The Ministry of Land and Resources says starting next year, developers who want to build on land that could otherwise be used for farming must submit the same amount of land back to local governments. Only key national projects are exempt from the new regulation.

This means that apart from the South-North Water Transfer Project and the West-East Gas Transmission Project, all other building projects must first find the same amount of land as replacement. Developers who are unable to do this will have to pay a fee to the local governments. The goal is to ensure farmland is not lost to developers.

(CCTV September 11, 2008)