Landscape functional mosaics

Every landscape has its own potential, which has to be deter�ined in case of any kind of spatial planning �eant to be environ�entally friendly. �nowing the potential is also i�portant during the evaluation of the effective or opti�al land use. �ny other way, planning and research will not produce realistic results. Nu�erous �ethods and tools can be applied for the evaluation of landscape structure and processes. �hough, basically two approaches are accepted. On the one hand researchers �ight concentrate on spatial relationships and refer to the potentials of the landscape (Bastian, Schreiber 1999). On the other, if the operation and use of a given spatial unit are considered, one �ight end up in a functional landscape analysis. �he functions are not only physical and natural categories, but they are able to also signify a certain type of potential. �ost frequently landscape functions are defined as the pendants of landscape structure and landscape potential with an e�phasis on functional and social relationships. �o be aware of the landscape functions is crucial during �anage�ent, thus planners �ust reveal these relationships if a well based pro��ect is expected. Besides, landscape functions have got an ele�entary role in deter�ining environ�ental risk, too (�ezősi, �lbrecht 2002). �he �ethods used for the spatial analysis of the landscape are well docu�ented; the question of scale and structure is broadly discussed. Nevertheless, the spatial extension and hierarchy of landscape functions is so�ehow neglected in the literature. �his is understandable, since the evaluation of functions as spatial �osaics raises a nu�ber of theoretical and practical questions. So�e of these are as follows. How can be an integrated/aggregate value understood fro� the aspect of the basic functions? What are the li�its of the theore� clai�ing that the analysis of functional �osaics �ust provide additional infor�ation on landscape quality and interactions? �he �ain goal of this paper is to explore the integrated value of functional �osaics; to evaluate their suitability for deter�ining risk; and to asses the applicability of landscape �etrics in the description of landscape functional �osaics.