Miami Valley Land Suitability Assessment – Natural Environment Factors

2007

MVRPC Board of Directors

December 6, 2007

Study Overview

To assess Region’s landscape from a natural environment perspective as part of “Going Places: An Integrated Land Use Vision for the Miami Valley Region” Provide a comprehensive overview of sensitive natural areas in the

Region - Examine the presence and conditions of sensitive natural areas

Identify locations within the Region that are better suited for physical development than others

Study Boundary - 8 County Region

Land Suitability Assessment

Land Suitability Assessment (LSA) is a process for evaluating the suitability of land for development Identify locations within the planning area that are best suited to

particular types of land use based on land characteristics

MVRPC LSA Natural Environment Factors study Focused on natural environmental factors Compiled various natural resource data into one regional dataset

and conducted technical analyses Developed a land suitability scoring system Developed a systematic approach of aggregating each suitability

score into a total suitability score Developed a Natural Environment Factors Composite Map

Natural Environment Factors The study identified 15 natural environment factors covering 3

dimensions of:

Resources Forested Areas Ground Water

Pollution Potential

Ground Water Yield

Mineral Resources Prime Farmland Sole Source Aquifer Well Field

Protection Areas Wetlands

Hazards Floodplain Inundation Areas

Physical Impediments Depth to Bedrock Load Bearing Strength Slope Soil Drainage Surface Water

Definition Importance

Data Development Process Data Sources Data Findings

DaytonDayton

XeniaXenia

SpringfieldSpringfield

TroyTroy

LebanonLebanon

HamiltonHamilton

EatonEaton

GreenvilleGreenville

ButlerButler

PreblePreble

DarkeDarke

MiamiMiami

MontgomeryMontgomery

GreeneGreene

ClarkClark

WarrenWarren

Naturally Prime

Prime with Conditions

Not Prime

0 4 8 12 16Miles

Prime Farmland

38.3%

41.6% 20.1%

Naturally Prime Prime with Conditions Not Prime

Regional Land by Prime Farmland Classification

Sole Source Aquifer

Regional Land by SSA Classification

DaytonDayton

XeniaXenia

SpringfieldSpringfield

TroyTroy

LebanonLebanon

HamiltonHamilton

EatonEaton

GreenvilleGreenville

ButlerButler

PreblePreble

DarkeDarke

MiamiMiami

MontgomeryMontgomery

GreeneGreene

ClarkClark

WarrenWarren

0 4 8 12 16Miles

Class 1 SSA

Class 2 SSA

Non-SSA

10.1%12.0%

77.9%

Class 1 Class 2 Non-SSA

Natural Environment Suitability Measure Development

2 1 1 3 1 1 5 2 2

2 2 1 3 3 1 5 5 2

1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2

Sum of VariablesVariable 1

+ =

Variable 2

Conceptually, the Natural Environment Suitability Measure was generated by overlaying spatial data representing the Suitability Scores of all 15 factors.

Natural Environment Suitability Measure

Land with high development potential is characterized as: Having soils that are well drained, adequate depth to bedrock,

adequate load bearing strength, and no mineral resources Having high ground water yields Having flat or gently rolling slopes Outside floodplains, inundation areas, surface waters, sole

source aquifers, wetlands, and well field protection areas Outside forested areas and prime farmland

ButlerButler

PreblePreble

DarkeDarke

MiamiMiami

MontgomeryMontgomery

GreeneGreene

ClarkClark

WarrenWarren

DaytonDayton

TroyTroy

XeniaXenia

EatonEaton

LebanonLebanonHamiltonHamilton

GreenvilleGreenville

SpringfieldSpringfield

0 4 8 12 16Miles

High Development Potential

Low Development Potential

Natural Environment Suitability Measure

13.1%

70.6%

15.4%1.0%

High Dev PotentialModerate Dev PotentialLow Dev PotentialNo Dev Potential

Regional Land by Development Potential Classification

Comparative Analysis

Summary

The land in the Region is Mostly flat, dry land with adequate dept to bedrock and load

bearing strength Non-forested land with mineral resources not likely to present With medium ground water pollution potential Not within floodplain or inundation areas Significant amount of prime farmland with relatively good soil

drainage and ground water yield capacity Containing quality sole source aquifer with portion of the Region

designated as well-filed protection areas

Over 80% of regional land us highly or moderately suited to accommodate future land development

Conclusion

An assessment of the built environment must be completed in order to have a complete understanding of the Region’s physical landscape

The entire Region will benefit if development is planned and executed in a manner that takes advantage of our natural resources without threatening their quality

Land use planning at the local level should take into consideration the potential effects of development on natural environment resources so that the balance between the need to grow and the need to preserve environmental quality is achieved

GIS Data SharingMap Tools

Map Layers

Map

Study Report

Report available at www.mvrpc.org/rlu

For More Information

Contact Bethany Heim, GIS Specialist/Planner, at bheim@mvrpc.org