Agro-Ecological Zoning for South West Selangor using Remote Sensing and
Geographic Information System


Abstract
MACRES has conducted a study on agro-ecological zoning of South West Selangor using the integration
of remote sensing and Geogrphic Information System (GIS). Five parameters - land cover/use, landform,
terrain, soil and climate were used for agro-suitability assessment adopting the procedure sin the UNFood
and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) document entitled 'Agro-ecological Zoning'. The land cover/use,
landform and soil layers were generated from visual interpretation of satellite data accompanied by
intensive ground verifications. The terrain layer was produced from a Digital Elevation model (DEM) derived
from digitized contour lines. Two climatic layers-duration of dry season and annual rainfall distribution were
generated through interpolation of point files digitized in the GIS. Crop requirements data were taken from
the FAO guideline with modifications to suit the Malaysian environment setting. Four crops - rubber, oil
palm, cocoa and paddy were assessed because of their socio-economic significance to the state of
Selangor, Malaysia. The agro-ecological zone (AEZ) map was produced using overlay analysis technique
in the GIS. The agro-land suitability map was generated by matching the crop requirements with the land
characteristics in each AEZ unit through cross-tabulation method, giving due considerations to the present
agricultural land use.