Cross-border development in Europe and Asia

Three topics are explored in this article: the characteristics of cross-border development, a comparison between Eastern European and Asian border regions, and the policy aspects of cross-border developments. This study draws its case studies from cross-border developments that have emerged in former socialist regimes. While there are similarities, there are also significant differences in the primary determinants that have generated and sustained the developments. The last section concludes with a typology of cross-border development to establish a framework for future studies. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Cross-border regional enlargement in Øresund

Cross-border regional enlargement entails complex dynamics. The integration process at the maritime border between Sweden and Denmark illustrates this. Physical infrastructure has been improved by national governments and intranational and supranational institutions have added to the instrumentation as a precondition for social interaction and integration. The outcome of these efforts is here tested under a hypothesis that in spite of this forceful cocktail of policy instruments, the cross-border regionalization process is at best a long-run phenomenon in the ?resund Region. The point of departure is the stepwise procedure for the formation of binational cities suggested in Ehlers (2001, GeoJournal 54: 21–32). Social interaction is identified as the pivotal factor in the present state of integration of the ?resund Region using Bucken-Knapp (2001, GeoJournal 54: 51–60). A benchmarking method is proposed for testing social interaction in the labour market, where cross-border dynamics are benchmarked against national dynamics. The cross-border regional enlargement process is still in its very infancy and a continued focus on policies to promote cross-border social interaction is required. The present governance without government approach to cross-border cooperation in the ?resund Region is in that respect challenged by a reform of the Danish geo-administrative system.     

Planning regional development: Promoting small settlements in a trans-frontier situation

Under communism local authorities tended to be largely passive bystanders in a regional development process which emerged through the central planning process through the spatial allocations of investment by government ministries. Attention was given to physical planning, but comparatively little material entered the public domain on location policy and spatial priorities generally, apart from the objective of greater equality between regions and a commitment to backward areas generally. Now that much investment is down to private enterprise and government has become more decentralised and accountable, there is a need for concepts and strategies to coordinate public sector investment and provide guidelines for the evaluation of private development proposals. At the same time, there is an open competition for investment which requires communities to promote themselves in terms of their identity and development potential. This paper offers an overview by taking two countries - Hungary and Romania - where progress can be compared and where the focus can be placed on a common frontier which is diverting attention from conventional regional planning to cross-border cooperation. In both contexts however, attention is given to the ways in which planning can divert investment away from the main centres to the peripheral areas, including action to strengthen the role of small towns and also to improve cohesion among functionally-related groups of settlements and communes. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Geochemical characteristics of the slip zones of a landslide in granitic saprolite,Hong Kong: implications for their development and microenvironments

Geochemical investigations of the slip zones of a landslide in granitic saprolite revealed that they have signatures distinct from their host materials. These distinctions include stronger Si depletion, higher Al enrichment, greater LOI, significant fixations of Mn, Ba and Ce, stronger negative Eu anomalies, and greater accumulations of other rare earth elements (REE). Altogether, these geochemical characteristics indicate that: (a) the slip zones have greater abundance of clays, consistent with field and microscopic observations; (b) concentration of clay size particles within the slip zones may have been from downward leaching and deposition, and lateral transportation of Al-Si solutions and colloids through pores and fractures within the saprolite; and (c) there were prevailing oxidation and poor drainage, and occasional reduction conditions within the slip zones. It was concluded that geochemical analyses could be effective in gathering clues for understanding the development and nature of slip zones in landslide investigations.     

Migration, remittances and regional development in Southern Morocco

Although Morocco has evolved into one of the world’s leading emigration countries, the systematic study of the developmental impact of migration in migrant-sending regions in Morocco and the Maghreb has been relatively neglected after a temporary surge of pessimistic studies in the 1970s. Empirical work from this region has therefore been largely absent from the lively theoretical debate on migration and development. This study attempts to re-establish this link through qualitative research and a survey among 507 non-migrant, internal and international migrant households in the Moroccan Todgha oasis. The study shows that international migration and remittances have significantly contributed to economic development, improved standards of living and enabled the partial emancipation of subaltern ethnic groups. International migrant households invest more than others in housing, agriculture and other enterprises. Risk spreading and income stabilisation rather than increasing incomes seem to be the prime rationale behind internal migration, although internal migration tends to facilitate the education and international migration of younger household members. Remittance expenditure and investments have stimulated the diversifying and urbanising regional economy and have triggered a counter-flow of “reverse” internal migration. However, several structural constraints prevent the high development potential of migration from being fully realised.     

