Implementing
the Tool into the German Planning Routine
The Landscape Master Plan is a central element of the environmental planning
in Germany (KIEMSTEDT 1994). However, the planning process and the contents
of this twenty year old planning instrument is in a permanent state of
development as planning conditions and circumstances have changed significantly
over the years. The Master Plan has developed from a "service-plan” which
was completely designed by landscape architects to an instrument of public
participation. It has become a forum for discussions on ecological subjects,
guidelines and objectives and the way natural resources ought to be distributed.
The Bavarian Ministry for Landscape Development and Environment therefore
regards democratic and "citizen friendly” planning as the central task
for further development of landscape planning in Bavaria. Whether or not
pre-defined planning goals are achieved is very much dependent on the way
in which questions of landscape aesthetics and ecology, which compete with
other public and private demands, are presented to the city council and
citizens.
However, not only has the planning process changed but new demands on
landscape planning have come into existence. Besides the demonstration
of natural and scenic conditions, solving conflicts and developing long
term objectives are essential tasks of the landscape planning process.
Furthermore, there is an increasing amount of data to integrate into the
planning process, for example, we have access to ecological information
such as the extension and quality of biotopes, endangered species, water
quality and soil conditions. An innovative landscape planning process should
therefore meet at least the following two requirements:
-
new standards in handling and analysing more complex data; and
-
new standards in data presentation and mediation.
With respect to the idea of a democratic and citizen friendly landscape
planning process (LUZ 1995), the use of GIS in connection with multimedia
and Internet applications offers great potential for clear presentation
and mediation of planning results. Digital data and inter-medial presentations
enable planners, citizens and officials to communicate in a much better
way.
This initial investigation into the use of Multimedia GIS uses a Bavarian
Landscape Master Plan as its basis.
New Tasks and New Solutions
Today routine work such as writing reports, creating databases or table
calculations are already done digitally by landscape architects. The extension
of computer applications for the virtual tasks of landscape design, that
is, the cartographic inventory, assessment, planning and presentation of
geo-referenced spatial data, is the next logical step.
The traditional tasks of GIS are the analysis, and alphanumeric and
graphic presentation of spatial data (BILL & FRITSCH 1994). To "sensually”
extend the scope of conventional GIS, different kinds of digital data have
to be added. In order to define the term Multi Media GIS we have
to differentiate three groups of data by their source and format as follows:
-
Alphanumeric Data
-
Vector Data
-
Sound, Image and Video Data
Like the traditional GIS, Multi Media GIS focuses on using vector data
(BILL, 1996) but the data core is supplemented by alphanumeric, sound,
image and video data.