The Comparison of the Forms of Land Capability Classification of Atalay and USA in Eskişehir Province (Turkey)

Turkey is an area where climate changes immediately, vegetation, or land gets different in a short distance. Geological and lithological features show diversity. Also, our country’s territorial existence and diversity also bring about different land use conditions. Therefore, land capability also differs from each other. Nevertheless, the classification of land capability used in Turkey is the classification of land capability for agricultural lands prepared by the United States (USA) in 1961. Due to this, [1] have made suggestion on a new classification of land capability considering our country’s geographical conditions. In this study, comparing the land capability with the classification carrying out in our country, the classification which Atalay and Gündüzo&#287lu suggested, has been aimed. Working method has been established according to regional approach and field observations have been done. In preparing the cartographical material, ArcGIS 10.3 has been used. The map of this study as a material topography, physical map, slope, aspect, the usage of the land, ground, geology, land capability, geomorphology, temperature, and precipitation has been examined, meteorological data have been appreciated. According to the findings attained, Eski&#351ehir’s map of land capability has been done through the criteria of the suggestions of Atalay and Gündüzo&#287lu. As a result, it has been understood that there is a difference between the USA land capability that applied in Eski&#351ehir and Atalay and Gündüzo&#287lu’s criteria. In the study, it is suggested to determine the land capabilities again considering the ecological conditions of Turkey.

GIS-based soil maps as tools to evaluate land capability and suitability in a coastal reclaimed area(Ravenna,northern Italy)

Land capability and suitability maps are useful tools for soil resource conservation.This study aimed to build land capability and suitability maps using a multi-thematic approach by GIS in a salt-affected coastal area of Italy.Topographic,morphological,geological,pedological delineations and land cover maps,remote sensing image and climate data were acquired and the main physical and chemical properties,including electrical conductivity(EC)and available water capacity,were analysed on the soil samples collected in the study area.The acquired information were elaborated through QGIS software to obtain the land capability and suitability maps.The suitability map showed that most of the area(80%)is suitable for cultivation and,therefore,can be addressed for agricultural purposes without risk of degradation.In fact,the land capability map showed that 42%of the investigated area belongs to class I and II indicating that they can be used for a wide range of cultivations.While 44%of the investigated area clustered in class III and IV.In these latter the cultivation should be allowed to a limited range of crops due to the high sand content,which does not allow a good water retention,and due to a strong intrusion of sea water with consequent increase of the soil EC.In our study area,where agricultural productivity and environmental impact are in conflict,to classify the lands on base the land capability and suitability could help to define the best agricultural practices to apply in order to preserve soil functions.

Land Use Capability and the Sustainable Scale: An Overview of Agriculture in São Paulo State, Brazil

Establishing a sustainable scale in natural resources management enables effective economic and ecological policies and guarantees the long-term sustainability of economic production. In agriculture, land evaluations determine the land use sustainable scales, that is, those that avoid land degradation and allow the provision of food, wood, energy, and ecosystem services over time. The paper assessed São Paulo State’s agricultural sustainability by analyzing the current land use adequacy to the land use capability map that follows FAO 1976 “guide for land evaluation” and was applied to São Paulo by the State Agricultural Secretariat. Results indicate inefficiencies in land use at the state level, where more than one-third of agricultural lands do not satisfy technical land capability indications. According to technical land use capability, more than 4.5 million hectares are being underused (economic inefficiency) and another 2.2 million hectares are being overused (environmental inefficiency). Pasturelands represent the most unsustainable land use, where 3.7 million hectares are allocated in high quality lands with high agricultural production potential, and another 0.7 million hectares are allocated in lands with very low quality for agriculture, most of than area degraded. To achieve sustainability, lands with high agricultural production potential should be used to improve agriculture and food production and, on the other hand, lands with very low agricultural production potential should be used for wood production, agroforestry, ecotourism and natural ecosystems conservation. Our results provide a framework for improving land use policies in São Paulo State and highlight an opportunity to achieve land use sustainability.

Environmental rehabilitation of damaged land

Background:Much land is subject to damage by construction,development and exploitation with consequent loss of environmental function and services.How might the loss be recovered?Results:This article develops principles of environmental rehabilitation.Key issues include the following.Rehabilitation means restoring the previous condition.Whether or not to restore is not a technical but a value judgement.It is subject to adopting the sustainability ethic.If the ethic is followed under rule of law then rehabilitation must be done always to’the high standard’which means handing down unimpaired environmental function and no extra land management.The elements of the former condition that it is intended to restore must be specified.Restoring these in any given case is the purpose of that rehabilitation project.The specified restoration elements must be easily measurable with a few simple powerful metrics.Some land damage is not fixable so restraint must be exercised in what construction,development and exploitation are permitted.If sustainability is adopted then cost benefit analysis is not a valid form of project appraisal because trading off present benefits against future losses relies on subjectively decided discount rates,and because natural capital is hard to price,indispensable,irreplaceable and non-substitutable.Elements often to be restored include agricultural land capability,landscape form and environmental function.Land capability is a widely used convention and,with landscape form,encapsulate many key land factors,and are easily measurable.Restoring soil and thereby environmental function provides the necessary base for an ecological pyramid.Conclusions:The need for rehabilitation is not to be justified by cost-benefit or scientific and technological proof,but rests on a value judgement to sustain natural capital for present and future generations.Decision on what activities and projects to permit should be based on what is physically and financially fixable on current knowledge.Business and government must be proactive,develop rehabilitation standards,work out how to meet the standards,design simple powerful metrics to measure performance against the standards,embark on continuous improvement,and report.