Natural and semi natural Cultivated and managed Bare areas Tree covered area Arti cial surfaces Snow, and glaciers Shrub covered area Mangroves bodies Herbaceous vegetation Sparse vegetation Antarctica

Figure 6.2 Distribution of dominant covers (modified from FAO data)

Defining land cover Land cover and There are various definitions of land cover. Most have There is a strong connection between land cover and been developed by government authorities in different land use. The definitions of these terms overlap to an countries for different purposes, such as planning extent, but there are important differences. Land use new developments or protecting valued environments. is about the use people make of the Earth’s surfaces. A widely accepted definition of land cover comes from FAO puts it this way: ‘land use is characterised by the the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization arrangements, activities and inputs people undertake (FAO). It defines it broadly as ‘the observed biophysical in a certain land cover type to produce, change or cover on the Earth’s surface’. maintain it’. This definition includes what exists on land surfaces — The overlap between definitions can be understood the natural biophysical features of vegetation, water, through some examples. ice and even bare rock and soil, together with additions u made by human activity such as agriculture and urban can be considered as a land cover. . In reality land cover can be very complex, If human activity on the grasslands is cattle even in a small area. Figure 6.1 shows how a variety of grazing, this is considered as land use. land cover can exist in a relatively small area: natural u can be considered as land cover. Further vegetation together with farmed land and even bare rock. investigation could show the forests are selectively logged or used for recreational walking or riding. Some academics believe land cover should be defined These latter uses would see the activities classify to include only vegetation and features made by the as land use. people. Bare rock and bare soil, it could be argued, u A natural lake is land cover but when its use for are not cover but the land itself. Similarly, water and water sports or for irrigation is discussed, it is ice surfaces may be seen in that way — not strictly land use. as land cover. However, bare rock and soil together

with water and ice surfaces are incorporated in most Land cover change: an overview

accounts of land cover. u CHAPTER 6

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