Abstract

The potential land degradation map will provide important information as a basis for decision-making in the management and rational land use for preventing the land degradation processes. The potential land degradation correlates closely with natural factors that involved in soil forming processes as bedrocks/parent material, weathering crust, topography, hydrology, climate and vegetation. The role of each of these factors are not equal in case of causing land degradation. This is the basis for applying multi-criteria analysis (MCA) method in order to assess potential land degradation. The intergration of GIS-MCA approach has been used to solve the potential land degradation mapping of Lamdong province. The study result shows that the sligh potential degradation is 130,398.3 hectares (accounting for 13.3% of natural area of the province); the average potential degradation is 534,608.1 hectares (54.7%); the strong potential degradation is 290,557.8 ha (29.7%); and very strong potential degradation is 21790.3 ha (2.3%).