Sensitivity of a common Land Use Cover Change (LUCC) model to the scale (Minimum Mapping Unit and Minimum Mapping Width) of input vector maps

Abstract

Input maps are one of the main sources of uncertainty in Land Use Cover Change (LUCC) models. Such models are usually raster-based. Although extensive research has assessed the impact of the scale of input raster data in the modelling exercise, few studies have focused on the scale of input vector maps. This paper aims to investigate the effect that the Minimum Mapping Unit (MMU) and Minimum Mapping Width (MMW) of input vector maps have on a specific modelling application. To this end, we have set up different exercises with two input maps (SIOSE and CORINE) that have different MMU and MMW. Results prove the influence of these components of the scale on the simulations produced by the models. Modelled changes and quantities vary depending on the input maps. The modelled pattern is, however, very similar, despite the big differences between the reference maps.