Methodological proposal for the classification, characterization and qualification of landscapes: the endorheic basin of Padul (Andalusia) as a case study

Abstract

This paper presents a methodological proposal to classify, characterize and qualify landscapes in the endorheic basins and their associated wetlands. The methodology, which considers the possibility of implementing the European Landscape Convention, contains two stages: identification and characterization; and assessment and proposals. The first stage consists of the delimitation of landscape units and their classification in Types and Areas according to the methodology LCA (Landscape Character Assessment); characterization and multi-scalar integration. The second stage aims to establish an assessment and meaning of these landscapes based on their qualification and establishment of landscape quality objectives. The proposed methodology allowed us to establish a transversal perspective of the landscape analysis by carrying out: a descriptive-analytical exercise of the natural features of the landscape, historical-socioeconomic and scenic-visual processes; a diagnostic exercise based on the transformation of the natural bases of the landscape (geosystems or original ecogeographic units); and a forward-looking exercise, that contemplates the assessment of the landscape and its possibilities of action.