Landscape character assessment using region growing techniques in geographical information systems

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Geographic Information Science
• Spatial Planning

Background:

• Landscape character defines an area's unique identity through its features.
• Understanding landscape character is crucial for non-production rural development and societal demands.
• Existing methods may lack consistency in landscape character assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a novel methodology for landscape character assessment.
• To utilize geographic information system (GIS) data and a region growing algorithm for landscape analysis.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of this new methodology against expert classifications.

Main Methods:

• A new methodology for landscape character assessment was developed.
• The approach employs a region growing algorithm applied to landscape feature patterns stored in a GIS.
• The methodology was tested in a case study area in the north of The Netherlands.

Main Results:

• The region growing algorithm produced good and interpretable results based on the input data.
• Classification resemblance with expert assessments varied significantly (34%-100%) across different landscape types.
• The algorithm-based classification demonstrated greater consistency across the study area compared to expert classifications.

Conclusions:

• The developed methodology offers a quantitative tool for analyzing landscape patterns and discriminating between landscapes.
• This approach can support spatial planning and landscape conservation policy development.
• The GIS-based region growing method provides a consistent and interpretable landscape character assessment.