are included and growth cannot sprawl into or across the green belts. In addition a majority of new towns are surrounded by country parks. France In France, Rennes decided in the 1960s to maintain a green belt after its ring road. This green belt is named Ceinture verte. New Zealand Over the past two decades, greater Auckland has been subject to a process of growth management facilitated through various strategic and legislative documents. An overarching objective has been to manage the growth of Auckland in a higher density, centres-based manner consistent with the Auckland Regional Growth Strategy. Effect is given to this strategy through a series of layers of control including the Local Government Amendment (Auckland) Act, the Regional Policy Statement and then via District Plans. A key outcome of this process was the establishment of a metropolitan urban limit (MUL) or urban fence that dictated the nature and extent of urban activities that could occur within the MUL and hence also dictated the relative values of land within the MUL. Romania Containment of built-up development is defined through a General Zoning Plan in the case of both urban and rural municipalities. The plan defines the 'intravilan' as the boundary within which built-up development is allowed. Oradea municipality provides tools to verify if land parcels are located in intravilan or not. South Africa An integrated development plan is required in terms of Chapter 5 of the national Municipal Systems Act No 32 of 2000 for all local authorities in South Africa. This plan would include a spatial development framework plan as one of its components, which would require larger metropolitan areas to indicate an urban edge beyond which urban-type development would be largely restricted or forbidden. The concept was introduced in the 1970s by the Natal Town and Regional Planning Commission of the Province of Natal (now known as KwaZulu-Natal) in the regional guide plans for Durban and Pietermaritzburg. The concept was at that stage termed an "urban fence". United Kingdom Controls to constrain the area of urban development existed in London as early as the 16th century. In the middle of the 20th century the countryside abutting the London conurbation was protected by the Metropolitan Green Belt. Further green belts were then created around other urban areas in the United Kingdom. United States The U.S. states of Oregon, Washington and Tennessee require cities and counties to establish urban/county growth