Skyscrapers have been banned in China, and here's why

China's Shanghai Tower is the second tallest building in the world at 632m-height, and the tallest in China. It is the third building in the world to exceed 600m in height. 

In Statista's 2018 ranking of global cities based on the number of skyscrapers, five out of the ten cities that made the list were Chinese cities. Hong Kong topped the list with 317 skyscrapers, while New York City came in second with 257. A CNN report added more insight to these numbers.

Currently, in the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat's (CTBUH) ranking of tallest cities by 300m+ buildings, out of the first ten cities, China now accounts for six. 

Similarly, in the CTBUH's ranking of tallest cities by 150m+ buildings, again, China accounts for six out of the first ten cities listed.

Clearly, China is a global leader in the development and construction of tall buildings. And they have been so for a while now. 

The urban population in China has had a steady and fast growth trend since the year 1977. It was 165.29 million then, but now in 2021, a whopping 842.93 million people make up China's urban population (the highest in the world, and almost double that of India), according to World Bank data. 

This, coupled with China's unprecedented economic boom since the mid 90s, are two factors which have fueled China's rise and dominance in the tall building index.

In fact, among the first ten tallest cities by 150m+ buildings, China now boasts of over 300% more tall buildings than the United States which used to dominate that sphere in the past—with 1294 buildings, compared to 420 in the USA. Simply put, they have built more skyscrapers within the last 30 years than the US has built since the entire 20th century till date.

For 300m+ tall buildings, China's top six tallest cities have built 43, compared to only 21 that have been done in the US cities of New York and Chicago. 

But, China now seems to be pumping the brakes on tall buildings development. 

The Chinese government has put a ban on further construction of 300m+ tall buildings within their country. In April 2020, China's Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued a notice which introduced measures that "further strengthen the management of urban and architectural features", according to The B1M. 

The policy document restricts the blind planning and construction of super high-rise skyscrapers, and states that new buildings over 500-meters in height are not allowed to be built. According to CNN, "Of the 10 completed buildings measuring above 500 meters around the world, half are found in mainland China. Among them are the planet's second-tallest skyscraper, the twisting Shanghai Tower at 632 meters (2,073 feet) tall, and Shenzhen's Ping An Finance Center, which is 599 meters (1,965 feet) from base to tip."

The notice by the Chinese Ministry also heavily restricts the construction of any buildings over 250m in height, except where absolutely necessary, and where permission is granted, such buildings will be subject to intense reviews by multiple government agencies related to emergency response activities, earthquake, and energy-saving authorities, according to The B1M.

Furthermore, the policy now requires local governments to tighten the approval process for towers taller than 100m, and bans plagiarized or copy-cat architecture (a lot of the most famous building designs in the world have been replicated across China over the past years).

While this may have brought their record-breaking skyscraper boom to an end, China is still expected to continue to feature strongly on the world's tallest buildings' list, thanks to the already-existing commanding lead the country has, and more construction of 150m+ tall buildings (even at a pace which may now be slower).

Sources: The B1M, World Bank, CTBUH, CNN