How well does the dasymetric method apply to urban spaces
ISBN 978-85-88783-11-9
Authors
1Dhieb, M.
1KING ABDULAZIZ UNIVERSITY - DEPT OF GEOGRAPHY AND GIS Email: mohsendhieb2003@yahoo.fr
Abstract
It is well-known that, when dealing with mapping the density of population, most of the proposed maps choose the easiest and probably the most understandable cartographic method, i.e. the choropleth method. Nevertheless, this cartographic method may lead to different results depending on the degree of the inner heterogeneity the studied spaces, their shapes, sizes. For spaces observing a high inner heterogeneity, it was proven that the choropleth method has many lacks and deficiencies related in the literature. A few cartographers prefer the dasymetric method since this latter describes more closely the reality of the population distribution even though this method is more difficult to implement. In most cases studies, the dsymetric method was applied to large spaces, whether national or regional, scarcely to urban spaces. How well this method may apply to urban spaces is the objective of this research. We try to discuss and implement this method to three different case studies: Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) Sfax (Tunisia) and Sabratha (Libya). Our goal is to give useful insights and help map users and particularly urban planners when using the dasymetric method instead of the choropleth. This can be done through the establishment of a solid and stable methodology that can be implemented through ArcGIS software.
Keywords
Dasymetric method; Urban spaces; Jeddah-Sfax-Sabratha