THE ROLE OF CADASTRES IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Ian Williamson
Emeritus Professor
Centre for Spatial Data Infrastructure and Land Administration
Department of Infrastructure Engineering
The University of Melbourne University
Australia ianpw@unimelb.edu.au
http://www.csdila.unimelb.edu.au/people/ian-williamson.html
ABSTRACT
Within the political debates about land policies, land governance, land markets, poverty reduction, land administration and sustainable development, the importance of the central role of the cadastre is often overlooked, or worse is taken for granted. While the cadastral concept is simple it cannot be trivialized since implementation of the concept is complex and difficult and requires the full support of both government and society in general over the long term.
This paper reviews the cadastral concept from the perspective of sustainable development and re-visits the reasons why countries wish to implement some form of cadastre, whether it is a high technology computerized system or a low cost fit-for-purpose system, even though the focus in this paper is on developed cadastres. It considers the importance of cadastre from an EU perspective. The marine cadastre concept is introduced.
In discussing the cadastral journey the paper explores the components of cadastre and their role in land administration processes. It highlights the cadastre as the engine of land administration systems and discusses the challenges facing cadastres.

INTRODUCTION
Today is an exciting time for cadastral reform.
In the developed world the majority of cadastral systems are complete with digital cadastral maps covering all land parcels linked in real time to land titles, land values and planning information. Importantly the parcels are linked to street addresses. Collectively this enables and underpins the spatial enablement of government and wider society in almost every aspect of human endeavor, from the support of land markets to environmental management, policing, recreation and emergency response, to name a few.
At the same time we see the growth of 3D cadastres that are supporting the development of smart cities and vertical villages. Marine cadastres are also developing with the extremely sensitive coastal zone being better managed and integrated across the land-sea interface.
The digital revolution, positioning technologies, smart phones and sensors all combine with and leverage off spatial enablement and the cadastre.
In the less developed world access to land, shelter, security of tenure, land markets and gender equity are just as urgent. The World Bank, the United
Nations, NGOs like the International
Federation of Surveyors (FIG), and governments and academics are continually exploring more efficient and effective ways to manage land, provide land governance and develop systems that are affordable and fit for purpose
(Figure 2).
Figure 1. The cadastral concept
(FIG, 1995)
While this paper recognizes the urgency and challenges to create cadastres in the developing world that are low cost and fit for purpose, this paper focuses on cadastres in the developed world. The paper does not apologise for this focus and leaves the wider global focus on developing cadastres as a basis for land governance in the developing world to others. In this context modern cadastres are sophisticated, use high technology and require highly trained government, legal and surveying personnel to operate them. They support effective land markets, support leverage to create complex commodities and support the broader spatial enablement of government and wider society.
While there are many challenges ahead, it is an exciting time indeed for cadastral reform in both the developed and developing worlds.

GeoTagging (Fliker, Google earth etc)
Social media
Report and fix incorrect map data
Personal interets
Systematic crowd sourcing
(VGI)
Open Street Map
Registration required
Authoritative data
Produced by state and federal government departments
Small scale
Aggregated
Less dynamic
Accurate data
Produced by local
Governmnets
Medimu to large scale
Current
Dynamic
AAA data
(Authorartative, Accurate,
Assured)
Large scale
Parcel based
Figure 2
Spatial Data Continuum from a fitness for purpose and quality perspective
(Williamson and other, 2012)
PRINCIPLES OF CADASTRE
The basic cadastre concept is simple (Figure 1) yet creation, implementation and operation is difficult and requires a long-term perspective. The cadastral concept has been debated at length and while in one sense the cadastre for each country is unique, there are common principles in all cadastres as summarized in the FIG
Statement on Cadastre (FIG 1995). These basic principles (see cadastral toolbox,
Williamson and other, 2010) relating to cadastral maps, cadastral surveying, marking cadastral boundaries, regulation of cadastral surveys and cadastral surveyors, and legal, management and access systems are often forgotten as not deserving of debate and discussion. Yet they are the
Sustainable Development
Built
Data
Natural
Data heart of the cadastre.
CADASTRES AND SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT
Figure 3. Integration of datasets to facilitate sustainable development
There has been a lot of talk over the decades about how cadastres support sustainable development. In this context the discussion usually adopts the four dimensions of sustainable development – economic, social, environmental and governance. In recent times cadastres have been closely linked to and seen as an important part of land governance.
At a very basic level, sustainable development requires the integration of natural and built (cadastral) data sets (Figure 3). At a more complex level the cadastre is seen as the engine helping deliver sustainable development (Figure 4).

Figure 4. The cadastral engine of sustainable development
The “butterfly” diagram
(Williamson and others, 2010)
Cadastral information is AAA information.
In order to fully understand AAA land information it is useful to remember the traditional roles of land registries, that delivered the land administration functions of registration and parcel identification that produced high quality and high integrity information, often guaranteed by government (AAA land information).
So what is AAA land information? It is:
−
Accurate – with on-ground truthing
−
Authoritative – created within a regulated legal environment
−
Assured – government guaranteed
−
Importantly provides an authoritative audit trail for other land information data sets and services
− Add to AAA land information the power of spatial enablement and the vision of a spatially enabled society and government becomes a reality.
The differences between AAA land information and other land information can be understood with the use of the spatial data continuum from a quality and fitness for purpose perspective (Figure 2). The continuum starts with VGI with lower quality and ends with AAA land information with the best possible quality.
The continuum also highlights the advantages and disadvantages of VGI and AAA land information. The data in VGI is sourced from citizens and AAA land information is sourced from government LAS, primarily land registries. In

