An open source GIS‐based Planning Support System: Application to the land use plan of La Troncal, Ecuador

Abstract

Planning Support Systems (PSS) comprise a wide variety of geo‐technological tools related to GIS and spatial modeling aimed at addressing land planning processes. This article describes the OpenRules system, a PSS based on a previous system called RULES. Among OpenRules new features are its architecture, based exclusively on free and open source software, and its applicability to all land use types, including rural and urban uses. In addition, OpenRules incorporates an unlimited number of land evaluation factors and a new objective in land use spatial allocation. OpenRules has been programmed in Java and implemented as a module of the free GIS software gvSIG, with full integration between the GIS and the decision support tools. Decision support tools include multicriteria evaluation, multiobjective linear programming and heuristic techniques, which support three basic stages of land use planning processes, namely land suitability evaluation, land use area optimization and land use spatial allocation. The application of OpenRules to the region of La Troncal, Ecuador, demonstrates its capability to generate alternative and coherent solutions through a scientific and justified procedure at low cost in terms of time and resources.

Evaluation and development of sustainable urban land use plans through spatial optimization

“…With the advances in GIS and computing technologies, numerous spatial optimization approaches have been proposed for land use planning over the last few decades (Yao, Zhang, & Murray, ). Spatial decision support systems (SDSS) have been developed for assisting interactive processes (Porta et al, ; Dai & Ratick, ; Santé, Pacurucu, Boullón, García, & Miranda, ). Such methods and tools have been applied in a variety of contexts, ranging from reserve design (Önal, Wang, Dissanayake, & Westervelt, ) and forest management (Church, Murray, Figueroa, & Barber, ) to general urban and regional planning (Caparros‐Midwood, Barr, & Dawson, ).…”

Spatial Optimization for Land-use Allocation

“…Since land-use planning generally involves allocating various use activities to land parcels at a certain spatial scale, spatial optimization linking geographical information system (GIS) and mathematical models has been increasingly applied to support the evaluation of planning activities (Church 2001, 2002; Chen et al 2010; Cao et al 2011, 2012, 2014; Santé Pacurucu et al 2016; Ligmann-Zielinska 2017). Spatial optimization can be conceived of as the science of optimal spatial arrangement, which generally involves identification of the best locations for activities and resources with respect to objectives and constraining conditions (Church 2001; Tong and Murray 2012; Ligmann-Zielinska 2017).…”