Classifying landscape in endorheic basins: a methodological approach for the implementation of the European Landscape Convention

Abstract

In this paper, we present a proposed methodology for classifying landscapes in the territorial areas of endorheic basins as well as for implementing the European Landscape Convention (ELC). The methodological sequence consists of two major stages: first, identification and characterization, followed by assessment and proposals. The objective in the first stage is the classification of the landscape into types and areas as well as its multiscalar integration and characterization. The objective in the second stage is to assess and establish the significance of the landscapes that have been identified and characterized in the first stage. This method has made it possible to establish a cross-sectional perspective for landscape analysis, by carrying out: an exercise in describing and analyzing the natural features of the landscape, and historical, socioeconomic and scenic-visual processes; a diagnostic exercise taking into account the transformation of the natural features of the landscape (the original ecogeographic units); and a forward-looking exercise, which aims at the assessment of the landscape and the possibility of implementing those proposals for action.