Research Reports
Vision and Assignment for the Urban Agriculture
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AuthorKim, Taegon
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Publication Date2010.10.01
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Original
The participation of urban residents in agricultural activities is spreading. Some of those activities are exemplified by growing vegetables or flowers in kitchen gardens or homes along with experiencing agriculture in the form of tourism agriculture or working on an educational farm. The joy of farming obtained from repeating such activities increases the understanding on agriculture. Furthermore, the number of cases of such activities develop into direct transactions or exchanges is increasing.
However, urban agriculture has a chronic problem of securing farming land, resulting from the increase of land price. The insecurity in management resulting from the diversion of farmland or farmland lease also remains an universal problem of urban agriculture. The increase of the production cost due to environmental regulations is also a problem of urban agriculture, which restricts the range of agricultural management.
For such reason, it is necessary to promote a sound development of urban agriculture to cope with the increasing agricultural demand of urban residents. The purpose of this study is to propose solutions capable of shaping favorable urban environments by virtue of providing urban residents with various chances of urban activities in consonant with promoting urban agriculture as an industry after identifying the current status of urban agriculture, the expected role of urban residents on agriculture, etc.
The main contents of this study comprise the followings: The first is to define the overall concept of urban agriculture from the spatial and a participating party's point of views in consideration of the current situations, roles, urban residents' expectations on agriculture, value evaluation, overseas cases, etc. The second is to propose a solution against the problems and characteristics which may arise from identifying the current status of kitchen gardens and agriculture, as an industry existing in urban area. The third is an application to the establishment of a vision by means of analyzing the amount that consumers are willing to pay for various functions of urban agriculture along with their intention with respect to urban residents' agriculture as the ground for establishing the vision and identifying the problems in urban agriculture.
The required elements, as the tasks for revitalizing urban agriculture, are as follows: As there are clear constraints in terms of expanding farmland ownership due to the insecurity of management related to farmland and high land price, it is necessary to review the idea of establishing 'agricultural areas' in the urban planning system as areas to be preserved in the long-term basis by securing farmland in urban areas.
In general, consumers may be able to establish a system called 'the agriculture supported by citizens' by means of financial supports including volunteering for agricultural works. The stable transactions of fresh and safe agricultural products via the expansion of direct transactions and exchanges between consumers and producers may become an important means that will make cities and agriculture prosperous at the same time.
In order for urban agriculture to provide urban residents with sufficient services, new roles for the government and urban residents are required. In other words, active participation of consumers on the ground of the perception that 'agricultural facilities are necessary for cities' is perforce. To promote urban agriculture in a more systematic way so as to achieve such goals, it is required for the government to establish 'the Fundamental Law of Urban Agriculture' for the purpose of laying the foundation of supporting urban agriculture or regulations, and the local authorities have to prepare for issuing necessary ordinances to meet the demand of consumers or local circumstances.
Researchers: Kim, Tae-Gon, Park, Moon-Ho and Heo, Joo-Nyung
E-mail address: taegon@krei.re.kr
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