Landscape character, biodiversity and land use planning: The case of Kwangju City Region, South Korea

Strong pressure on landscapes in South Korea from urbanisation is leading to severe environmental problems, changes in landscape character, and loss and fragmentation of woodlands which threaten biodiversity. Sustainable land use approaches for nature conservation are urgently needed to effectively counter these trends. This research develops and tests a methodological approach to assess the biodiversity potential of landscapes in city regions to provide the necessary information for this purpose. Landscape character assessment, an approach developed in the UK, is adapted and tested in Kwangju, a fast growing city region in the South west of the Korean peninsula. Twelve landscape character types are distinguished and landscape metrics (landscape heterogeneity, patch shape, patch context and patch distance) are customised to provide quantitative information on their biodiversity potential. Only land cover data that could be obtained from existing topographical maps and aerial photographs is required for this approach. It is suggested that the methodology presented in this paper can provide the necessary information to support sustainable land use planning for nature conservation in Korean city regions and elsewhere.