Multi-criteria evalutation for forest land use suitability: the case of Tuscany

Abstract

The contribution describes the application of a GIS-based fuzzy multi-criteria evaluation approach. The target is indentifying the suitability for different uses of forest areas: timber production, soil protection, nature conservation. The analysis has been applied on the Tuscany Region territory. Forest land suitability for different uses has been evaluated by means of six factors: (i) volume, (ii) slope, (iii) mean diameter, (iv) landscape patch cohesion, (v) patch types diversity, (vi) patch rarity. The multi-criteria evaluation is based on a linear combination method. The analysis has identified areas suitable for wood production and areas which are primarily dedicated to nature conservation and soil protection and where there is a potential risk of conflict with the productive function