Parcel Area Research Articles

Uncertainty visualization of remote sensing crop maps enriched at parcel scale: a contribution for a more conscious GIS dataset usage

ABSTRACTUncertainty is an inherent issue in all thematic maps, including those produced from remote sensing (RS) data. Factors such as the characteristics of the imagery used to obtain the map or the classification methods, among others, can contribute to differences in the level of uncertainty. Given that map accuracy is not spatially uniform and that confusion matrices do not resolve the issue, this paper proposes a methodology to visualize the spatial uncertainty of a crop map obtained through RS and enriched at parcel scale. The final map covers an area of 3323 ha represented at a scale of 1:35,000. The estimator used to show the classification uncertainty is ‘purity’, that is, the percentage of each parcel area occupied by the finally assigned category. This value is an indicator of misclassification probability analyzed at parcel scale, which is a more useful measure in real management than are per pixel approaches.

Benchmarking Nonresidential Water Use Efficiency Using Parcel-Level Data

AbstractPast studies of commercial, industrial, and institutional (CII) water use efficiency have been limited to simple normalization benchmarking measures. Simple normalization ratios (e.g., water use per employee) account for only one driver of water use and are often misleading because of the predominantly skewed nature of water use intensities. In order to improve on benchmarking systems to assess the water use efficiency of CII customers, this paper explores two popular methods used in the energy efficiency field: ordinary least squares (OLS) and data envelopment analysis (DEA). Parcel-level data from Austin, Texas, is used to demonstrate the methods, where a data-driven approach is employed to include average water use, building area, building value, year built, parcel area, and number of employees as measures of input, and annual sales as the economic measure of output.

The Effects of Defective Spatial Structure on the Agricultural Property Market

Abstract Rural areas in Poland are distinguished by one of the worst spatial structures of individual land properties in the European Union. The least favourable structure occurs in the southern and south-eastern part of the country, where it results in farms losing 20-30% of their agricultural revenue. The bad spatial organisation of land is also reflected in transaction prices obtained for agricultural land. Considering criteria such as: land management, parcel area, width, and elongation (length to width ratio), and soil bonitation value, this paper determines the effect of each of the criteria separately on the development of transaction prices of agricultural land in the years 2009-2014 in selected villages in the southern part of the Cegłów (Mińsk district, Mazowieckie province), distinguished by the unfavourable spatial structure of agricultural land. Meeting this objective involved the application of the analytical capacity of the Geographic Information Systems (GIS), cadastral data base, soil-agricultural map vector, study of the conditions and directions of the spatial management of the Cegłów area, and the property price and value register. The obtained study results suggest that in areas with particularly defective spatial structure, land with parameters permitting its efficient use, i.e. with proper width and elongation is particularly valuable. Another parameter determining the level of obtained prices is the bonitation value, although it is of less importance for the analysed area than for agricultural areas with proper management conditions.

Improvement of area accuracy in general boundary areas in Kenya:

Land ownership in the vast Kenyan Trust land is through the process of Land adjudication. The Preliminary Index Diagrams (PIDs) are the official map documents that together with adjudication records constitute the adjudication register that forms the basis for determination and registration of interests and rights over land. The PIDs are produced from enlarged, marked and un-rectified aerial photographs; as a result they contain distortions to parcel area which more than often is a source of land disputes, especially in resolving the gap between area contained in the title deeds and the actual parcel area on the ground. Generally, the uncertainty in PID area is about 20% of the actual area. We propose a procedure that can be used to reduce large errors in PIDs by comparing ground survey and PID areas in Juja. To achieve the objectives of this study, PIDs of 31 large plots in Juja were prepared from un-rectified aerial photographs. The area of each parcel was measured in the usual way, using plannimeter. Ground surveyed areas for the same parcels within the area of study were obtained from existing survey plans, normally referred to as folio references (F/Rs), and also through ground survey on parcels without F/Rs. The root mean square of the differences between PIDs and ground survey (F/Rs) areas was ±14.63 hectares. The distortions increased with increase in areal size. A conversion equation was developed to reduce areal errors. Using the conversion equation on PID areas, the root mean square of the differences reduced from ±14.63 to ±2.95 hectares, representing an improvement of 80%. The correction equation obtained can be used to obtain corrected parcel areas to facilitate accurate valuation of land parcels in the PID areas. This technique is simple because it requires only PID areas and it works well.

