The DEM Department of Planning and Development's data on
land acquisition includes all state land, as well as some private conservation
land and local land with which the DEM has formed singular independent partnerships.
However, these local groups and private groups preserve other land separately
from their partnerships with the state. It is difficult to determine from
private and local groups' data which land is counted by the state and which
is not. The data on privately and locally conserved land needs to be combined
with the data from the state and in order to be more easily analyzed, as well
as clearly marked which land is held in which partnership.
Land protected between the years 1995and 2000 is not yet
listed on RIGIS.
Land protected and listed on RIGIS includes all water bodies,
playgrounds, schoolyards, parks, picnic areas, all private protected land
and boat ramps and therefore is an inaccurate representation of the actual
protected open space in Rhode Island: DEM includes around 51,000 acres of
protected open space in its records, whereas RIGIS includes 120,462 acres
because of these inclusions.
Rural Character
Scenic quality is addressed purely as a windshield survey.
A more objective, updated method of analyzing scenic quality is needed if
it is to be taken more seriously into account in determining land preservation.
At this point, planners must find reasons to preserve land in other areas,
namely habitat preservation or recreational use, if certain parcels are to
be bought and protected. With a better, updated, popular survey, the state
may be able to use scenic quality as an equally valid reason for preservation.
"Scenic" areas should also be listed in RIGIS
for just Distinctive Landscape. It is important to determine if more of these
really special landscapes are protected, as opposed to Noteworthy and Distinctive
together. Maybe if an area is truly remarkable, it will be protected no matter
if it has habitat or recreational value.
The RIGIS map used for obtaining the agriculture and scenic
overlap data only has information on farmland up to 1995. Therefore, the amount
of farmland that exists today and is considered scenic has changed, but more
recent data was unavailable.