香港近海第四纪研究──(香港)地区与全球对比表

通过对WB7钻孔的研究及过去资料的分析,香港近海第四纪地层层序至少可以识别出10个海相与陆相交替的沉积序列。WB7钻孔位于香港西薄寮海峡,对该钻孔进行了连续取样。本文列出了两张地区性与全球沉积序列对比表,最早的海相沉积和陆相沉积年龄分别早于倒数第4次间冰期和倒数第5次冰期,地层对比表中把香港的第四纪地层与磁性地层、氧同位素地层、超微体化石组合及澳大利亚南部滨岸沙丘序列,新几内亚Huon半岛和印度尼西亚Sumba半岛的海岸阶地,美国大西洋海岸平原氧同位素序列,中国黄土阶段及海侵,东南亚的海岸和近海沉积进行了初步的对比。     

Regional planning's last hurrah: the political economy of the Tumen River regional development plan

This paper describes a regional development plan in North East Asia, in the context of regional planning theory and various geo-political changes which have occurred in the region. Known as the Tumen Regional Development Project, the area encompasses parts of North Korea, China, and Russia. On the one hand, the geography, the presence of raw material, and social factors suggest that there may be unique opportunities to develop the region. At the same time, there is increased competition for capital and resources from other regions in the world. Regionalism, therefore, needs to be seen in a global context. After critiquing the plan from the perspective of contemporary regional planning theory, a call for a ‘new paradigm’ of development is issued, one that considers, for example non-traditional industries such as tourism and emphasizes the management of growth as well as its promotion. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Technopoles, high-tech industries and regional development: A critical review

Technologies have played an important role in the restructuring of the productive system in the last quarter of the 20th century. The article looks at the macroeconomic context and at the transformation of the industrial organization. It then defines the concept of technopole. The author traces the principal elements of the different attempts of theorization with a critical angle, shows the logic of contemporary industry localisation, as well as the role of technopoles in regional development. Regional and industrial policy are then seen as the basis of the process of industrialization and of the technological transfer.     

Case studies of seasonal rainfall forecasts for Hong Kong and its vicinity using a regional climate model

Seasonal climate forecasts are one of the most promising tools for providing early warnings for natural hazards such as floods and droughts. Using two case studies, this paper documents the skill of a regional climate model in the seasonal forecasting of below normal rainfall in southern China during the rainy seasons of July–August–September 2003 and April–May–June 2004. The regional model is based on the Regional Spectral Model of the National Centers for Environmental Prediction of the United States. It is the first time that the model has been applied to a region dominated by the East Asian Monsoon. The article shows that the regional climate model, when being forced by reasonably good forecasts from a global model, can generate useful seasonal rainfall forecasts for the region, where it is dominated by the East Asia monsoon. The spatial details of the dry conditions obtained from the regional climate model forecast are also found to be comparable with the observed distribution.     

Burial of organic carbon and carbonate on inner shelf of the northern South China Sea during the postglacial period

Two vibrocores from the inner shelf off Hong Kong are investigated to compare the contents of organic and inorganic carbon in postglacial sediments. The compositions of organic elements and carbonate are highly variable in the core sediments, but overall drop within the compositional ranges of modern seabed sediments in the Zhujiang estuarine and its shelf area. The Holocene sediments in the inner shelf have never been subject to subaerial exposure and the organic matter and carbonate can be preserved well. The burial of carbon in river-dominated shelf environments is highly dependent on the river flux with time. Nevertheless, it is difficult to establish a simple relationship between carbon burial in sediments in relation to climatic changes of basin-wide scale due to complex controls of production, transport and deposition of organic matter and carbonate. Our study suggests that the organic carbon to nitrogen ratio can not reliably identify the sources of depositional organic matters because of selective decomposition of organic matter components during humification and sedimentation. Caution is therefore needed in using organic elemental compositions as indicators of organic matter sources and paleoenvironmental changes in the East Asian continental shelves where intense river-sea interaction and variable carbon flux in geologic record occur.     