고해상도 항공영상을 이용한 주거지역 필지경계 설정에 관한 연구

As part of an effort to leap smart cadastre system by doing rearrangement of various mismatches in the land register, the cadastre renovation project is being recently conducted. In response to this demand, this paper proposes an image-based rapid parcel boundary demarcation plan using the high resolution aerial image with a GSD (Ground Sample Distance) of 5cm that matches to real ground boundary situation in residential area. To review the feasibility and accuracy of this proposed methodology, we compared the accuracy of parcel boundary point and parcel area extracted from the digital stereo plotting on the basis of results of cadastral boundary surveying and land register over the selected two test areas. The comparative accuracy result of all boundary points by digital stereo plotting is satisfied with accuracy requirement according to the criteria of the enforcement regulation of cadastral surveying, whereas it exceeded allowable error of , more strictly specified in the Special Act on Cadastral Renovation. And about 20% of the total 70 parcels extracted by digital plotting are out of area tolerance in Jecheon study area, and 10% of the total 19 parcels in Suwon study area. The parcels exceeding accuracy limit are mostly due to the occlusion caused by building roof or eaves, and the obstacles such as trees existing on the boundary. Furthermore, an object identification is impossible in image because of vague boundary reference in case of nonexistence of man-made structures or natural features. Therefore, the utilization of boundary identification stickers is recommended as a solution for these types of land parcel.

Predicting Appraised Value of Parcels of Harris County, Texas Using LEED Criteria for Public Transportation Access

The objective of this study is to determine if the appraised unit value ($/sf) of unimproved land parcels in Houston, Texas could be predicted by a regression equation containing a group of independent variables that represent LEED transportation access criteria and the area of a land parcel. The independent variables, number of bus stops, number of rail stops and parcel area, were all found to contribute significantly to the independent variable, appraised unit value of a parcel. The observational unit was properties in Houston, Texas that were unimproved (had zero improvement value). Findings suggest that the acceptance criteria for the LEED green building rating system regarding public transportation access have a significant influence on the appraised value in dollars per square foot of the subject properties. Based on the sample median lot size of 5,300 square feet, the predicted lot value increases dramatically in proportion to the number of qualifying light rail stations and decreases marginally in proportion to the number of qualifying bus stops. Since the regression model and each independent variable were all significant at p<0.05 and the adjusted R-square was near 0.50, the study objective was deemed to have been answered in the affirmative.

The Potential of UAV-based Remote Sensing for Supporting Precision Agriculture in Indonesia

This paper shows some practical experiences of using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle-(UAV) based platform for remote sensing in supporting precision agriculture mapping. Some of the information for land preparation, cadaster boundary, vegetation monitoring, plant healthy, and stock valuation are required periodically. So, the UAV-Based remote sensing system should have characteristics such as cost-effective, fast in producing, easy in operation by local staff, and good geometry accuracy (sub-meter). The system consists of aerial platforms from R/C plane, point and shoots digital cameras, data processing with digital photogrammetric: structure from motion algorithms, and free open source-GIS for visualizing. This system has the ability to produce imagery with spatial resolution <10cm, measuring parcel area, assess the individual trees or plants stock, and topography. The basic products of the system are Orthophoto Image and Digital Elevation Model (DEM). The Average geometric accuracy can be obtained up to 3 pixels or equivalent to sub-meter accuracy, while the production time can be reached more than 500Ha a day. The Orthophoto image could provide visual interpretation such as the individual trees structure, plant density, and parcel boundary area, while DEM could asses tree's height information and terrain topography with accuracy 3-6 pixel or 0.5-2.5 m.

Funding Public Transportation Through Special Assessment Districts

Little scholarly attention has been paid to the equity impacts of special assessment districts (SADs) established to fund public transportation projects. This article uses three recent public transportation projects funded using SADs in the United States and finds that the case study SADs’ performance is mixed. Although the districts use a variety of criteria, such as property value, parcel area, and distance from the transportation project, to calculate assessments in a way that promotes horizontal equity, the assessment methodologies do not take into account the disamenity associated with certain elements of public transportation projects, such as the rail line. Furthermore, owner-occupied residential properties are often exempt from paying assessments to garner support for SADs, rather than to satisfy equity concerns. Finally, the low-interest, long-term payment of assessments enhances vertical equity which can be further enhanced if assessment exemptions or deferments are consistently provided to seniors on fixed incomes and low-income households.

