Chapter 1 - Preamble

Section 1 - Social & Economic Dimensions

Section 2 - Conservation and Management of Resources
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22

Section 3 - Strengthening the Role of Major Groups

Section 4 - Means of Implementation

Complete text of Agenda 21: Chapter 10
Chapter 10: Managing Land Sustainably

Increasing human demand for land and its natural resources is creating competition and conflicts. If we are going to meet human requirements in a sustainable manner, we must resolve these conflicts, and find more effective and efficient ways of using land and its natural resources.

The objective is to see that land is used in ways that provide the greatest sustainable benefits. The way to minimize conflicts and make the most efficient trade-offs and appropriate choices is to link social and economic development with environmental protection and enhancement. We also have to account for protected areas, private property rights, the rights of indigenous people and other local communities.

As land use choices arise, there are opportunities to support traditional patterns of sustainable land management, and protect lands to conserve biological diversity and other ecological benefits.

Governments should take into account environmental, social, population and economic issues, then develop laws, regulations and economic incentives to encourage sustainable use and management of land resources. They should:

• Develop policies that take into account the land resource base, population changes and the interests of local people.
• Improve and enforce laws and regulations to support the sustainable use of land, and restrict the transfer of productive arable land to other uses.
• Use techniques such as landscape ecological planning that focus on an ecosystem or a watershed, and encourage sustainable livelihoods.
• Include appropriate traditional and indigenous land use practices, such as pastoralism, traditional land reserves and terraced agriculture in land management.
• Encourage the active participation in decision-making of those affected groups that have often been excluded, such as women, youth, indigenous people and other local communities.
• Test ways of putting the value of land and ecosystems into national reports on economic performance, such as the gross national product (GNP).
• Ensure that institutions that deal with land and natural resources integrate environmental, social and economic issues into their planning.

The following are target dates:

• Develop policies for sustainable land management, and make it easier for all people affected by land planning to participate in decisions by 1996.
• Improve ways of coordinating land planning by 1998.
• Have stronger land planning and management systems by 2000.

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