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State of the environment A Technical Guide to New Zealands Environmental Indicators Online version
4 Indicator Specifications
4.9 Land – land use
Accurate and up-to-date information about land use is important for a country whose economy is largely based on tourism and primary production, both of which rely heavily on the quality of the natural environment.
4.9.1 Indicator and variable description
This indicator shows changes in land use over time. The term land use describes the human activity or economic function associated with a parcel or tract of land. Change in land use can be a driving force behind land cover change.
4.9.2 Indicator calculation and measurement
Sampling and analytical protocol: This core indicator is based on digitised satellite imagery, allowing it to be displayed both in the form of maps and as tables presenting the amounts of land taken up by the various land cover and land-use classes.
Sampling frequency: Five-yearly. The Land Cover Database (LCDB) was last updated in 2002. An update of the database is presently in its early stages of development, and the new Land Use and Carbon Analysis system (LUCAS) will provide up-to-date land-use information. Five-yearly reporting is recommended if updated geospatial mapping imagery and analysis is available. The annual Agricultural Production Survey can provide land-use information in the interim.
Data needed to compile the indicator: Land use is classified according to 18 land use and four land cover classes that describe the functional activities associated with an area of land (Table 12); the match between the land cover and land-use classifications is also shown.
Land use can be inferred from land cover at a summary level, eg, pasture land cover and agricultural land use. Digital data derived from LCDB imagery for land cover can be used to make this inference, along with other classification tools such as Land Environments of New Zealand (LENZ), and the Agricultural Production Survey.
Table 12: Land-use classes for national environmental reporting
| Land cover class used for environmental reporting |
Land-use class used for environmental reporting |
|---|---|
| Primarily pastoral | Dairy Intensive sheep and beef Hill country sheep and beef High country sheep and beef Deer Other animals Ungrazed |
| Urban areas / artificial surfaces | Urban |
| Exotic forests (all classes) | Planted forestry |
| Primarily horticultural | Arable cropping Vegetables Berry fruit Pip fruit Grapes Summer fruit Tropical fruit Kiwi fruit Flowers |
| Non-vegetative and vegetative indigenous land cover | Tussock* Native forests Rivers, lakes, snow and ice Scrub |
* The distinction being made in this table between land cover and land use poses problems for the various “land uses” listed next to the indigenous land cover class, which are, in fact, more detailed land cover descriptions. However, they could be considered as being linked to economic activities such as tourism, gathering and hunting (deer, wild pigs, honey), or ecosystem services.
Data sources: For more information on data sources refer to the Ministry for the Environment’s document Data stock-take for the core set of national environmental indicators and associated variables.
Spatial coverage and length of record: There are currently two LCDB series that show changes in land cover over a five-year period: LCDB1 (1996/97 imagery) and LCDB2 (2001/02 imagery).
Measurement methods: Satellite photography (land cover). The LCDB is a digital map of New Zealand’s land cover. Satellite images were taken on cloud-free days in the summer of 1996/97 (LCDB1) and in summer 2001/02 (LCDB2). These images were used to classify and map different land cover classes nationally (see Table 11). This way it is possible to show land cover and infer land use at five-yearly intervals.
The Agricultural Production Survey surveys approximately 30,000 farms by a mailed out questionnaire from Statistics New Zealand. This aims to gather information on agricultural land use, and every second year this includes horticultural land uses. Every five years a census is sent to around 70,000 farms to get full coverage of agricultural land use in New Zealand.
Method for indicator calculation: Once the satellite photography has been processed and digitised, calculating the indicator is a matter of simple arithmetic of distributing land areas according to the relevant classification and adding up surface areas.
4.9.3 Sample reporting formats
This core indicator is based on digitised satellite imagery, allowing it to be displayed both in the form of maps and as tables presenting the amounts of land taken up by the various land cover and land-use classes.
