Economic Land Utilization Optimization Model

Abstract

Recently, population growth and resource depletion have been matched by a growing demand for self-sustaining communities. Numerous studies promote sustainable solutions to the concerns of climate change and food scarcity. This study aims at creating an automated Economic Land Utilization Optimization Model (ELUOM) that identifies sustainable and cost-effective agricultural practices. Soil, water & climatic characteristics of over 400 crops are gathered in a relational database to build the model. Evolutionary algorithms are utilized to filter the database based on user input. Optimization process is then performed on all possible utilization plans of the filtered crops to maximize the 20-year return while minimizing water consumption. The model is verified on a case study in Giza, Egypt where it shows the potential of increasing the return/m3 of water by 370% versus current practices. This research also studies the application of ELOUM on a vacant plot in the American university in Cairo, Egypt.