Land mosaics and landscape change 241(D) Change in mosaic pattern.Ongoing human activities and natural dis-
turbances keep the structure and habitat diversity of a land mosaic
changing over time, as land uses and successional-stage habitats ‘‘move
around,” even though natural resources of the whole landscape may be
in a degradation, meta-stable, or restoration trajectory.
(E) Greenspace in a changing context.All greenspaces change over time from
interactions with adjacent and more-distant land uses, with the inten-
sity or rate of flows/movements decreasing with distance and increasing
with direction of incoming wind/water flows, animal locomotion, and
human influences.
(F) Worst urbanization.Regional urbanization in dispersed sites surrounding
ametropolitan area, and to a lesser extent along transportation corri-
dors, appears to cause the most extensive nature-and-human resource
degradation (Chapter8).
(G) Best urbanization.Urbanization focused around satellite cities, which
causes the least overall resource degradation, appears to be the best
regional development pattern, though factors specific to a region
may indicate a preference for combining satellite-city development
with concentric-zone development adjacent to a metropolitan area
(Chapter8).
(H) Cumulative effects.Cumulative effects represent the combination of spa-
tially separate effects, previous effects at different times, and different
types of effects, and therefore a group of different and dispersed solu-
tions is normally required to significantly reduce or mitigate cumulative
effects.
(I) Time lags.Time lags reflecting the inertia or resilience of nature mean
that some ecological responses (such as biological diversity and popu-
lations of long-lived species) are delayed after a change, that some eco-
logical conditions today reflect earlier patterns, that mitigation may
be effective well after landscape degradation, and that a successful
response may be delayed after mitigation.
(J) Plan/design for long term.Aland-use plan which provides an adaptable
pattern to anticipate and respond to changes and which outlines broad
land-use areas or zones, with only spots designed in detail, is more likely
tobe a successful long-term plan.
(K) Region and local.Planning regionally for broad-scale patterns (e.g., large
greenspaces, highways) and then planning locally (e.g., neighborhoods,
aesthetics) to effectively mesh with them is likely to successfully address
both regional and local needs.