2.3.3 Ecosystems

Summary

Landscape classification is used to characterise the diverse range of water-dependent assets into a smaller number of classes for further analysis. It is based on key landscape properties related to patterns in geology, geomorphology, hydrology and ecology, as well as the associated land use patterns associated with human-modified ecosystems. The process of devising and implementing a landscape classification for the Maranoa-Balonne-Condamine preliminary assessment extent (PAE) used predominantly existing classes within data associated with aquatic and groundwater-dependent ecosystems (GDEs), remnant vegetation and land use mapping. Where appropriate, the approach (outlined in this section) has built on and integrated with existing classification systems. This section describes the classifiers or attributes by which landscape features are categorised and their corresponding rule sets for spatial data, which are represented as polygons (e.g. wetlands), polylines (stream network) and points (e.g. springs).

Most of the PAE (72%) is classed under the ‘Human-modified’ landscape group that includes agricultural, urban and other intensive land uses. For the remaining parts of the landscape, most (20%) fall into the ‘Dryland remnant vegetation’ landscape class that is not considered to be water dependent. The ‘Floodplain or lowland riverine (including non-GAB GDEs)’ landscape group covers approximately 5% of the PAE and includes almost half of the watercourses. Approximately 2% of the PAE and almost 40% of the watercourses are included in the ‘Non-floodplain or upland riverine (including non-GAB GDEs)’ landscape group. The ‘Great Artesian Basin (GAB) GDEs (riverine, springs, floodplain, non-floodplain)’ landscape group includes approximately 1% of the PAE and 13% of the watercourses. Aspects of water dependency and the vegetation communities associated with each landscape group are discussed.

Last updated:
16 October 2018
Thumbnail of the Maranoa-Baloone-Condamine subregion

Product Finalisation date

2016
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