The importance of pedological soil survey in land use planning, resource assessment and site investigation

Author(s):  
E. M. Lee ◽  
J. S. Griffiths

AbstractThe ever increasing pressure for infra-structural development in the UK heightens the conflict between the different land use demands placed on an area. This is reflected in the need for planning authorities to assess the relative suitability of potential land uses. Such assessments are important in guiding urban development away from good quality agricultural land. It is manifest that such planning decisions should be made on the basis of a comprehensive review of all relevant factors, and in particular, this includes the pedological soil conditions with their controlling influence on the ability of the land to support different land uses.Past pedological studies have tended to concentrate on the evaluation of land suitability for agricultural uses. However, such studies are also of value when assessing the suitability of other potential uses including, forestry, recreational uses, natural resources or general infrastructure development.In site investigations for infrastructure or resource development pedological studies have a role to play both at the feasibility and detailed investigation stages. During a feasibility study, particularly when used in conjunction with a programme of geotechnical mapping, a pedological approach to the examination of point samples can be an important aid in the determination of the areal extent of engineering soil units. In detailed investigations pedological assessments during pitting operations can determine such items as the depth of topsoil to be removed and stored during stripping, if a profile has developed through in-situ weathering of bedrock or a derived superifical cover and will assist in the identification of poor drainage areasIn this paper examples are presented of soil surveys used to assess the suitability of areas for recreational use, urban development and forestry. Also, by comparing the approaches to soil description contained within BS 5930, Code of Practice for Site Investigations (British Standards Institution 1981), and the Soil Survey Field Handbook (Hodgson 1974), some recommendations are made for adopting pedological description techniques in geotechnical site investigations.

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sumbangan Baja ◽  
Samsu Arif ◽  
Risma Neswati

Agricultural land use planning should always be guided by a reliable tool to ensure effective decision making in the allocation of land use and activities. The primary aim of this study is to develop a user friendly system on a spatial basis for agricultural land suitability evaluation of four groups of agriculture commodities, including food crops, horticultural crops, perennial (plantation) crops, grazing, and tambak (fish ponds) to guide land use planning. The procedure used is as follows: (i) conducting soil survey based on generated land mapping units; (ii) developing soil database in GIS; and (iii) designing a user friendly system. The data bases of the study were derived from satellite imagery, digital topographic map, soil characteristics at reconnaissance scale, as well as climate data. Land suitability evaluation in this study uses the FAO method. The study produces a spatial based decision support tool called SUFIG-Wilkom that can give decision makers sets of information interactively for land use allocation purposes.This user friendly system is also amenable to various operations in a vector GIS, so that the system may accommodate possible additional assessment of other land use types.


1987 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. DUMANSKI ◽  
M. PHIPPS ◽  
E. HUFFMAN

The significant advances which have been made on inventories of agricultural land use and in updating soil survey information provide an opportunity to compare these new sources of information to identify which of the various land factors shown on soil survey maps correlate most closely with agricultural land use. Three study areas representing three levels of land use intensity were used. Statistics of information theory were evaluated for application in studies of this type. Results demonstrate that a statistically significant correlation (adjustment) between physical land conditions and land use has occurred in all three areas. However, the degree of correlation varied according to the land use and the types of land factors considered. Increased correlation was achieved when land uses were weighted by economic investment. The factor called "soil association" was identified as correlating best with land use, but factors such as surface texture, capability class, slope and "spatial interaction" were also significant. Key words: Land use, soil survey, statistics, information theory, capability, economic investment


2019 ◽  
Vol 110 ◽  
pp. 02001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Boris Bondarev ◽  
Sergey Nosov ◽  
Oleg Antipov ◽  
Lusine Papikian

Agricultural and forest lands near settlements are main reserve for expansion of urban areas. Thus, among 148.5 thousand hectares of lands added to Moscow city territory in 2012, 72.2 thousand hectares or 48% were occupied by agricultural and forest lands. Urban areas are characterized by excessively high intensity of land use, land depletion, deterioration in environmental quality and decline in sustainability of urban development. The paper presents the results of analysis of urban land use planning system in the interests of sustainable development of urban territories. The object of the study is the land that is part of Moscow, which is planned to be developed in the coming decades. The authors propose an algorithm for urban development of such areas, which takes into account the quality of land. Design calculations for areas under development were carried out for Shchapovskoye settlement in New Moscow as an example. In addition, the paper covers aspects of land management when developing agricultural land within cities. The authors developed a classification of agricultural land according to a criterion of “suitability for urban development”. The suggested classification has been applied to achieve the objectives of planning urban land use development, determining the order of construction on agricultural lands within the system of sustainable urban development management.


2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Balgah Sounders Nguh ◽  
Jude Ndzifon Kimengsi

<p>Wetland ecosystems in the world have been affected by changing land uses brought about by rapid urbanization. The thrust of this study therefore is to examine the trend of land use dynamics and their implications on wetland management. Using land use maps for two periods – 1984 and 2014, aided by the administration of 75 semi-structured questionnaires, we exploited the rate of change of land uses and their effects on wetland management as well as the urban development policy implications for Bamenda. A positive relationship (0.5) was observed for land use change and wetland degradation. Furthermore, the results from land use analysis showed that between 1984 and 2014, significant changes were observed for residential land use which increased in surface area from 42% as of 1984 to 53% in 2014. In addition, agricultural land use increased from 11% to 34%. Conversely, the surface area covered by wetlands reduced from 27% in 1984 to 6% in 2014. The conclusion drawn is that in the face of further wetland degradation, the current trend of land use dynamics can be checked by the application of zoning laws to control the changes witnessed in the land uses (residential and agricultural land uses). In addition, the Bamenda City Council should promote public awareness through sensitization on wetland resources and should actively encourage the participation of the public, local government authorities and institutions in sustainably managing wetlands. </p>


Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 364
Author(s):  
Sahar Shahpari ◽  
Janelle Allison ◽  
Matthew Tom Harrison ◽  
Roger Stanley

Agricultural land-use change is a dynamic process that varies as a function of social, economic and environmental factors spanning from the local to the global scale. The cumulative regional impacts of these factors on land use adoption decisions by farmers are neither well accounted for nor reflected in agricultural land use planning. We present an innovative spatially explicit agent-based modelling approach (Crop GIS-ABM) that accounts for factors involved in farmer decision making on new irrigation adoption to enable land-use predictions and exploration. The model was designed using a participatory approach, capturing stakeholder insights in a conceptual model of farmer decisions. We demonstrate a case study of the factors influencing the uptake of new irrigation infrastructure and land use in Tasmania, Australia. The model demonstrates how irrigated land-use expansion promotes the diffusion of alternative crops in the region, as well as how coupled social, biophysical and environmental conditions play an important role in crop selection. Our study shows that agricultural land use reflected the evolution of multiple simultaneous interacting biophysical and socio-economic drivers, including soil and climate type, crop and commodity prices, and the accumulated effects of interactive decisions of farmers.


Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 627
Author(s):  
Duong H. Nong ◽  
An T. Ngo ◽  
Hoa P. T. Nguyen ◽  
Thuy T. Nguyen ◽  
Lan T. Nguyen ◽  
...  

We analyzed the agricultural land-use changes in the coastal areas of Tien Hai district, Thai Binh province, in 2005, 2010, 2015, and 2020, using Landsat 5 and Landsat 8 data. We used the object-oriented classification method with the maximum likelihood algorithm to classify six types of land uses. The series of land-use maps we produced had an overall accuracy of more than 80%. We then conducted a spatial analysis of the 5-year land-use change using ArcGIS software. In addition, we surveyed 150 farm households using a structured questionnaire regarding the impacts of climate change on agricultural productivity and land uses, as well as farmers’ adaptation and responses. The results showed that from 2005 to 2020, cropland decreased, while aquaculture land and forest land increased. We observed that the most remarkable decreases were in the area of rice (485.58 ha), the area of perennial crops (109.7 ha), and the area of non-agricultural land (747.35 ha). The area of land used for aquaculture and forest increased by 566.88 ha and 772.60 ha, respectively. We found that the manifestations of climate change, such as extreme weather events, saltwater intrusion, drought, and floods, have had a profound impact on agricultural production and land uses in the district, especially for annual crops and aquaculture. The results provide useful information for state authorities to design land-management strategies and solutions that are economic and effective in adapting to climate change.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6976
Author(s):  
Dimitrios E. Alexakis ◽  
George D. Bathrellos ◽  
Hariklia D. Skilodimou ◽  
Dimitra E. Gamvroula

Karst features such as polje are highly vulnerable to natural and anthropogenic pollution. The main objectives of this study were to investigate the soil quality in the Ioannina polje (north-west Greece) concerning arsenic (As) and zinc (Zn), and delineate their origin as well as compare the As and Zn content in soil with criteria recorded in the literature. For this purpose, the geomorphological settings, the land use, and the soil physicochemical properties were mapped and evaluated, including soil texture and concentrations of aqua-regia extractable As and Zn. The concentration of elements was spatially correlated with the land use and the geology of the study area, while screening values were applied to assess land suitability. The results reveal that 72% of the total study area has a very gentle slope. This relief favors urban and agricultural activity. Thus, the urban and agricultural land used cover 92% of the total area. The spatial distribution for As and Zn in the soil of the study area is located on very gentle slopes and is strongly correlated with the geological parent materials and human-induced contamination sources. Arsenic and Zn can be considered enriched in the soil of the area studied. The median topsoil contents (in mg kg−1) for As (agricultural soil 16.0; urban soil 17.8) and Zn (agricultural soil 92.0; urban soil 95.0) are higher compared to the corresponding median values of European topsoils. Land evaluation suitability concerning criteria given from the literature is discussed. The proposed work may be helpful in the project of land use planning and the protection of the natural environment.


Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 458
Author(s):  
Tara A. Ippolito ◽  
Jeffrey E. Herrick ◽  
Ekwe L. Dossa ◽  
Maman Garba ◽  
Mamadou Ouattara ◽  
...  

Smallholder agriculture is a major source of income and food for developing nations. With more frequent drought and increasing scarcity of arable land, more accurate land-use planning tools are needed to allocate land resources to support regional agricultural activity. To address this need, we created Land Capability Classification (LCC) system maps using data from two digital soil maps, which were compared with measurements from 1305 field sites in the Dosso region of Niger. Based on these, we developed 250 m gridded maps of LCC values across the region. Across the region, land is severely limited for agricultural use because of low available water-holding capacity (AWC) that limits dry season agricultural potential, especially without irrigation, and requires more frequent irrigation where supplemental water is available. If the AWC limitation is removed in the LCC algorithm (i.e., simulating the use of sufficient irrigation or a much higher and more evenly distributed rainfall), the dominant limitations become less severe and more spatially varied. Finally, we used additional soil fertility data from the field samples to illustrate the value of collecting contemporary data for dynamic soil properties that are critical for crop production, including soil organic carbon, phosphorus and nitrogen.


2003 ◽  
Vol 65 (3) ◽  
pp. 133-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Satoru Okubo ◽  
Kazuhiko Takeuchi ◽  
Benjaporn Chakranon ◽  
Apichart Jongskul

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