GIS and remote sensing techniques to plan environmental linear parks

Abstract

In the linear parks bibliography most of the case studies show that park planning is done based on its history and particular attributes, without a methodology that can guide new projects. Thus, we considered the need to develop a methodology that can provide the framework for delineating linear parks. After evaluating current methodologies that have been used successfully in the environmental discipline, among which remote sensing and GIS, the current work proposes a methodological roadmap to define linear parks along rivers. This roadmap is based on thematic maps, which enable a suitability analysis generated from a multi-criteria analysis to allocate the linear park, followed by a pathway analysis to define the best area for the linear park. The current work was developed in a segment of the Corumbatai River , in Sao Paulo state, Brazil , and generated an 82.2km long path, occupying 15.79km 2, equivalent to 3.02% of the studied area. The results show that the proposed methodology is a powerful tool in planning linear parks, and its adoption should be encouraged