Is there Really Spare Land? A Critique of Estimates of Available Cultivable Land in Developing Countries
@article{Young1999IsTR, title={Is there Really Spare Land? A Critique of Estimates of Available Cultivable Land in Developing Countries}, author={Anthony Young}, journal={Environment, Development and Sustainability}, year={1999}, volume={1}, pages={3-18} }
Five assessments covering less-developed countries have identified a ‘land balance’, available for future cultivation, using the approach of inventory and difference: assessment of the area cultivable, and subtraction of the area presently cultivated. All arrive at a balance of 1600–1900 Mha, about twice the present cultivated area. The supposed existence of this spare land is widely quoted in forecasts of capacity to meet the food requirements for future population increase. It is argued here…
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