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1. Definition
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Name
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POPULATION
DENSITY
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Brief
definition
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Number
of inhabitants per surface unit within an administrative
region
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Unit of measure
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Number of inhabitants
per Km²
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2.
Position within the logical framework DPSIR
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Type
of Indicator
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The
indicator is closely correlated with the level of
human pressure to which as area is subjected. Therefore,
within the DPSIR framework, it is to be treated as
a factor of Pressure.
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3.
Target and political pertinence
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Objective
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Contribution
to prevention of land degradation or desertification
on the scale of the Mediterranean basin. Within the
agricultural structural vulnerability model proposed
by Maracchi et al (1998), for the moment applicable
only to the North African region of the Mediterranean
basin, population density is combined with the annual
or seasonal precipitation trend and with the agricultural
area in order to provide information on the structural
vulnerability of a given area.
|
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Importance
with respect to desertification
|
This
type of indicator constitutes a tool for socio-economic
analysis, which at different scales, local, national
regional and global, serves to identify the fragility
of an area on the basis of the human pressure to which
it is subjected.
|
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International
Conventions and agreements
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The
UNCCD emphasises the fact that combating Desertification
must be tackled within the general framework of actions
to promote sustainable development
Agenda
21: Chapter 12 - Management of fragile ecosystems:
combating desertification and drought
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Secondary objectives
of the indicator
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4.
Methodological description and basic definitions
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Definitions
and basic concepts
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Population
density is an indicator of how population is distributed
within a given administrative region. On the southern
shore of the Mediterranean, where this indicator was
developed, there are both completely unpopulated zones
and zones with more than 1000 inh km-2
(especially the costal zones and the Nile valley).
Obviously extremely high concentrations, such as the
one mentioned, make the affected zone particularly
sensitive even to the slightest agro-climatic variation.
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Benchmarks
Indication of the values/ranges of value
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Within
the model, the authors identify 8 classes of density
(<10, 10-25, 25-50, 50-100, 100-200, 200-400,400-800,
>800 inh Km-2) corresponding to increasing
human pressure and consequently to increasing vulnerability
of the land.
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Methods
of measurement
|
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Limits
of the indicator
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Linked
mainly to the difficulty of applying the same classification
in different socio-economic contexts. If it is true
that on the southern shore of the Mediterranean increasing
human pressure leads to an ever increasing exploitation
of natural resources, leading to the risk of desertification,
often on the northern shore the contrary applies:
in fact, abandonment of marginal land is one of the
main problems causing an intensification of land degradation
processes.
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Linkages with other
indicators
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To elaborate strategies
for action at the regional level, the model also considers
climatic data (annual and seasonal rainfall trends,
annual and seasonal temperature trends, variation
in the advent of extreme events and soil surface temperatures)
and data on land reserved for agricultural purposes.
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5.
Evaluation of data needs and availability
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Data
required to calculate the indicator
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National
level demographic statistics.
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Data
sources
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Data
banks available in the main national institutions
concerned with statistics.
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Availability of data
from national and international sources
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The necessary data is
easily available and accessible at relatively low
cost.
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6.
Institutions that have participated in developing the indicator
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Main
institutions responsible
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CeSIA
- Accadmia dei Georgofili
IATA - National Research Council
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Other
contributing organizations
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7.
Additional information
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Bibliography
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CeSIA
- Accademia deil Gergofili, IATA - National Research
Council, 1998. Classification de la vulnérabilité
structurelle. Une demo ŕ partir d'Internet. In: Workshop
Proceedings of: Desertification information system
for planning needs in the Mediterranean region, Marrakech
(Morocco), November 9-13.
Maracchi
G., Di Vecchia A., De Filippis T., Gozzini B., Meneguzzo
F., Tarchiani V., Vignaroli P., Zipoli G., 1998. Climate
indicators for desertification monitoring. Proceedings
of the International Seminar held in Porto Torres,
Italy 18-20 September, 1998: pp. 37-44.
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Other
references
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Contacts Name and address
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Maracchi G. - LaMMA,
Via A. Einstein n. 35B, 50145 Florence, Italy.
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