction to the Comprehensive Plan. Washington, DC: Milldale Press, 2000.
Newton, D. E. Land Use, A–Z. Hillside, NJ: Enslow Press, 1991.
Platt, Rutherford H. Land Use and Society: Geography, Law, and Public Policy. Washington, DC: Island Press, 1996.
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