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Literature Review on Landuse Survey and Practice

1.1 Introduction
In any research a review of earlier researches on the study is important to get a clear view of existing
knowledge and research gap, known as literature review. It is an important part of academic pursuit.
Literature review can help the researcher to relate his or her ideas to the wider literature on the research
topic. Reading around the subject will also help the researcher to redefine the ideas. Keeping this objective
in focus literature regarding different land use concepts, its factors, the historical background of land use
study, landuse policy and planning and implications at both local and global level has been reviewed for
the purpose of the present paper.
1.2 Land
Land comprises of all naturally occurring resources whose supply is inherently fixed. It is any part of the
earth’s surface not covered by a body of water. According to FAO, an area of the earth’s surface, the
characteristics of which embrace all reasonably stable, or predictably cyclic, attributes of the biosphere, the
soil and underlying rock, the water, the plant and animal population and the results of past and present
human activity to the extent that these attributes extent a significant influence on present and future uses of
the land by man.
1.3 Landuse
The term ‘Land Use’ refers to the relationship between man and Land. Land use is human activities that
are directly related to land, making use of its resources or having an impact upon it. Land cover is the
physical attributes of the land, while land use is a pattern of human activities undertaken within a socio-
economic context. Landuse has been defined as "the arrangements, activities and inputs people undertake
in a certain land cover type to produce, change or maintain it" (FAO, 1997 FAO/UNEP, 1999).
Landuse concerns the products and/or benefits obtained from use of the land as well as the land management
actions (activities) carried out by humans to produce those products and benefits (FAO, 2013). Landuse
data are needed in the analysis of environmental processes and problems that must be understood if living
conditions and standards are to be improved or maintained at current levels (Anderson et al., 1976).
So, Land use is the functional dimension of land for different human purposes or economic activities that
are directly related to land, making use of its resources or having an impact upon it. It generates a pattern
of human activities undertaken within a socio-economic context.
1.4 Land Cover
Land cover is the surface cover of the earth which includes buildings, trees, water body, bare ground etc.
Land cover can be determined by analyzing satellite and aerial imagery but when the land cover is modified
for human needs it turns into land use.
1.5 Difference between land use and land cover
❖ Land cover refers to the surface cover on the ground like vegetation, urban infrastructure, water, bare
soil or other; it does not describe the use of land. For instance, a land cover type of forest may be used
for timber production, wildlife management or recreation; it might be private land, a protected watershed
or a popular state park.
❖ On the other hand, Land use refers to the purpose the land serves, for example, recreation, wildlife
habitat or agriculture; it does not describe the surface cover on the ground. For example, a recreational
land use could occur in a forest, shrub land, grasslands or on manicured lawns.
❖ Land cover can be determined by analyzing satellite and aerial imagery whether land use cannot be
determined from satellite imagery.
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1.6 Factors of Landuse:

❖ Physical Factors – Geology, relief features, climate, soil and vegetation which limits the landuse
capabilities. As an asset, it includes anything, (1) on the ground (such as buildings, crops, fences, trees,
water), (2) above the ground (air and space rights), and (3) under the ground (mineral rights), down to
the center of the Earth
❖ Socio-economic Factors- (Economic & Institutional Factors) – The length of occupancy of the area,
demographic and socio-economic conditions, institutional framework and the technological levels of the
people determine the extent to which the land can be utilized.

1.7 Classification of Land use

Land use classification means dividing the land use into different categories according to a single factor or
a set of factors. The land use classification is done based on –
❖ Climatic factors ❖ Slope of the land ❖ Water supply
❖ Soil characteristics ❖ Degree of erosion
❖ Drainage and similar environmental conditions etc.
The purpose of land use classification is to maximize the productivity and to conserve the land for
prosperity. However, land use is classified into two parts-
➢ Rural land use ➢ Urban land use
Basic types of urban and rural landuse are:
• Residential • Industrial • Transport
• Commercial • Institutional • Recreational

1.8 Landuse Models

There are three classic land use models:
➢ Concentric-Zone Model ➢ Sector Model ➢ Multiple-Nuclei Model
➢ Concentric-Zone Model
Burgess developed this model in 1925 deal to explain ecological processes in the city. He saw the city as
a series of five concentric zones. Burgess conventionalized a diagram to explain the composite effect of
market forces upon land use arrangements.
➢ Sector Model
In 1939, Hoyt developed sector model primarily to explain the structure of residential uses of land (Figure
2.5.2). This concept holds that the different income classes of a city tend to be found in distinct area
describable in terms of sectors of a circle centered on the Central Business District (CBD).
➢ Multiple Nuclei Model
First suggested by McKenzie in 1933, the multiple-nuclei hypothesis is built around the observation that
frequently there are a series of nuclei in the patterning of the urban land uses. Then theory was expanded
by Harris and Ullman in 1945 and again in 1962 by Ullman. They both observe that sometimes these are
distinct centers in the original metropolitan area that persist as centers as growth fills in the areas between
them and that sometimes emerge as new centers as urbanization proceeds (Figure 2.5.3).
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Figure 1.1: Concentric Zone Figure 1.2: Sector Model Figure 1.3: Multiple-Nuclei
model Model