华南花岗岩残积土红土化程度的地带性与香港该类土不发育的原因

从华南花岗岩残积土红土化程度的地域变化规律出发 ,通过香港与华南沿海各地花岗岩残积土的化学成分及红土化指标对比 ,作者发现香港花岗岩残积土无论厚度、类型 ,还是红土化程度都具有与所处气候环境不协调的特点。文章进一步讨论了香港花岗岩残积土不发育的原因和对工程性质的影响.     

香港九龙复活破火山的鉴别及其地质意义

香港主城区座落在香港岛一九龙地区的九龙花岗岩体上,该花岗岩体平面形态呈直径约11km的圆形,周边火山岩群山环绕,构成特殊的圆形盆地地貌,以往曾有人认为是陨石坑。笔者根据前人地质资料分析并经实地考察,认为该地貌形态实为大致以尖沙咀为中心的一个大型晚中生代复活破火山机构,九龙花岗岩体为破火口塌陷后侵位的中央侵入体,周围火山地层产状围斜内倾,发育环形断裂（主要为高角度正断层）和放射状断裂,具典型复活破火山特征,可称之为“九龙复活破火山”。     

Regional bias of landslide data in generating susceptibility maps using logistic regression: Case of Hong Kong Island

On the basis of 1,834 landslide data for Hong Kong Island (HKI), landslide susceptibility maps were generated using logistic regression and GIS. Regional bias of the landslide inventory is examined by dividing the whole HKI into a southern and a northern region, separated by an east-west trending water divide. It was found that the susceptibility map of southern HKI generated by using the southern data differs significantly from that generated by using northern data, and similar conclusion can be drawn for the northern HKI. Therefore, a susceptibility map of HKI was established based on regional data analysis, and it was found to reflect closely the spatial distributions of historical landslides. Elevation appears to be the most dominant factor in controlling landslide occurrence, and this probably reflects that human developments are concentrated at certain elevations on the island. Classification plot, goodness of fit, and occurrence ratio were used to examine the reliability of the proposed susceptibility map. The size of landslide susceptible zones varies depending on the data sets used, thus this demonstrates that the historical landslide data may be biased and affected by human activities and geological settings on a regional basis. Therefore, indiscriminate use of regional-biased data should be avoided.     

Double transformation at the eastern border of the EU: the case of the Euroregion pro Europa Viadrina

One of the major means to foster European integration is the establishment of border spanning regions (‘Euroregions’). This is particularly important on the Eastern borders of the EU, e.g. in Eastern Germany. There, however, a double transformation to post-socialist society is taking place, both inside and outside the EU. Tensions arise between objectives on local and higher political levels, intensified by totally different economic structures and access to EU funds on both sides of the border. This is particularly true for the case of the emerging Euroregion Viadrina. Problems in preserving old industrialised localities in East Germany (e.g. steel) and attempts to resurrect the urban fair place Frankfurt/Oder, clash with transition in agriculture and consumer industries and with new concepts in tourism development and environmental protection in the Polish border zone. In region building, political, economic and ideological goals compete with each other. Local initiatives and higher political governance may both support and hamper each other. The same holds true for the interdependence of cultural integration and economic development. The paper concludes that regional economic development can only be expected if, via the building of the Euroregion, the interplay of these factors leads to compromise and harmonization between the different parties involved. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

