Original research article
Landscape Evaluation and Public Preferences: Is there Room for Optimisation?
2008, 73 (2) p. 109-114
Abstract
The need for information on landscape value preferences (that are disclosed by public survey) in conservation activities within spatial planning have been recognised long ago. The paper focuses in general on that topic, specifically highlighting the importance of diverse conservation criteria that promote the idea of effective implementation of public participation in the earliest stage of the planning process - the analytical phase of landscape evaluation. The environmental qualities that the landscape planner should take into account include unpolluted landscape as human habitat, productivity of natural resources and the naturalness of ecosystem. The public survey and support tools (statistical analysis and vulnerability modelling) were used as methods for revealing landscape value preferences of three social groups: local inhabitants, experts (people directly involved in a land use planning process) and potential users of a space. The results have shown that conservation goals or desired future state of a landscape considerably differs between and within respondent groups. This also makes it possible to look for an acceptable compromise between the three distinctive conservational requests, thus allowing optimizations of a land use decision.
Keywords
Landscape, values, landscape planning, protection, public participation
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