Sustainable Land Development: Biodiversity, Natural Disasters, and Topographic Gradient

Abstract

Inappropriate land development has been causing various problems, such as environmental destruction, biodiversity loss, climate change, and increased natural disaster risks. Aiming to avoid such issues and achieve sustainable land development, this study shows a method of dividing a region or municipality into development-restrictive areas and allowable areas. First, it presents three significant land attributes related to judging the appropriateness of development: (1) biodiversity, (2) natural disaster risk, and (3) topographic gradient. Then, regarding these land attributes, the following three sections illustrate ways to define problematic areas for development. Section 3 examines how to delineate sites contributing more to biodiversity, considering both significant areas for biodiversity and conservation practices. The fourth section outlines ways to avoid high-risk areas from predicted climatic and tectonic hazards, aiming to reduce natural disaster risks. Section 5 examines topographic gradient standards for determining steep-sloping areas. Finally, this study demonstrates how to integrate these three kinds of spatial data in the Geographic Information System (GIS) and delineate development-restrictive areas.