Skip to main content Accessibility help
×
Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-tf8b9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-25T07:36:07.868Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

18 - Landscape ecology as the broker between information supply and management application

from PART V - Applications of landscape ecology

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 November 2009

Frans Klijn
Affiliation:
WL/Delft Hydraulics Netherlands
John A. Wiens
Affiliation:
The Nature Conservancy, Washington DC
Michael R. Moss
Affiliation:
University of Guelph, Ontario
Get access

Summary

In this era of very sophisticated and still-developing GIS functionality, and with an as-yet unknown availability of data, some argue that we do not need integrated ecological (land) classification and mapping nor (ecosystem) geographers. In fact, they maintain, we do not need landscape ecology at all, as the knowledge gathered by all the underlying more specialist disciplines makes it a superfluous discipline: the information technicians can easily handle, combine, and provide all the required information, and the policy makers can select the relevant information and draw conclusions by themselves.

Here we have, in my opinion, two mistakes. One is that integrated classification and mapping is old-fashioned and can be done without, and the second is that transdisciplines are superfluous in this era of information technology. I will explain why I consider these to be mistakes. Meanwhile, I will argue that we need landscape ecology as a mind-set or attitude for professionals in spatial planning and in policy analysis even more urgently than as a scientific discipline in its own right. I will refer to recent experiences from my current involvement in river (basin) management. Finally, I will go into some issues that, in my opinion, will require the attention of landscape ecologists in the near future, but without having the necessity of incorporating them into “our discipline”.

The stage

Some years ago I wrote that ecological land classification is a quintessential tool to be used in two fields: for land evaluation for land-use planning, and for environmental impact assessment (EIA) in the planning of such activities as infrastructure planning, water resource exploitation, or river management (Klijn, 1997).

Type
Chapter
Information
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2005

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Anonymous (1998). Water Resources Management Strategy for Trinidad and Tobago. Annex 8: Ecology of wetlands. The Government of Trinidad and Tobago, Ministry of Planning and Development.
Bowler, P. J. (1992). The Environmental Sciences. London: Fontana.Google Scholar
Claessen, F. A. M., Klijn, F., Witte, J. P. M., and Nienhuis, J. G. (1994). Ecosystem classification and hydro-ecological modelling for national water management. In Ecosystem Classification for Environmental Management, ed. Klijn, F.. Dordrecht: Kluwer, pp. 199–222.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Claessen, F. A. M., Beugelink, G. P., Witte, J. P. M., and Klijn, F. (1996). Predicting species loss and gain caused by alterations in Dutch national water management. European Water Pollution Control, 6, 36–42.Google Scholar
Clarke, S. E., White, D., and Schaedel, A. L. (1991). Oregon, USA, ecological regions and subregions for water quality management. Environmental Management, 15, 847–856.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Groot, W. T. (1992). Environmental Science Theory: Concepts and Methods in a One-World, Problem-oriented Paradigm. Amsterdam: Elsevier.Google Scholar
Duel, H., Baptist, M. J., and Penning, W. E. (2001). Cyclic Floodplain Rejuvenation: a New Strategy Based on Floodplain Measures for both Flood Risk Management and Enhancement of the Biodiversity of the River Rhine. NCR-publication 14-2001. Delft: Netherlands Centre for River Studies.
Hooijer, A., Klijn, F., Kwadijk, J., and Pedroli, B. (2002). Towards Sustainable Flood Risk Management in the Rhine and Meuse River Basins: Main Results of the IRMA-SPONGE Research Program. NCR-publication 18-2002. Delft: Netherlands Centre for River Studies.Google Scholar
Hughes, R. M., and Larsen, D. P. (1988). Ecoregions: an approach to surface water protection. Journal of the Water Pollution Control Federation, 60, 486–493.Google Scholar
Klijn, F. (1997). A hierarchical approach to ecosystems and its implications for ecological land classification; with examples of ecoregions, ecodistricts and ecoseries of the Netherlands. Ph.D. thesis, Leiden University.
Klijn, F. and Duel, H. (2001). Nature rehabilitation along Rhine River branches: dilemmas and strategies for the long term. In River Restoration in Europe: Practical Approaches, ed. H. J. Nijland and M. J. R. Cals. Proceedings of the Conference on River Restoration, 15–19 May 2000, Wageningen, the Netherlands. Lelystad: ECRR/RIZA rapport 2001.023, pp. 179–188.
Klijn, F. and Witte, J. P. M. (1999). Eco-hydrology: groundwater flow and site factors in plant ecology. Hydrogeology Journal, 7, 65–77.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Klijn, F., Silva, W., and Dijkman, J. P. M. (2001). Room for the Rhine in the Netherlands: Summary of Research Results. Arnhem: WL/Delft and RIZA.Google Scholar
Klijn, J. A. (1995). Hierarchical Concepts in Landscape Ecology and its Underlying Disciplines. SC-DLO report 100. Wageningen: Winand Staring Centre.Google Scholar
Marchand, M., Penning, W. E., and Meijer, K. (2002). Environmental flow requirements as an aid for integrated management. In Environmental Flows for River Systems. 4th International Ecohydraulics Symposium, 3–8 March 2002, Cape Town.Google Scholar
McHarg, I. L. (1969). Design with Nature. New York, NY: Natural History Press.Google Scholar
Naveh, Z. and Lieberman, A. S. (1994). Landscape Ecology: Theory and Application. 2nd edn. New York, NY: Springer.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Opdam, P., Foppen, R., and Vos, C. (2001). Bridging the gap between ecology and spatial planning in landscape ecology. Landscape Ecology, 16, 767–777.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Silva, W., Klijn, F., and Dijkman, J. P. M. (2001). Room for the Rhine Branches in the Netherlands. What the Research has Taught Us. Arnhem: WL/Delft and RIZA.Google Scholar
Asselt, M. B. A., Middelkoop, H., 't Klooster, A. A., et al. (2001). Development of Flood Management Strategies for the Rhine and Meuse Basins in the Context of Integrated River Management. NCR-report 16-2001. Delft: Netherlands Centre for River Studies.Google Scholar
Ek, R., Witte, J. P. M., Runhaar, J., and Klijn, F. (2000). Ecological effects of water management in the Netherlands: the model DEMNAT. Ecological Engineering, 16, 127–141.Google Scholar
vis, M., Klijn, F., and Buuren, M. (2001). Living with Floods: Resilience Strategies for Flood Risk Management and Multiple Land Use in the Lower Rhine River Basin. Executive Summary. NCR-report 10-2001. Delft: Netherlands Centre for River Studies.Google Scholar
Vos, W. and Klijn, J. A. (2000). Trends in European landscape development: prospects for a sustainable future. In From Landscape Ecology to Landscape Science, ed. Klijn, J. A. and Vos, W.. Dordrecht: Kluwer, pp. 13–29.Google Scholar
WL/Delft Hydraulics (1993). Methodology for Water Resources Planning. WL-report T635. Delft: WL.

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×