MANAGING PLANET EARTH TO MAKE FUTURE DEVELOPMENT MORE SUSTAINABLE： CLIMATE CHANGE AND HONG KONG

Selected recent findings related to climate change in Hong Kong include： (1)The Hong Kong seafloor has yielded a ca0.5-million year record of climate and sealevel changes.(2)Greenhouse gases produced naturally from subaerially exposed continental shelves and oceanic islands were a probable forcing mechanism in triggering the abrupt termination of past ice ages. (3)An analysis of annual mean temperature records has revealed that the urban heat island effect has contributed ca75％ of the warming. (4)Past volcanic eruptions are found to lower Hong Kongs temperature and to cause extremely dry and wet years. (5)No evidence can be found for an increase in frequency and intensity of typhoons based on the instrumental record since the end of the Second World War. (6)The observed rate of sealevel rise in the South China Sea is much slower than the predictions of the IPCC Fourth Assessment.
For the Earths management, population growth and the depletion of nonrenewable resources must be recognized as unsustainable. The human impact on the natural hydrological cycle is an important forcing mechanism in climate change. In order to delay the demise of the human race, management must include curbing population growth and much more waste recycling than at present.     

香港地区边坡防护与治理

自开埠以来香港地区边坡事故一直不断。香港政府多年来积极进行边坡的防护治理,成效显著。讨论了香港地区岩土边坡破坏的主要原因、防治滑坡的工程措施及边坡管理系统。香港的边坡防治经验值得内地借鉴。     

Investment and regional development in Post-Mao China

This paper investigates China's changing investment systems, investment patterns and their impact on regional development. It reveals that the reforms have brought profound changes to Mao's investment system and investment allocation. Investment decentralization has given localities considerable autonomy and incentives in economic development. Budgetary investment has declined dramatically while enterprise funds, bank loans and foreign investment have increased significantly in China. An increasing amount of these new sources of fixed investment have been channeled to more profitable non-state sectors. In terms of regional changes, China's coastal provinces, particularly Guangdong, Jiangsu, and Zhejiang have recorded more rapid investment growth and have much higher per capita investment than many interior provinces. In addition, investment in the coastal provinces relies less on the state and is more profitable than that in the poorer interior. The sectoral and regional unevenness of fixed investment has significantly contributed to the uneven regional development in China. This research also has important theoretical implications, as it shows that regional investment is neither a cumulative causation process nor a convergent process, but influenced greatly by government policy, local states and local conditions, and foreign capital. An analysis of these factors should improve the understanding of investment allocation and regional development, especially for the transition economy in which the control and capacity of the central state has declined, while local and global forces have emerged as equally important forces shaping spatial change.     

Urbanization and sustainable metropolitan development in China: Patterns, problems and prospects*

The path of urbanization in the People's Republic of China is largely shaped by the nation's industrial development strategies. In the first three decades of socialist construction, and especially after the Sino-Soviet rift at the end of the 1950s, the adoption of strategies of self-reliance had led to urban biased patterns of development. The introduction of economic reforms and the open door policy in 1978 paved the way for and facilitated national economic development. Two issues, which feature significantly in the processes of development in China, are assessed. The first is the relationship between economic development and the protection of arable land. The second is the quest for a coordinated hyper-development in both urban and rural areas. This paper concludes by proposing a sustainable metropolitan development strategy that suits the case of China. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

区域水安全战略的研究进展

分析了区域水安全所面临的问题及其挑战,总结了国内外区域水安全战略研究和实践的现状,阐述了研究的发展趋势以及需进一步解决的问题。研究指出:在21世纪,区域社会经济发展与水安全之间的互动影响将更加紧密,运用现代战略思维理论和系统动力学仿真方法,在对区域进行系统动态仿真分析和检验评价的基础上选择科学合理的水安全战略,是一个具有重要现实意义和重大理论价值的研究课题。     

国际河流开发给中国的启示

通过分析亚洲的两河流域、北美洲的圣劳伦斯河、欧洲的多瑙河、非洲的尼罗河和南美洲的亚马逊河等国际河流的开发案例,借鉴成功与失败的开发经验和教训,得出加强合作、整体开发、全流域开放、协调生态环境等一些对我国合理、高效开发利用国际河流水资源的有益启示,并对我国国际河流开发管理提出了"与邻为善,以邻为伴"的建议。