Extent of Alabama's Terrestrial Nature Reserve System in Representing Ecosystem Diversity: A Coarse-Filter Gap Analysis

Exponential human population growth has resulted in overexploitation of resources, the introduction of alien invasive species, habitat destruction and fragmentation, and the subsequent global endangerment and extinction of many species. Globally, governmental, and nongovernmental programs, use nature reserves (NRs) to mitigate against the decline of biological diversity by protecting habitats and their inhabitants from fragmentation and other negative anthropogenic impacts. However, numerous studies conducted at multiple spatial and temporal scales have revealed that existing NRs do not effectively represent biodiversity, or are experiencing declines in biodiversity because of anthropogenic encroachment around NRs. Our study examined the spatial distribution and characteristics of the NR system in Alabama using coarse-filter gap analysis. We compiled a dataset of private and public NRs in Alabama, and analyzed the extent and effectiveness of Alabama's NR system in representing ecosystem diversity. We found that NRs occupied approximately 840,000 ha (6.2%) of land area in Alabama. Public NRs covered 6.0% of Alabama land area, and private NRs covered 0.2% of the land area. We found a latitudinal shift in NR parcels from majority private NR parcel presence in northeast Alabama to majority public parcel ownership in southwest Alabama. The statewide mean NR parcel area was 2149.47 ha; the mean public NR area was 4789 ha; the mean private NR area was 151 ha; and the mean distance (isolation) between NRs was 4.5 km. We hypothesize the distribution of parcel property types throughout Alabama was related to socioeconomic status, race, and metropolitan areas throughout the state. Our results may be used to improve conservation planning in Alabama, and our approach used as a model to assess NR systems in other states or regions.

Correction of location of boundaries in cadastre modernization process

Abstract Modernization of lands and buildings register, which is run in Poland now, assumes capturing boundaries location data by various methods. They are: direct measurement preceded by determining of boundaries in the presence of parties, photogrammetric method, cartographic method, using existing maps being in analogue form. These methods not always assure accuracy. In the paper, an idea of correcting of location of boundary points which do not fulfil accuracy requirements has been presented. These corrections have been computed by assumption of invariability of parcel area revealed in register, so far. Such way of operation from one side would avoid many misunderstandings and difficulties by applying data collected in cadastre and from the other side will not disturb used procedures, which aim is to determine boundary of parcels with demanded accuracy.

Spatial and temporal variations in land development and impervious surface creation in Oakland County, Michigan, 1945–2005

Summary Impervious surface has been recognized as a key indicator of watershed health and function. The rapid expansion of impervious surface associated with periurban development following the Second World War resulted in concerns that impervious surface would alter flow characteristics, water quality, sediment, and stream morphology. These effects have been documented in studies across many disciplines. Unfortunately, impervious surface is difficult to measure directly, and other forms of land-use data are often substituted as surrogates. This paper highlights the shortcomings in land-use data, particularly parcel-based land-use data, as a surrogate for impervious surface in a periurban environment. Periurban development has changed substantially in the last several decades. This study investigates changes in the form of periurban development in Oakland County, Michigan, from 1945 to 2005, with an emphasis on the accumulation of impervious surface. We first evaluate patterns in the sizes of parcels being developed to residential uses. Using an impervious surface map derived from aerial imagery, we then calculate amount of impervious surface created by different forms of development, both in parcels of similar sizes developed at different times, and across parcel sizes for the period of the study. The results indicate substantial variability in impervious surface within periurban residential development, from 5.4% of parcel area to 25.4% of total parcel area depending on parcel size. Even within relatively specific categories (for example, residential parcels less than 743 square metre) impervious surface varied between 18.5% and 34.6% of the parcel area between 1945 and 2000. Since 1980, the trend has been toward larger parcel sizes with lower impervious surface ratios. The overall effect is that land is being developed at a rate substantially greater than the rate impervious surface is being created. The bias created by the trend to larger parcel sizes with smaller impervious surface ratios results in a tendency to overestimate the effects of recent land development. In combination with the change in character of suburban development, this bias has a tendency to overestimate the hydrologic response to new development. This overestimation is easily overlooked because it is consistent with the expected effect of urbanization. However, this effect helps explain observed field results indicating little change in streamflow through time despite significant apparent periurban development.

