identification is one of the basic and key components (Rindfuss et al. 2004). The
earliest recorded land identification was conducted by the Egyptians while they
measured land for taxation (Cuno 1980). Starting with the Industrial Revolution,
accurate land identification was required for various infrastructure development
(Kain and Baigent 1992; Williamson and Ting 2001).
Land parcel could contain information for various purposes. For example, urban
planners who study residential land use change has their own model to map land
(Irwin et al. 2003). Agricultural experts need land parcel data with information about
crop types and conditions. It is not wise and possible to include all attributes when
identifying land parcels since including irrelevant information waste data storage
and processing capacity.
In the United States, both public and private sectors worked on identifying land
parcel for agricultural purpose. Both have done great job on local land parcel
identification using traditional approaches. However, land parcel identification and
management became problematic for large-scale (even global-scale) agriculture.
Large-scale agricultural studies were emerged to study the impact on cropland
from global change (Deng et al. 2012; Han et al. 2012). The challenger required
the development of new approaches of land parcel identification. New land parcel
identification benefited from the development of new techniques such as remote
sensing and geographic information systems. Moreover, the national and international standards in geoinformation also helped in better management of land parcel
in large-scale agro-geoinformation systems.
This chapter discusses land parcel identification and management in agriculture
for different scales: from the local to the global level. Land parcel management
becomes harder when dealing with larger area. Good land parcel management
requires a corporation between agencies, states, and countries. This chapter also
discusses about the current challenges and problems in the agricultural land parcel
identification.
9.2 Land Parcel and Agricultural Land Parcel
9.2.1 What Is Land Parcel?
Land parcel is the basic land unit, which is described by its location, boundary, and
ownerships. Land parcel is defined as the finest unit when identifying land. It means
that one parcel will not be able to be separated into multiple finer units. For example,
it is not possible to sell one land parcel to two individuals separately; however, it is
possible for one individual to own multiple land parcels.
Although land parcel represents the basic land unit, land parcels are not identical
since they are defined with actual geomorphic conditions. In the real world, no
identical land parcels exist. In addition to the uniqueness of land parcel, the boundary of land parcel may change over time due to change in the development of
construction, regional structure, and variation in ownership (Worboys 1994). For
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L. Lin and C. Zhang
earliest recorded land identification was conducted by the Egyptians while they
measured land for taxation (Cuno 1980). Starting with the Industrial Revolution,
accurate land identification was required for various infrastructure development
(Kain and Baigent 1992; Williamson and Ting 2001).
Land parcel could contain information for various purposes. For example, urban
planners who study residential land use change has their own model to map land
(Irwin et al. 2003). Agricultural experts need land parcel data with information about
crop types and conditions. It is not wise and possible to include all attributes when
identifying land parcels since including irrelevant information waste data storage
and processing capacity.
In the United States, both public and private sectors worked on identifying land
parcel for agricultural purpose. Both have done great job on local land parcel
identification using traditional approaches. However, land parcel identification and
management became problematic for large-scale (even global-scale) agriculture.
Large-scale agricultural studies were emerged to study the impact on cropland
from global change (Deng et al. 2012; Han et al. 2012). The challenger required
the development of new approaches of land parcel identification. New land parcel
identification benefited from the development of new techniques such as remote
sensing and geographic information systems. Moreover, the national and international standards in geoinformation also helped in better management of land parcel
in large-scale agro-geoinformation systems.
This chapter discusses land parcel identification and management in agriculture
for different scales: from the local to the global level. Land parcel management
becomes harder when dealing with larger area. Good land parcel management
requires a corporation between agencies, states, and countries. This chapter also
discusses about the current challenges and problems in the agricultural land parcel
identification.
9.2 Land Parcel and Agricultural Land Parcel
9.2.1 What Is Land Parcel?
Land parcel is the basic land unit, which is described by its location, boundary, and
ownerships. Land parcel is defined as the finest unit when identifying land. It means
that one parcel will not be able to be separated into multiple finer units. For example,
it is not possible to sell one land parcel to two individuals separately; however, it is
possible for one individual to own multiple land parcels.
Although land parcel represents the basic land unit, land parcels are not identical
since they are defined with actual geomorphic conditions. In the real world, no
identical land parcels exist. In addition to the uniqueness of land parcel, the boundary of land parcel may change over time due to change in the development of
construction, regional structure, and variation in ownership (Worboys 1994). For
164
L. Lin and C. Zhang