Measuring Agricultural Landscape Indicators for Policy Applications

Abstract

Agricultural landscapes consist of physical, biological and cultural elements and reflect the interaction between farming and the environment. Increasing recognition of landscape services and societal demand for the policy response require monitoring and evaluating the stock and state of agricultural landscapes. This study aims to propose indicators for agricultural landscape and their uses in policy design and implementation. The constructed indicators include terraced paddy fields, levees of environment-friendly paddy fields, stone walls, changes in land-use patterns and their diversification. Estimations of the indicators show mixed results over a span of about 40 years. Gains in lengths of the levees for environment-friendly paddy fields and stone walls contrast with the progress of contraction, intensification, concentration and homogenization in land-use patterns. Additional guidelines are identified for ensuring policy relevance of the indicators.