Resumen de Policy implications of LESA factor and weight determination in Douglas County, Kansas
The Land Evaluation and Site Assessment System (LESA) developed by the United States Department of Agriculture Soil Conservation Service is designed as an aid to local planning officials to protect important agricultural lands. Preliminary LESA development for Douglas County, Kansas indicates the overall usefulness of the model for its designated purpose within Douglas County. However, model development also indicates several inherent problems with the original system, stemming predominantly from arbitrary weight recommendations and predetermined factor suppositions which do not reflect the needs of a given planning area. The effect of these recommendations and suppositions are most evident when there is a conflict of scale due to incorporation of both national and local standards through the LESA model.
