Unapproved and illegal buildings have sprawled into the Northern Piedmont of the Qinling Mountains. The problem of illegal villas has aroused widespread public opinion and concern. The ecological environment of the Qinling Mountains has been seriously affected by the resurgence of illegal villas. This paper introduces the characteristics and distribution of illegal villas, analyzes the hazards caused by illegal villas, and describes control measures for illegal villas and land consolidation and ecological remediation in the Northern Piedmont of the Qinling Mountains. The results show that illegal planning and illegal development, as well as local governments' irregularities, including control, governance, punishment, demolition, and compensation for illegal buildings in the expropriation of premises, have caused the problem of illegal construction of villas in the Northern Piedmont of the Qinling Mountains. Control measures for illegal villas are demolition, land consolidation, and ecological remediation. Policy implications for protection of Qinling Mountains are provided.
Keywords: China; Control; Hazards; Illegal villa; The Northern Piedmont of Qinling Mountains.