SUSTAINABLE LAND-USE EVALUATION ON STEEP LANDSCAPES AND FLOOD PLAINS IN THE NEW JUABEN DISTRICT OF GHANA: A GIS APPROACH.

Abstract

Specific criteria are stipulated and recommendations made for sustainable management of landscapes in Ghana. Yet, evaluation is scarcely conducted to determine whether real performance of land-use strategies are meeting expected standards of sustainability. The paper reports on an evaluation study conducted on a landscape with various levels of slopes and flood plains. The study sought to demonstrate the application of information technology in achieving the objectives of sustainable land-use management. Landscape of the area was modeled in a Geographic Inlörmation System (GIS) environment. Slope was derived from digital elevation model (DEM) and spatially' analyzed with land-use/cover information generated from satellite data. The performance of existing land-use was conipared with expected land-use performance criteria for steep landscapes and Ilood plains. Steep slopes and areas within 100 m of the Densu River have been denuded of forest vegetation. Rather than making only a Inarginal use of geo-information technology in generating data, we must leverage its inherent analytical potentials that enable innovative, creative and enhanced