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Land Cover / Land Use

vr.wm-ear-011 · wm-ear-011-land-cover-land-use

Observed cover versus governed use classification

World Models Physical world and living systems PHY.EAR.LND
Bundle → Layer → Finding → QuestionsClassifiersWhat it isWhy it existsDistinguishing featuresWhat robots and AI may and may not doMoral aspectsOwnersLinks to other meta-modelsIdentity and identifiersDirect propertiesRecognitionCapabilities and actionsHazards and failure modesStandards and interfacesContext of useSources

Bundle → Layer → Finding → Questions Filled

3 bundles · 4 layers · 5 findings · 11 questions

Observed cover What is physically on the ground, as mapped from observation.

Cover map and class

A land cover map, its classification system and its observation basis.

Cover classification

Each mapped unit carries a class from a named classification system.

  1. Which classification system and class are assigned to this area?
  2. Which imagery or survey, from which date, was the class derived from?

Map accuracy

The stated accuracy and minimum mapping unit of the map.

  1. What overall and per-class accuracy does the map report?
  2. What minimum mapping unit and resolution limit the map?
Governed use The use that plans, zoning and registers assign to the land.

Use designation

A zoning or land use designation with the authority that set it.

Designated use

The use permitted or assigned to a parcel or zone, with its legal basis.

  1. Which use does the plan or register assign to this land, under which instrument?
  2. Since when is the designation in force, and is a change pending?

Actual use

The use practised on the land, as reported or surveyed.

Reported use

The use declared by a holder or observed in a survey.

  1. Which use is actually practised on the land, according to which source?
  2. Does the actual use match the designated use?
Change How cover and use change over time.

Change detection

Transitions between classes and between uses, with dates.

Cover transition

A change from one cover class to another between two dates.

  1. Which cover change occurred here, between which two observation dates?
  2. Is the change real, or an artefact of different maps or methods?
  3. Was the change authorized, for example by a clearing or building permit?

Classifiers Filled

Family
World Models
Category
Physical world and living systems
Entry kind
standalone-mm
Navigation path
NAV.PHY.EAR.LND
Domain
PHY.EAR.LND
Industry
Cross-industry
Tags
landcoverusephy.ear.lnd

What it is Filled

Land cover is the observed physical and biological cover of the earth's surface, such as forest, cropland, water or built-up area; land use is the purpose people assign to or practise on that land, such as agriculture, housing or a protected area. The subject keeps the two apart: cover is mapped from observation, use is declared in plans and registers, and the same parcel can show a cover that differs from its governed use.

Why it exists Filled

Observed cover versus governed use classification

Distinguishing features Filled

  • Separates observed cover from governed use, which are often conflated in a single map legend.
  • Cover classes come from a named classification system and a dated observation; use designations come from a legal instrument.
  • Distinct from the land parcel, its parent, which holds boundaries and rights rather than cover and use.
  • Distinct from habitat and ecosystem models, which describe ecological communities rather than surface cover classes.

What robots and AI may and may not do Filled

Must not

  • Present a land cover class as a legal land use designation, or the reverse.
  • Treat a detected change as proof of an unlawful act without verification.
  • Use outdated maps without stating their observation date.
  • Alter official zoning or land use records.
  • Infer facts about individual landholders beyond what the data supports.

Only with a human decision

  • Changing a land use designation or zoning.
  • Starting enforcement on a suspected unauthorized change of use or clearing.
  • Publishing change maps that name individual holders.

May

  • Report cover classes and use designations with their classification system, date and source.
  • Detect and flag changes in cover between two dated maps.
  • Compare actual use with designated use and report mismatches to an authorized user.
  • State map accuracy and resolution limits alongside any finding.

Moral aspects Filled

  • Land use decisions shape housing, food and nature, and the people who depend on the land should have a say.
  • Change maps can trigger penalties; misclassification can harm landholders who did nothing wrong.
  • Customary and indigenous land uses are often missing from official registers.

Who is affected

  • Landholders and farmers
  • Indigenous and local communities
  • Planning authorities
  • Residents near land use changes

Owners Filled

Steward

A national mapping or environmental agency maps land cover; planning authorities own land use designations.

Master systems

  • National land cover maps
  • Zoning and spatial planning registers
  • Land use statistics

Links to other meta-models Filled

parent

  • WM-PLC-002

What else AI and robots need to interact with it Filled

Identity and identifiers required Filled

  • A cover or use unit is identified by its map product and version plus a polygon or grid cell identifier.
  • A use designation is identified by the plan or zoning instrument and the zone code within it.
  • Land parcels referenced by use records are identified by cadastral parcel identifiers.

Direct properties required Filled

  • Area of each class or zone, in hectares or square kilometres.
  • Spatial resolution and minimum mapping unit of the map, in metres or hectares.
  • Observation date of the imagery or survey behind each class.
  • Classification accuracy as a percentage, per class where reported.
  • Vegetation cover fraction or imperviousness, as a percentage, where the system records it.

Recognition required Filled

  • Cover is recognized from imagery or field survey by vegetation, water, bare soil or built surfaces.
  • Use is recognized from plans, registers and activity on the land, not from appearance alone.
  • Grassland used for grazing and fallow cropland often look alike; built-up cover may hide several uses.

Capabilities and actions required Filled

  • Cover maps can be produced, versioned and compared across dates.
  • Use designations can be amended through the planning process and recorded with their effective date.

Hazards and failure modes required Filled

  • Misclassification leading to wrong statistics, payments or enforcement.
  • Unrecorded change, such as deforestation or loss of farmland, going unnoticed.
  • Conflating cover with use in planning decisions.

Standards and interfaces required Filled

  • INSPIRE Land Cover and Land Use data specifications.
  • FAO Land Cover Classification System and ISO 19144-2 Land Cover Meta Language.
  • OGC web map, feature and coverage services for map delivery.

Context of use required Filled

  • Used for spatial planning, agricultural payments, forest monitoring and greenhouse gas inventories.
  • Land use change is reported in national greenhouse gas inventories under international climate reporting.

Sources Filled

  1. ISO 19144-2 Classification systems, Land Cover Meta Language, International Organization for Standardization
  2. Land Cover Classification System, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
  3. INSPIRE Directive 2007/2/EC, European Union

Open questions

  • Planned model: boundary questions, research and every section remain to be written.

Machine files

Card as JSON Specification AGENTS.md Card backlog vercy.card/1

Provenance

planned (registry candidate) · todo

Built from: models/runtime-index.json, ver-cy/world-models/card-supplements/wm-ear-011-land-cover-land-use.json

Planned entry, hidden from the catalogue until researched.