Visual Exposure Within the Dolni Morava Biosphere Reserve

Impacts on landscape character and tools for the support of decision making in the Czech Republic have always been important subjects in the sphere of landscape character and visual/environmental assessment. Only one publication could be found, however, that dealt with the use of landscape indicators for evaluating landscape character in the Czech Republic. In this study, we add to this by addressing the issue of visual exposure. In this project, we construct and compare two possible alternatives for computing visual exposure using GIS tools. The two alternatives differ in using a regular grid layer of viewpoints or of viewpoints based on actual use of frequented sites. The procedure was verified using the model area of the Dolni Morava Biosphere Reserve. The version based on most frequented sites produced a map with increased areas of visual exposure. This paper also goes on to suggest changes to the present regulations and other practical applications of the method.