Orhtophoto Accuracy Assessment of Ultra-light Fixed Wing UAV Photogrammetry Techniques

본 연구는 최근 국내외에서 문화재 보존, 사고현황조사, 군 정찰업무, 재난관리 등 다양한 분야에서 활용되고 있는 초경량 고정익무인항공기 사진측량의 성능평가를 다루고자 한다. 항공삼각측량 결과, 위치(X, Y)에서 RMSE 값은 약 10 cm로 나타났으며, UAV 사진측량의 정사영상에 대한 시각판독법(on-screen digitizing) 기법과 지상측량에 의한 필계점 좌표 차의 RMSE 는 X 방향 약 0.174~0.205 m, Y방향 약 0.294~0.298 m의 편위형 오차가 도출되었다. 그리고 실험대상지역의 임의의 1 필지를 대상으로 지적 공부대장면적과 UAV 사진측량의 정사영상으로 취득한 필지 면적을 비교한 결과 차이는 0.118 <TEX>$m^2$</TEX>이다. 본 연구는 초경량 고정익무인항공기 사진측량의 정사영상 정확도 평가에 대한 하나의 연구 사례를 제시하였으며, 향후 항공삼각측량(AT), 직접 기하보정(direct-georeferencing), 비행계획, 그리고 실용적 응용분야 개발 등에 대한 연구가 지속되어야 할 것으로 판단된다. The main purpose of this study is to carry out the performance evaluation of Ultra-light Fixed Wing UAV(Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) photogrammetry which is being, currently, applied for various fields such as cultural assets, accident survey, military reconnaissance work, and disaster management at home and abroad. Firstly, RMSE estimation of Aerial Triangulation (AT) are within approximately 0.10 cm in position (X, Y). And through the comparison of parcel's boundary points coordinates by terrestrial surveying and by UAV photogrammetry, the analysis shows that RMSE are shifted approximately 0.174~0.205 m in X-direction, 0.294~0.298 m in Y-direction respectively. Lastly, parcel's area by orthophoto of UAV photogrammetry and by that of cadastre register has been shown the difference by 0.118 m2. The results presented in this study is just one case study of orthophoto accuracy assessment of Ultra-light fixed wing UAV photogrammetry, hereafter various researches such as AT, direct-georeferencing, flight planning, practical applications, etc. should be necessary continuously.

Land Use Zoning at the County Level Based on a Multi-Objective Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm: A Case Study from Yicheng, China

Comprehensive land-use planning (CLUP) at the county level in China must include land-use zoning. This is specifically stipulated by the China Land Management Law and aims to achieve strict control on the usages of land. The land-use zoning problem is treated as a multi-objective optimization problem (MOOP) in this article, which is different from the traditional treatment. A particle swarm optimization (PSO) based model is applied to the problem and is developed to maximize the attribute differences between land-use zones, the spatial compactness, the degree of spatial harmony and the ecological benefits of the land-use zones. This is subject to some constraints such as: the quantity limitations for varying land-use zones, regulations assigning land units to a certain land-use zone, and the stipulation of a minimum parcel area in a land-use zoning map. In addition, a crossover and mutation operator from a genetic algorithm is adopted to avoid the prematurity of PSO. The results obtained for Yicheng, a county in central China, using different objective weighting schemes, are compared and suggest that: (1) the fundamental demand for attribute difference between land-use zones leads to a mass of fragmentary land-use zones; (2) the spatial pattern of land-use zones is remarkably optimized when a weight is given to the sub-objectives of spatial compactness and the degree of spatial harmony, simultaneously, with a reduction of attribute difference between land-use zones; (3) when a weight is given to the sub-objective of ecological benefits of the land-use zones, the ecological benefits get a slight increase also at the expense of a reduction in attribute difference between land-use zones; (4) the pursuit of spatial harmony or spatial compactness may have a negative effect on each other; (5) an increase in the ecological benefits may improve the spatial compactness and spatial harmony of the land-use zones; (6) adjusting the weights assigned to each sub-objective can generate a corresponding optimal solution, with a different quantity structure and spatial pattern to satisfy the preference of the different decision makers; (7) the model proposed in this paper is capable of handling the land-use zoning problem, and the crossover and mutation operator can improve the performance of the model, but, nevertheless, leads to increased time consumption.

