Table 1 Land cover classification scheme and definitions
Land cover type | Description | Content |
|---|---|---|
Water bodies | All areas of water | Streams and canals, lakes, reservoirs, bays and estuaries |
Artificial surfaces | Land modified by human activities | Residential areas, industrial and commercial complexes, transport infrastructure, communications and utilities, mixed urban or built-up land and other built-up land |
Bare or sparsely vegetated areas | Areas with little or no ‘green’ vegetation present | Dry salt flats, sandy areas, bared exposed rock and mixed barren land |
Herbaceous vegetation | Areas characterized by natural or semi-natural vegetation | Grasses and forbs |
Cultivated land | Areas where the natural vegetation has been removed/modified and replaced by other types of vegetative cover that have been planted for specific purposes such as food, feed and gardening | Cropland and pasture, orchards, groves, vineyards, nurseries and ornamental horticultural, other cultivated land |
Shrubland | Natural or semi-natural woody vegetation with aerial stems less than 6Â m tall | Evergreen and deciduous species of true shrubs and trees or shrubs that are small or stunted |
Forest | Areas characterized by tree cover or semi-natural woody vegetation greater than 6Â m tall | Deciduous forest, evergreen forest and mixed forest |