Table 13: Dominant land use and selected land cover in New Zealand, 2004
| Land-use classes | Hectares | Percentage of total land area (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Dairy | 1,879,600 | 7.00 |
| Intensive sheep and beef | 3,841,100 | 14.32 |
| Hill-country sheep and beef | 4,023,200 | 15.00 |
| High-country sheep and beef | 48,900 | 0.18 |
| Deer | 249,700 | 0.93 |
| Other animals | 64,900 | 0.24 |
| Ungrazed | 659,800 | 2.46 |
| Urban | 203,600 | 0.76 |
| Planted forest | 1,957,000 | 7.30 |
| Arable crops | 1,200 | 0.0044 |
| Vegetables | 2,200 | 0.0083 |
| Berryfruit | 1,200 | 0.0045 |
| Pipfruit | 10,200 | 0.038 |
| Grapes | 18,800 | 0.070 |
| Summer fruit | 1,800 | 0.0069 |
| Tropical fruit | 1,600 | 0.006 |
| Kiwifruit | 6,400 | 0.024 |
| Flowers | 57 | 0.0002 |
| Land-cover classes | ||
| Tussock | 2,645,200 | 9.86 |
| Native forest | 6,567,200 | 24.48 |
| Rivers, lakes, snow, and ice | 2,094,200 | 7.81 |
| Scrub | 2,543,600 | 9.48 |
| Total | 26,821,500 | 100 |
Source: Ministry for the Environment, 2007.
Figure 23 Land use in New Zealand, 2004
Source: Ministry for the Environment, 2007.
Text description of figure
Figure 23 shows a map of New Zealand according to its land use classification in 2004. There are 18 land use classes each mapped in a different colour where these occur across New Zealand. Four land cover classes are also shown in the map for areas primarily used for recreation and conservation purposes. The land use classes include:
- Dairy
- Intensive beef and sheep
- Hill country sheep and beef
- High country sheep and beef
- Deer
- Other animals
- Ungrazed
- Urban
- Planted forest
- Arable
- Vegetables
- Berryfruit
- Pipfruit
- Grapes
- Summer fruit
- Tropical fruit
- Kiwifruit
- Flowers.
The land cover classes include:
- Tussock
- Native Forest
- Rivers, lakes, ice and snow
- Scrub.
Dairy, Intensive beef and sheep, Hill country sheep and beef, and Planted forest are the dominant land-use classes that have the highest percentage of total land area in New Zealand.
The Dairy and Intensive sheep and beef land-use classes occur predominantly in the Northland, Auckland, and Manawatu-Wanganui regions and the east coast of the South Island.
The Hill-country sheep and beef land-use class occurs predominantly in the Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay, Manawatu-Wanganui and Wellington regions in the North Island and the Canterbury and Otago regions of the South Island.
The Planted forest Land-use class occurs predominantly in the Bay of Plenty and Tasman regions.
The tussock land-cover class occurs mainly in the high country of the Central North Island and the high country running the length of the South Island.
The native forest land-cover class occurs mainly in the central North Island and the West Coast of the South Island.
The Rivers, lakes, ice and snow land-cover class and the Scrub land-cover class occur scattered mainly throughout the South Island, with a smaller amount scattered throughout the North Island.
4.9.4 Compatibility with other indicator programmes
| National indicator sets | International indicator sets | |
|---|---|---|
| Statistics NZ linked indicators | United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development core set (Arable and permanent cropland area) | United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development sustainable development indicators (Land-use change; Arable and permanent cropland area) |
| OECD Core Environmental Indicators | European Environment Agency Core Set of Indicators (CSI 014 – Land take) | |
Note: Small differences may exist in the way these variables are represented in other indicator sets.
Source: Web sites of Statistics New Zealand, UN Division of Sustainable Development, OECD, European Environment Agency.
4.9.5 References
Ministry for the Environment (MfE). 1997. Proposals for air, freshwater, and land. Signposts for Sustainability. MfE, Wellington. ISBN 0-478-09016-1.
Ministry for the Environment. 1998. Confirmed indicators for air, freshwater and land. Signposts for sustainability. MfE, Wellington. ISBN 0-478-09042-0.
Ministry for the Environment. 2007. Environment New Zealand. MfE, Wellington. ISBN 978-0-478-30192-2.
