Security of land resources demand for relocated land-losing farmers in Western China's hydroelectric development: A case study in Yunnan Province

Yunnan Province is rich in hydroelectric resources in Western China, the hydroelectric industry is one of the five mainstays of Yunnan's economy. For transforming these resources into economic benefits, a total of 87 large and medium-sized hydraulic power stations will be built in Yunnan during the next two decades. There are large amounts of land resources to be used and more than 520000 land-losing farmers need to be relocated. Land is the lifeblood of farmers. To revitalize the relocated farmers, it is essential to provide them with agricultural-oriented new lands, the availability of adequate and quality land resources in the new locations serves as the basis and precondition of the farmer relocation. Based on the analysis, of the lessons from the farmer relocation during the construction of the Manwan hydraulic power station, the authors of this paper would advance the countermeasures of land resource security for relocating land-losing farmers in hydroelectric development and try to provide the reference for reasonable farmer relocation caused by the future hydraulic power stations construction. It is important for the healthy and orderly hydroelectric development and the harmonious economic construction in Yunnan, as well as it provides a reference for other parts of the country or for the other similar situations.