Research output per year
Research output per year
Project Details
Description
The research project AHSL (Agricultural and Horticultural Suitability Map of Luxembourg) operates against the background of urban development pressure, the decline of arable land, the rise in climate uncertainty and the disruption of global supply lines. The project extends a methodological corpus and mapping developed by Ivonne Weichold between 2017 and 2021 that aimed at addressing the suitability of land resource for certain specific agricultural uses.
The mapping was based on one of the most pervasive methodologies of landscape analysis and design: landscape suitability analysis through composite analysis mapping. In particular, the research utilized the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method (Saaty 1990; 2000; Saaty and Vargas, 2012) for assessing land-use suitability. The appropriateness of a given tract of land for a defined land use is defined and mapped based on indicators of soil water holding capacity, erosion, slope, elevation and aspect. There were two main reasons for using these indicators in this study. The first is that the indicators used in this study are adequate for determining the areas where vegetative production can be carried out. The second reason is that because the study was not conducted for a particular type of agricultural crop, the use of the parameters of humidity, natural efficiency, pH, salinity and organic substance content were not needed. However, to achieve more precise results at a local scale and relate to urban
2
planning policies, the data basis should be enlarged and adapted. This is the main aim of the project AHSL.
The main contribution of this study will be the introduction in the assessment and mapping a combination of parameters used in agricultural production and a detailed explicitation of the scoring approach. The creation of such an AHSL Map can be used as a planning instrument. It will provide insights to current planning discussions in Luxembourg in the form of spatial planning guidelines - at both urban and regional scale – for steering urban development in a way that respects the ecological qualities and soil fertility of land plots.
The mapping was based on one of the most pervasive methodologies of landscape analysis and design: landscape suitability analysis through composite analysis mapping. In particular, the research utilized the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method (Saaty 1990; 2000; Saaty and Vargas, 2012) for assessing land-use suitability. The appropriateness of a given tract of land for a defined land use is defined and mapped based on indicators of soil water holding capacity, erosion, slope, elevation and aspect. There were two main reasons for using these indicators in this study. The first is that the indicators used in this study are adequate for determining the areas where vegetative production can be carried out. The second reason is that because the study was not conducted for a particular type of agricultural crop, the use of the parameters of humidity, natural efficiency, pH, salinity and organic substance content were not needed. However, to achieve more precise results at a local scale and relate to urban
2
planning policies, the data basis should be enlarged and adapted. This is the main aim of the project AHSL.
The main contribution of this study will be the introduction in the assessment and mapping a combination of parameters used in agricultural production and a detailed explicitation of the scoring approach. The creation of such an AHSL Map can be used as a planning instrument. It will provide insights to current planning discussions in Luxembourg in the form of spatial planning guidelines - at both urban and regional scale – for steering urban development in a way that respects the ecological qualities and soil fertility of land plots.
| Acronym | AHSL |
|---|---|
| Status | Active |
| Effective start/end date | 1/01/22 → 31/12/24 |
Funding
- Ministère de l'Agriculture, de la Viticulture et de la Protection des consommateurs
- Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER)
- Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER)
Research output
- 1 Chapter
-
Agroecologics: Reimagining an agri-urban design for Luxembourg
Weichold, I., 19 Mar 2024, Urban Food Mapping: Making Visible the Edible City. Bohn, K. & Tomkins, M. (eds.). Taylor and Francis AS, p. 30-41 12 p.Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Chapter › peer-review