Do parking requirements significantly increase the area dedicated to parking? A test of the effect of parking requirements values in Los Angeles County

Minimum parking requirements (MPRs) are the norm for urban and suburban development in the United States (Davidson et al., 2002). The justification for MPRs is that overflow parking will occupy nearby street or off-street parking. Shoup (1999a) and Willson (1995) provide cases where there is reason to believe that parking space requirements have forced parcel developers to place more parking than they would in the absence of parking requirements. However, to our knowledge the existing literature does not test the effect of parking minimums on the amount of lot space devoted to parking beyond a few case studies. This paper tests the hypothesis that MPRs bind for most land uses using data on suburban office, commercial, industrial and retail property sales from Los Angeles County using both direct and indirect approaches. Our indirect test of the effects of parking requirements is similar to the one used by Glaeser and Gyourko (2003). A simple theoretical model shows that the marginal value of additional parking to the sale price of a building should be equal to the cost of land plus the cost of parking construction. We estimate the marginal values of parking and lot area with spatial methods using a large data set from the Los Angeles area non-residential property sales and find that for most of the property types the marginal value of parking is significantly below that of the parcel area. In addition, we directly examine required and supplied parking and find that on average parking supplied is quite close to the required amount.

An airborne LiDAR-based methodology for vineyard parcel detection and delineation

An airborne lidar-based technique to delineate vineyard parcels from surrounding land uses is proposed and assessed in the Texas Hill Country American Viticultural Area near Austin, Texas, USA. Although most vineyard site analyses are based on multispectral aerial and satellite images, this study takes advantage of the height-based uniqueness of vineyard land uses inherent in the vine-trellising structure to differentiate vineyard areas from non-vineyard areas. A normalized digital surface model was created from lidar data and smoothed with a focal statistics method to identify vine rows and delineate vineyard land-use parcels. A simple unsupervised classification of the three study sites was performed to identify low vegetation areas. The vineyard areas were extracted from the low vegetation class and compared with manually digitized versions. The results suggest that lidar-based data sets can efficiently differentiate vineyard from non-vineyard land use. Our study yielded a mean classification accuracy of 97.55% and successfully extracted vineyard parcel area (mean accuracy 88.79%).

The Uneasy Case for Lower Parking Standards

Minimum parking requirements are the norm for urban and suburban development in the United States (Davidson and Dolnick (2002)). The justification for parking space requirements is that overflow parking will occupy nearby street or off-street parking. Shoup (1999) and Willson (1995) provides cases where there is reason to believe that parking space requirements have forced parcel developers to place more parking than they would in the absence of parking requirements. If the effect of parking minimums is to significantly increase the land area devoted to parking, then the increase in impervious surfaces would likely cause water quality degradation, increased flooding, and decreased groundwater recharge. However, to our knowledge the existing literature does not test the effect of parking minimums on the amount of lot space devoted to parking beyond a few case studies. This paper tests the hypothesis that parking space requirements cause an oversupply of parking by examining the implicit marginal value of land allocated to parking spaces. This is an indirect test of the effects of parking requirements that is similar to Glaeser and Gyourko (2003). A simple theoretical model shows that the marginal value of additional parking to the sale price should be equal to the cost of land plus the cost of parking construction. We estimate the marginal values of parking and lot area with spatial methods using a large data set from the Los Angeles area non-residential property sales and find that for most of the property types the marginal value of parking is significantly below that of the parcel area. This evidence supports the contention that minimum parking requirements significantly increase the amount of parcel area devoted to parking.

Accuracy of land parcel area measurement

Accuracy of land parcel area measurement

Land-cover fragmentation and configuration of ownership parcels in an exurban landscape

The rate of low-density development beyond the urban and suburban periphery, known as exurban areas, has occurred at a rate faster than both urban and population growth and has the potential to affect water quality, carbon storage, and habitat availability. This paper is aimed at understanding the relationships between the heterogeneity of the human and natural components of the land system and their interactions, through assessment of residential land-cover characteristics and ownership parcels in these poorly understood exurban lands. New data are presented that describe the distribution of land-cover quantities and their degree of fragmentation in three townships in Southeastern Michigan. Analysis of land-cover data, collected from aerial photographs from 1950–2000 and digitized with a 10 m minimum mapping unit, provide an empirical link between lot-size and vegetation. Results show, among other findings, 1) the quantity and pattern of land-cover types significantly differ with parcel size, 2) the degree of difference was greatest between small parcels and all other sizes and least among large parcels, and 3) of five landscape metrics used to evaluate the quantity and fragmentation of land-cover types in residential parcels, the percent of parcel area provided the strongest delineation of differences in land cover among parcel sizes. Capturing quantities and patterns of land-cover at different sizes of land (parcel) ownership provide new data that can be coupled to ecosystem literature and models to link the outcomes of residential land-cover processes with simple ecosystem functions (e.g. carbon storage, albedo). Understanding how residential land-use and management processes collectively create regional land-cover patterns can provide insight into how residential lands might be managed to mitigate the effects of land change on climate.

