Areal changes in land use
With the exception of forest and woodland, there has been a sharp fall in the area of all natural forms of land use. In the last 50 years the percentage of farmland has also declined.
| Trends in areas of ecosystems | |||
| ha in 1950 | ha in 1990 | Change in % | |
| Agricultural area | 2 523 510 | 2 373 890 | -5.9 |
| Forest & woodland | 245 850 | 329 390 | 34.0 |
| Deciduous | 75 310 | 118 580 | 57.5 |
| Coniferous | 155 430 | 135 710 | -12.7 |
| Mixed | 15 110 | 75 100 | 397.0 |
| Nature areas | 262 670 | 146 040 | -44.4 |
| Marsh, bog & swamp | 43 600 | 47 530 | 9.0 |
| Salt marshes | 24 980 | 10 080 | -59.7 |
| Dunes & beach | 48 030 | 43 870 | -8.7 |
| Heathland | 110 840 | 35 820 | -67.7 |
| Active dunes | 7 340 | 3 540 | -51.8 |
| Raised bog | 27 880 | 5 200 | -81.3 |
| Built-up | 262 770 | 541 010 | 105.9 |
| Built-up area | 97 850 | 133 210 | 36.1 |
| Roads etc | 164 920 | 407 800 | 147.3 |
| Water | 782 500 | 664 770 | -15.0 |
| Total | 4 077 300 | 4 055 090 | -0.5 |
| Source: CBS | CBS/NC/Oct02 | ||
Trends
Between 1950 and 1990 there were striking changes in the area of the various types of land use. In particular, there was a dramatic decline in the area of salt marsh, heathland, active inland dunes and raised bog. By contrast, the area of forest and woodland increased in this period, largely because of an increase in deciduous and mixed plantations. In 1990 the total area of forest and woodland was 329 390 ha, of which 36% was deciduous, 41% coniferous and 23% mixed.
Technical note
The land use areas in 1950 have been calculated from the land use statistics; the areas in 1990 have been calculated from the vegetation map. As the classes in these sources were not identical, they have been adjusted. These differences also explain the slight decrease of total area in the table.
The areas of deciduous, coniferous and mixed forest and woodland have been calculated using the proportions of these forest types in 1993/1997. This entailed fixing the proportions of open/young forest at 50% deciduous and 50% mixed, This resulted in the following proportions: 36.0% deciduous, 41.2% coniferous and 22.8% mixed forest.
Part of the increase in the total area of forest between 1950 and 1990 is the result of trees on heathland, marsh, bog and swamp being included as forest in 1990. This accounts for about 20 000 ha. On the 1990 vegetation map the area of salt marsh is smaller than the area given in other sources (17 000 ha according to Koppejan et al., 1999). The disparity is largely due to differences in how ecosystems have been delimited.
References
- Koppejan, H., P.J.M. Melman, J.R. von Asmuth en D. de Jong (1999). Standaardvoorschrift kwelderkartering in Nederland. Meetkundige dienst rapport MDGAE-98-02. Delft.
- Kuiper, L.C. (2000). Nederlands bos in beeld. Stichting ProBos. Zeist.
- Leeuwen, N. van en A. van Strien (1997). Begroeiingstypenkaarten voor natuurmeetnetten. Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek. Heerlen/Voorburg.
- Meij, T. van der en L. van Duuren (2000). Veranderingen in oppervlakten van natuurtypen tussen 1950 en 1990. Kwartaalbericht Milieustatistieken 2000/2:10-15.
