Abstract:
At present there are five fundamental laws whose essence deals with designating areas of land use, conservation and forest use, controlling agricultural land and establishing settlements. These laws are as follows: Game and Resevation and Protection Act B.E. 2503 National Park Act B.E. 2504. National Forest Reserves Act B.E. 2507, Land Development Act B.E. 2526 and City and Town Planning Act B.E. 2518. These laws, however, were not primarily enacted for the purpose of designating systematic land use in accordance with national land use planning. They were to be used as tools for land use planning at a specific time and several government agencies have been authorized to enforce the laws. The laws concerning administration of state land use, however, are not sufficiently clear. Thus, problems arise in the Application of these laws in the attempt to serve national land use policy. Such problems occur as a result of disunity in national land use planning and a deficiency in Application of the laws for controlling land use. Government agencies, acting independently in carrying out their duties which are authorized by each law, disregard other laws which may also be of use. It is therefore suggested that law enforcement officials understand the principle of administrative unity under which each government agency is a unit in the state administrative structure and it has to act accordingly. Government agencies may be established, changed or abolished depending on the state's interests. In the future Thailand should enact national land-use planning laws which clearly designate the policy and the criteria for effectively using land resources for economic and social development and the stability of the country