1.9 Land Use Planning

Land use planning (LUP) is an iterative process based on the dialogue amongst all stakeholders aiming at the
negotiation and decision for a sustainable form of land use in rural areas as well as initiating and monitoring its
implementation. Land use planning provides the prerequisites for achieving a sustainable form of land use which
is acceptable as far as the social and environmental contexts are concerned and is desired by the society while
making sound economic sense. Land use planning (LUP) is not only practiced when national authorities intervene
or as a result of development co-operation projects. LUP happens in every society, even if the term is not used
(Zimmerman, 1999).
According to UNFAO, absence of any Landuse planning, or of its orderly execution, or the existence of financial
or legal incentives that have led to the wrong Landuse decisions, or one-sided central planning leading to over-
utilization of the land resources can possibly accelerate land degradation. Landuse planning should be integrated
and holistic and where Land users are central. This will ensure the long-term quality of the land for human use,
the prevention or resolution of social conflicts related to Landuse, and the conservation of ecosystems of high
biodiversity value.
1.9.1 Goals of Landuse Planning
There are three main goals-
➢ Efficiency: Land use must be economically viable, so one goal of development planning is to make efficient
and productive use of the land. For any particular land use, certain areas are better suited than others. Efficiency
is achieved by matching different land uses with the areas that will yield the greatest benefits at the least cost.
➢ Equity: Land improvements and redistribution of land may be undertaken to reduce inequality or, alternatively,
to attack absolute poverty.
➢ Acceptability: Land use must also be socially acceptable. Goals include food security, employment and
security of income in rural areas.
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1.10 Land use survey

L. D. Stamp pioneered the Landuse survey. His monumental work in 1951 encouraged and provided guidelines
to geographers all over the world. According to him, Landuse survey has the objective of recording the use of
every parcel of land (Stamp, 1951).
1.10.1 History of land use survey
Ancient Greeks and Egypt’s practiced land measure, division, management etc. In ancient Egypt specific plots
were used for different types of crops and their usage changed each year according to the flood/ inundation rate
of Nile. In 19th century, the first agricultural landuse model was given by Von Thunen. With the expansion of
industrial activities and emergence of towns and cities, researchers started focusing on urban land use. As a result,
the urban land use models: Concentric zone model, Sector Model, Multiple Nuclei model came out from
Geographers.
In 20th century an American geographer of Chicago University named Prat introduced this land use survey method
at the very beginning. Then in England, a British geographer L. Dudly Stamp conducted a land use survey during
1930s. Mapping was carried out by volunteers at the scale of six inches to the mile (1:10,560) using around 20,000
six-inch field maps (Coleman & Maggs, 1965). An ordnance map of a small locality was the output of this survey.
Thus, land use survey was introduced in England. And after the termination of the Second World War Stamp
again conducted land use survey in that same area for detecting the change in the land use pattern in that area
after fifteen years. (Stamp, 1937; Stamp, 1948).
The International Geographical Union (IGU) created a land use commission during the first decade of 1948 and
in 1952 all the geographers of the world were invited by this commission to be trained in the field of land use
survey. This is how land use survey was initiated and spread out across the globe.
The history of land use survey in global context is given here:
The Geography and Environment
Dudley Stamp A former student of Sir Mr Nuruzzaman described the
departments of different public universities,
Dudley Stamp, Professor needs for adequate policy
took the initiative Nafis Ahmed making and planning, especially
Centre for Urban Studies (CUS) and
in Dhaka Center for Environmental and Geographic
operationalized the in urban areas
Information Services (CEGIS)
University principles of land use in
Bangladesh

1950 1955 1955-60 1970 1979 1985-86 1990-Present

By Bangladesh Land use study Dr. Islam and Dr. Ahsan

Geographical and survey was published the first article
Society realized in rural on principles of land use
development and necessity of land use
study in Bangladesh
entitled “Land use study in
Bangladesh”

Fig 1.4: History of Landuse Survey (Global Context)

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1.10.2 History and current scenario of land use survey in Bangladesh

Dudley Stamp introduced land use survey in Bangladesh during 1950s, especially after the formation of IGU.
commission on Land Use headed by Sir Dudley Stamp. The Visit of Sir Dudley Stamp to the Department of
Geography, University of Dhaka in 1955 and the subsequent formation of the Bangladesh Geographical Society
(BGS)provided a further stimulus to land use studies. Professor Dr. Nafis Ahmed operationalized the principles
of land use in Bangladesh (Khan, 1961; Ahmad and Khan, 1963). Since 1980s Bangladesh government is
assimilating land use data in every 10 years. Considerable number of researches on land use has been conducted
on Bangladesh. Landuse surveying in Bangladesh starts with plot-to-plot survey alike Great Britain. With the
inclusion of geo spatial technologies, land use study has become more dependent on GIS and Remote sensing-
based study.
1.11 Overall landuse Pattern of Bangladesh

Fig 1.5: Landuse Pattern of Bangladesh

Geographically tropic of cancer crossed Bangladesh along middle. It is a part of South Asian country, located at
the mouth of Bengal fan. Bangladesh is an agrarian country with an average elevation of less than 10 meter from
mean sea level (MSL). About 79% of the entire land is floodplain type formed from alluvial deposition of Ganges-
Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) that occupies only 7.4% of GBM catchment. Each year Bangladesh receives 1-2.4
Billion tons of sediment coming from upper catchment of GBM.
Bangladesh has all types of wetlands except glacial wetland support 8-10Million people. Agriculture is the major
occupation of Bangladesh supporting 8-12 million people directly and indirectly. Bangladesh has 35% urban
population contributing to 67% of national GDP.
1.12 Conclusion
Land use planning in the context of development co-operation deals with cases in which an intervention occurs
in order to improve land use and to sustain natural resources. In the past, decisions made on land use have resulted
in the degradation of land resources, or an imbalance between supply and demand of those resources. In this
chapter, the assumptions within this basic understanding of land use, its classification, its model and planning are
discussed.