Systematic method for identifying unsuitable land for development: biodiversity, disaster risk, and topography

Developing areas that are unsuitable for land development leads to various problems, such as deforestation, ecosystem destruction, biodiversity loss, increased CO2 emissions, disasters caused by natural hazards, accessibility issues in hilly areas, and landscape destruction. To avoid these problems comprehensively and pursue sustainable land development, there must be an effective method to define unsuitable areas in advance and restrict the development of such areas. Based on this recognition, this study aims to establish a method for sustainable land development by applying system control. The method has already been devised, showing how to define unsuitable areas for land development based on three key land attributes: (1) contribution to biodiversity, (2) natural disaster risk, and (3) topographic gradient. Using Inagi City, Japan as a case study, a Geographic Information System (GIS) was applied to analyze unsuitable areas according to these three land attributes. It indicated areas for contributing more to biodiversity, considering significant areas for biodiversity and conservation practices. It also showed high-risk areas for natural disasters and displayed topographic gradient classification to indicate steep-sloping areas. After integrating these areas that were unsuitable for development, the study compared them with the current land-use state, which suggested the city’s development-related problems and improvement courses. The results suggest that this comprehensive and user-friendly method can be utilized for multiple purposes, including the prevention of problematic land development, a guide to expanding conservation areas, and prior checking for compact city planning and smart shrinkage.