Land Use Pattern Change in the Process of Rural Urbanization in Jinjiang City of Fujian Province

Jinjiang Modelis one of the typical cases of rural urbanization in China. Based on the two land-use maps interpreted from TM images in 1985 and in 2000, land survey data of 1990 and 1995 to 2001, as well as statistics of society and economy, the mechanism of rural urbanization and the characteristics of land use pattern under the rural urbanization in Jinjiang City are analyzed. The development of rural enterprises and translating of rural surplus labor have driven the rural urbanization. The characteristics of land use pattern in Jinjiang City are as the following: 1) The land use change matrix from 1985 to 2000 shows that the structure has changed obviously, and its patterns have become multiform, and the diversity index of land use has changed from (0.803 7) to (1.071 7;) 2) Research on the basis of the Law of Allometric Growth of City, the built up areas are overspreading rapidly and its growth rate is over the growth rate of population relatively. Therefore, Jinjiang City is a type of Positive Allometric Growth; 3) The average size and isolation index of patch of towns in Jinjiang City in 2000 shows the built up areas distribute proportionately; 4) The benefits of land use have improved. The output of industry land has improved rapidly in the recent years, but compared with big cities in the world or inland, the pattern of industry development in Jinjiang is extensive management that economic increase depends on land area expanding mostly. To the farmland, with the developing of land scale management and forming of comprehensive agriculture system, thought the quantity of cultivated land has reduced rapidly, the nutrition content of food output has increased obviously from 1991 to 2001.In order to realize sustainable land use, it is necessary to plan the city system, promote the development of center city and major towns; agglomerate enterprises into industrial parks; and to improve rural land circulation to increase scale benefit of land use.