Reply to "Down-to-Earth" is Imperative! On the Problems of Landscape-Ecological Regionalisation by Means of Multivariate Statistical Methods Friedrich Weller (Ravensburg, Germany) in DIE ERDE 2009, 140:113-125

Abstract

The reply addresses the severe criticism of F. Weller in DIE ERDE 2009, 140: 113-125 dealing with the ecological land classification which was first published in Umweltwissenschaften und Schadstoff-Forschung 12 (4), S. 237-243and later on detailed in the Handbuch der Umweltwissenschaften, 17. Erg. Lfg. 2006. Mainly, the critique concentrates on the following three issues: 1. The regionalisation dissects uniform landscapes each exhibiting a typical ecological pattern and combines the separated parts with parts of other landscapes to form ecological heterogeneous land classes. 2. The calculation of average values of ecological characters of these heterogeneous land classes is useless and absurd. 3. The nomenclature of the statistically derived land classes violates the correct use of traditional landscape names. The reply shows that, on the one hand, Weller's criticism is due to the impression that he does not understand the statistical method used to calculate the ecological land classification. On the other hand the reply seizes that Weller's idea of land classification does not meet the epistemological principles of experimental sciences such as methodical transparency as well as objectivity and reproducibility of results.