A generic tool for optimising land-use patterns and landscape structures

• Published in: Environmental modelling & software : with environment data news Vol. 22; no. 12; pp. 1801 - 1804
• Main Authors: Holzkämper, Annelie, Seppelt, Ralf
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.12.2007
• Subjects: Conservation management; Genetic algorithm; Land-use pattern optimisation; Landscape metrics; Conservation management; Genetic algorithm; Landscape metrics; Land-use pattern optimisation
• ISSN: 1364-8152
• DOI: 10.1016/j.envsoft.2007.02.008

We present a flexible and easy to use genetic algorithm-based library for optimising the spatial configurations of land-use. LUPOlib, the Land- Use Pattern Optimisation- library, can be applied to a variety of spatial planning problems to derive target-driven scenarios that identify trade-offs between conflicting objectives and solve optimum allocation problems (e.g. allocation of reserve sites or management actions). A major novelty is that spatial changes are performed according to a patch topology that allows to simultaneously integrate changes of different landscape elements (e.g. in agricultural fields and linear changes along corridors). The objective function evaluation is based on a grid representation of the landscape where neighbourhood dependencies like lateral flows or the landscape pattern can explicitly be considered. A parameter file allows the user to control the optimisation, the modelled land-use changes, objective weightings and constraints as well as input data. Only the case study-specific objective function needs to be specified in the source code. LUPOlib has been applied so far in two case studies to find optimum trade-offs between habitat requirements of three different bird species and to analyse cost-effectiveness of management actions for species conservation. The results suggest that LUPOlib can be a useful tool to support management decisions. It could be used as an extension to a GIS and for spatially explicit decision support tools.