Geomorphometric landscape analysis of agricultural areas and rangelands of Western Australia

Abstract

Several techniques exist for generating landform units and these differ in terms of their categorical structure. The geopedologic approach to landform classification is based on a strong integration of geomorphology and pedology using geomorphology as a tool to improve and speed up soil mapping. Likewise, the Australian classification of landforms proposes a two-level descriptive procedure for a systematic, parametric description of landforms into landform patterns and landform elements. This chapter examines geopedology in the context of soil-landscape studies in Australia, and discusses two case studies from Western Australia, where GIS-based geomorphometric tools were used for semi-automated classification of landform elements, based on topographic attributes like slope, curvature or elevation percentile. The case studies illustrate how results of the geomorphic classification add value to management decisions related to rangelands, precision agriculture, spatial analysis, and modelling of land degradation, and other spatial modelling applications where landscape morphometry is an influential factor in the processes under study.