Citation:
S. H. Hallett, D. M. Ozden, C. A. Keay, A. Koral, S. Keskin and R. I. Bradley, A land information system for Turkey - a key to the country's sustainable development, Journal of Arid Environments, Volume 54, Issue 3, July 2003, Pages 513-525
Abstract:
This paper describes the development by the General Directorate of
Rural Services (GDRS) of a land information system for Turkey,
namely the National Soil and Water Information System. It is of
great significance for the modern state of Turkey as, prior to its
establishment in 1999 under the Turkish Agricultural Research
Project, there was no definitive, national technological information
resource underpinning land and water resource management. The
system will underpin the operational and research responsibilities
of the Directorate in combating some of the pressing contemporary
environmental concerns in Turkey, including wind and water
erosion, waterlogging, sodicity and salination of the soil resource.
The complex process of compiling the first national digital soil map
will be among the initial tasks, as well as establishing a national
infrastructure for distributing the information amongst GDRS
managers and scientists. With the proposed accession of the
Turkish Republic to the European Union, alignment of the National
Soil and Water Information System with European standards and
protocols will prove to be an important facet of its ongoing
development.
