Page 30 - Green Knowledge 2020

A graphic view of land areas in Norway, shown in relation to each other Illustration photo: NIBIO
Tool for planning work: New land barometer
Statistics and graphics showing that land resources in municipalities and counties have been brought together in the web-based land barometer, launched in 2019. It provides an overview of the agriculture and forestry production base in Norway.
“The barometer also shows how agricultural land is used,” explains project manager Ingrid M. Tenge. Information about how much land is in use for various crops and animal husbandry is taken from grant applications submitted to the Norwegian Agriculture Agency.
Information from the barometer is used in planning work, statements and political processes, and thereby provides a useful aid for public administra- tion. Journalists and the general public are also among the target groups.
One of the barometer’s important sources is the detailed AR5 land resource map, a national map of the production base. Mountainous areas that have not been surveyed at AR5 level are supplemented with information from the “cruder” AR50 map.
The barometer also documents the quality of agricultural land in municipalities in which soil surveys have been performed. As well as fully
cultivated land, the barometer also includes land that could be cultivated; that is, land that could poten- tially be used to grow food, and that meets the climate and soil quality requirements for plant cultivation. The barometer shows how much land is cultivable and what type of land it currently is — for example, forest, marsh or cultivated pasture.
The figures behind the land barometer were taken from various thematic maps created by NIBIO, which are available on the Kilden map portal. Users can click onto a map via the barometer.
The new land barometer is dynamic and is updated automatically when there are changes to the data- bases from which the barometer obtains its informa- tion.
Project manager Tenge is relieved that the previous time-consuming manual method used to compile the land barometer is no longer necessary.
Goal: Funding: Contact:
To compare statistics from various specialist areas and sources in order to compile an overview of the agricultural and forestry resource base in Norway.
Ministry of Agriculture and Food
Senior Adviser Ingrid M. Tenge. Email: ingrid.tenge@nibio.no, mobile: +47 901 04 465. Division of Survey and Statistics
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