Carver, S. orcid.org/0000-0002-4202-8234, Konráðsdóttir, S., Guðmundsson, S. et al. (2 more authors) (2023) New Approaches to Modelling Wilderness Quality in Iceland. Land, 12 (2). 446. ISSN 2073-445X
Abstract
Much of Europe’s remaining wilderness areas are found in Iceland, yet few are formally protected despite ongoing threats from renewable energy exploitation and 4 × 4 usage. Robust and repeatable approaches are required to map wilderness landscape qualities in support of developing policy on designations that meet international standards. We present an approach to mapping wilderness that is based on internationally recognised methods and customised to suit the unique nature of Icelandic landscapes. We use spatially explicit models of wilderness attributes that measure human impact from vehicular access, land use and visible human features rather than relying on proxy measures such as buffer zones. Seventeen wilderness areas are identified across the Central Highlands and surrounding areas, totalling some 28,470 km2. These are compared to existing mapping projects. The character of these areas is described using additional spatial data models on openness, ruggedness and accessibility from settlements, together with information on mobile phone coverage and grazing patterns. This is the most detailed mapping of wilderness in Iceland to date and an important step towards the formal definition of boundaries of wilderness areas meeting IUCN Category 1b and Wild Europe Working Definition in Iceland.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/). |
Keywords: | wilderness quality; wilderness character; Iceland; Central Highlands |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Environment (Leeds) > School of Geography (Leeds) > Centre for Spatial Analysis & Policy (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 18 Jul 2024 10:44 |
Last Modified: | 18 Jul 2024 10:44 |
Published Version: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/12/2/446 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | MDPI |
Identification Number: | 10.3390/land12020446 |
Sustainable Development Goals: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:214908 |
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