Information science and agricultural land suitability : interscalar approaches for land use planning.

Abstract

Technical and methodological innovations in programming, network sharing, information system analysis and geographic information systems (GIS) have enabled the representation, storage, processing and dissemination of information that was previously unavailable to interested parties. In this context, this study presents a proposal for the conceptual modeling of the integrated use of agricultural land suitability methods to develop support systems for land use decision-making information science methods. Knowledge-based modeling diagrams are structured using CommonKADS and Unified Modeling Language (UML) methods to simulate the processing of basic questions from farmers, including “what to plant”, “where to plant”, and “how to plant”. Finally, an interdisciplinary matrix, which explains the relationship between crop-specific agricultural land suitability and soil and terrain attributes to support decision-making at a detailed scale, is presented. The proposed system is an effective instrument for agricultural and environmental guidance and education because it provides environmentally sustainable alternatives to the user and explains the economic rationale for such proposals.