Land use choice and land resource assessment in agriculture.

Abstract Land degradation is continuing to occur in many different environmental conditions. This is because land use choice in a particular area always goes beyond the capability and suitability of that area for such type of land use. Traditionally, land use choice depends very much on the criteria used, but in essence it should embrace three different and sometimes conflicting aspects: productivity, workability and the environment. The decision criteria derived from environmental attributes that represent degradation potential will become important determinants for sustained use of the land. As land qualities vary in space and change over time, land use is a dynamic entity which is subject to human intervention, socio-economic conditions and changing land use policy, and land is usually subject to degradation, effective land resource assessment is crucial for decision-making to arrive at an optimal land use choice. The primary aim of this review is to discuss some important aspects related to a fundamental concept of land use choices with the perspective of resources and the environment in agriculture. A case study is also presented that implements some analytical tools in decision-making procedures of land use allocation, following a proposed scheme in land resource assessment. The proposed scheme and the case study presented here reveal that much effort should be put in making use of land attribute information (criteria) and analytical tools that can provide an aid in support of optimal spatial decision-making in future land use placements.