Farmland Preservation Verdicts-Rezoning Agricultural Land in British Columbia

The Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR) in British Columbia (BC), Canada, is a provincial zoning scheme designed to protect agricultural land from development. Since 1973, landowners have not been permitted to use ALR land for nonagricultural purposes, prompting some to seek recovery of development option value by applying for exclusion from the ALR. Using Geographic Information System (GIS) technology and a binary choice (logit) model, this study examines factors that impact the acceptance of ALR exclusion applications. With data from two regions in southwestern BC, we find that applications are more likely to be approved when the land is closer to the major highway, has a smaller parcel size, consists of a smaller portion of the total parcel area, or has poorer quality soils. Therefore, as intended by public policy, agricultural capability is a key determinant in exclusion decisions, retaining properties of greater agricultural value in the ALR. Even though public opinion has suggested otherwise, the political party in power at the time of the decision was only a weak factor, mostly moderated by the number of applications in a given year. A spatial-effects model found no evidence of spatial autocorrelation, supporting the conclusions drawn from the nonspatial model estimations. La réserve de terres agricoles de la Colombie-Britannique (ALR), au Canada, est un plan de zonage provincial destinéà protéger les terres agricoles contre le développement urbain. Depuis 1973, les propriétaires fonciers ne peuvent utiliser les terres de la réserve à des fins non agricoles, ce qui incite certains à tenter de récupérer une certaine valeur d’option en faisant une demande d’exclusion. À l’aide de la technologie des systèmes d’information géographique (SIG) et d’un modèle de choix binaire (type logit), nous avons examiné les facteurs qui influencent l’acceptation des demandes d’exclusion. À l’aide de données sur deux régions du sud-ouest de la Colombie-Britannique, nous avons observé que les demandes d’exclusion sont plus susceptibles d’être acceptées lorsque les terres sont situées en bordure d’une route importante, sont de petite taille, ne représentent qu’une portion d’une superficie plus grande ou présentent des sols de mauvaise qualité. En conséquence, comme le prévoit la politique du gouvernement, la capacité agricole est un facteur clé dans les décisions d’exclusion qui permet de conserver les propriétés de grande valeur agricole dans la réserve. Bien que l’opinion publique indique le contraire, le parti politique au pouvoir au moment de la décision ne constituait qu’un faible facteur, principalement réduit par le nombre de demandes au cours d’une année donnée. Un modèle d’effets spatiaux n’a pas réussi à montrer l’existence d’une autocorrélation spatiale appuyant les conclusions tirées des estimations du modèle non spatial.

Pasture for horses: an underestimated land use class in an urbanized and multifunctional area

This paper investigates the spatial importance of horses in a multifunctional and urbanized area. The growing spatial importance of horses in the open space was already mentioned by different authors, but never quantified before. In many countries, including Belgium, statistics on horses are only partly covered by agricultural data. As a consequence, the amount of space in use for horses, especially hobby horses, is largely unknown but may encompass a significant area of the open space. Especially within the context of an increasing urbanization and growing demands on the remaining rural area, this evolution must not be neglected. A reliable quantification of the space used by horses is therefore essential and is given in this research for the case study Flanders. According to the results of fieldwork, about one third of the pasture land in Flanders is used to keep horses. A qualitative analysis showed a higher horse density within the more urbanized areas with a fragmented agricultural area and a quantitative analysis showed negative associations between the presence of horses and (i) the distance to gardens, (ii) the parcel area and (iii) the distance to forest. Moreover an internet survey assessed evolutions and motivations of horse owners to keep horses. The survey resulted in clear data on the fact that the number of horses is increasing. This is mainly motivated by recreational purposes. The majority of horsekeepers do not consider themselves to be part of the agricultural sector. These results, showing an intensified competition for land between stakeholders in the open space of urbanized regions put new challenges for sustainable land use planning. The major challenges are i) to avoid increasing functional and spatial fragmentation of rural landscapes, ii) to assure enough space for societal necessity urgencies such as food or energy self efficiency, iii) to increase positive interactions of horse keeping with other sectors such as agriculture, nature conservation and others and iv) to develop a proper visual and cultural landscape strategy, helping in setting up guidelines for fencing and other infrastructural elements that do not deteriorate the landscape character.