A new land map and classification system have been created for the Republic of Ireland, dividing the country into nine distinct areas that share environmental characteristics.
The new classification system is significant as it addresses a knowledge gap that has existed, which will better inform planners and policymakers about future land use monitoring programmes and agri-environment schemes, and help protect and enhance biodiversity and environment quality.
Published recently in the Journal of Environmental Management, and co-authored by Dr. James Moran, a lecturer in ecology and biology at Galway Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT), the new land-classification system and map are part of a broader research project entitled ‘High Nature Value Farmland and Forestry Systems for Biodiversity (FarmForBio).
This is funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s (DAFM) Research Stimulus Fund.
Dr. Moran and his research colleagues used existing data from the Geological Survey of Ireland on soils, geography and typology and combined it with European land-cover data.
The result was the creation of a composite land map of the country with nine distinct areas, each one sharing similar environmental characteristics.
