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Humans and Environment: Cause and Effect Analysis Supported by Spatial Data Infrastructures (5585)

Ulrike Klein and Hartmut Mueller (Germany)
Prof. Dr. Hartmut Mueller
Director
FH Mainz University of Applied Sciences
Inst Spatial Information and Surveying Technology
DVW Germany
Lucy-Hillebrand-Str. 2
Mainz
55128
Germany
 
Corresponding author Prof. Dr. Hartmut Mueller (email: hartmut.mueller[at]geoinform.fh-mainz.de, tel.: +49 6131 628 1438)
 

[ abstract ] [ paper ] [ handouts ]

Published on the web 2012-03-08
Received 2011-11-01 / Accepted 2012-02-02
This paper is one of selection of papers published for the FIG Working Week 2012 in Rome, Italy and has undergone the FIG Peer Review Process.

FIG Working Week 2012
ISBN 97887-90907-98-3 ISSN 2307-4086
http://www.fig.net/resources/proceedings/fig_proceedings/fig2012/index.htm

Abstract

Climatic Change, population change and rapid urbanization are part of the main challenges in our times. For this reason designing a sustainable living environment is one of the important aims of politics and government. Human life can be split in life cycles like birth, starting education, leaving family, starting to work, start a family, retiring, death. Building a new house, for example, has an impact on financial, social, medical and infrastructure capacity planning as well as on the availability of manpower and purchasing power. Different effects on the environment like noise or air pollution may be generated by mobility or work, soil sealing may be caused by building a new house, disturbing vulnerable habitats of flora and fauna by building new streets. On the third hand noise pollution, e.g., causes effects on the health of the local population. More health care may be necessary. New doctors or hospitals have to be located causing new traffic, new infrastructure, new soil sealing, new jobs, new income for the government and so on. Such examples of interaction show clearly that humans and environment are connected in multiple ways. Trans-disciplinary cause and effect analysis and networked spatial thinking is required to tackle land use concurrences, environmental degradation or social problems and to support sustainable decision making for politics, government or even for each citizen. Spatial information can help to analyze the correlation and interaction between humans and environment in a spatio-cybernetic way. Ecological, economical and social indicators, based on the underlying data, can be used to simulate and to assess spatially related decisions. Extensive exchange of standardized spatial information between multiple stakeholders is needed to reach this goal. Spatially organized information about human-environment interactions is an indispensable precondition for the realization of such an exchange. At the same time, technical, legal and organizational conditions are to be fulfilled. Spatial Data Infrastructures initiatives like the European INSPIRE or GSDI provide an essential basis for the adequate organization of spatial information. The paper provides a case study for a defined area in the Federal Republic of Germany. Effects of building a new house will be used to apply a holistic spatio-cybernetic model of human-environment connection based on cause-effect -chains, indicators and spatial data infrastructures.
 
Keywords: Standards; Geoinformation/GI; GIM; GSDI; e-Governance; Land management; Spatial planning; Risk management; Valuation; Real estate development

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