between, spatial data with different levels of quality and integrity is created by wider society, the private sector, non-government agencies, local governments and mapping agencies.
The continuum is informed by a set of criteria for evaluating spatial information including lineage, positional accuracy, attribute accuracy, logical consistency, completeness, semantic accuracy, usage and temporal quality. Among the criteria, lineage plays a significant role in helping the users in assessing the suitability for a particular use. Even though the spatial data quality can be improved, understanding its fitness for use is a significant challenge for the users
(Williamson, 2011 and Williamson and others, 2012).
JUSTIFICATION OF CADASTRE
It is important to remember why we have cadastres and why are they justified.
They are initially expensive and are a long-term commitment of government.
Three examples are given below. The first is Australia where the cadastre supports the typical activities found in a well-developed system. The second looks at the European Union (EU) to review the role that cadastres play in the accession of Eastern and Central European countries to the EU. The third looks at a developing country or more correctly a newly industrialised emerging economy, Thailand. It looks at the justification of a large World Bank funded land titling project where the establishment of the cadastre was central.
Australia is a good example of a country that recognizes that the cadastre must evolve with changes in society and the economy. It is looking to the future at how the Australian cadastres (in the eight states and territories) can develop to better meet the needs of changing society. In this regard Australia through its
Intergovernmental Committee on Surveying and Mapping (ICSM) has just released a national cadastral reform and innovation strategy titled CADASTRE
2034 (ICSM, 2014). The vision is a cadastral system that enables people to readily and confidently identify the location and extent of all rights, restrictions and responsibilities (RRRs) related to land and real property.
Cadastre 2034 has five goals. Their purpose is to achieve a cadastral system that:
1.
is fundamental to land and property ownership and is sustainably managed;
2.
is truly accessible, easily visualized, and readily understood and used;
3.
is fully integrated with broader legal and social interest on land;
4.
provides a digital representation of the real world that is survey accurate,
3-dimensional and dynamic; and
5.
is a federated cadastral system based on common standards.
An important strength of Cadastre 2034 is the recognition of the basics. All too often aspects such as the digital representation of land parcels and properties, information delivery and access, survey marks, cadastral plans, the legal framework, standards and registered surveyors are overlooked.

The Australian cadastral system plays a critically important role in the economic and social prosperity of the country. As stated in the Strategy, at the end of 2014, there were $1.4 trillion in housing loans secured against land titles. At the same time the total value of all real property held in title in Australia is estimated as
$5.2 trillion. It is estimated that the best use of this national information asset benefits the national economy by $4.7 billion annually above normal growth.
The importance of the cadastral system is self-evident given that the size of the
Australian economy is $1.6 trillion (as at November, 2014).
Figure 5 – The importance of cadastre to EU countries
(Bogaerts and others, 2002)
One of the key requirements of the European Union (EU) for accession of Central
European Countries (CEC) to the EU is the establishment of free market economies that parallel the economies in Western Europe based on the adoption of the Acquis
Communautaire (Acquis) (the rules of the European Union). Central to this objective are the privatisation of lands and the establishment of efficient land markets. To this end the EU and many other countries and international organisations have committed significant resources to support land administration, and particularly cadastral projects, in Central Europe since 1992.

Land administration systems (with cadastres at their heart) played a key role in the accession of many Central European countries to the EU. Other key requirements for accession to the EU were the adoption of the Common Agricultural Policy, the protection of human rights, environmental sustainability and institution building.
Figure 5 (Bogaerts and others, 2002) shows a generic framework for land administration projects in support of accession to the EU. The basic role of cadastre in supporting this process is clear.
The last example is the well-known Thailand Land Titling Project supported by The
World Bank and the Australian development assistance agency (AusAID) that was undertaken in the 1980s and 1990s (Williamson and Angus-Leppan, 1985). The project included cadastral mapping, cadastral surveying and land titling, including the building of infrastructure and importantly education and training at both a technical college and university level.
The stated policy objectives of the project were:
•
Security of tenure and land markets in urban areas
•
Access to bank financing and on-farm investment leading to increased agricultural production
•
Social justice and reduction of boundary disputes
•
Poverty reduction
However it is also relevant that the project started in the northern and eastern provinces adjoining Burma,
Laos and Cambodia, areas where at that time there were often issues with insurgents, drugs and illegal border crossings. Importantly the project gave landowners documented title to their land, resolved boundary disputes and promoted civil harmony and national
Land
Coastal Zone
Administration
System (includes a cadastral component)
Marine Administration
System (includes a cadastral component) pride. The project was a success.
MARINE CADASTRES
Spatial Data Infrastructure
(includes cadastral data)
A simple but often overlooked aspect of cadastres is that they do not end at the waters edge. A good cadastre will span the land and marine zones and make the two administrative systems (and their
Figure 6. Seamless land administration system including the marine zone
(PCGIAP 2004) two cadastral components) compatible and seamless. Such a strategy is difficult since the two systems are usually administered by different government ministries. However such a strategy is essential if the extremely sensitive coastal zone is to be managed effectively. The concept is shown in Figure 6 that was the end result of a joint
FIG-PCGIAP workshop on marine administration (PCGIAP, 2004).

The concept is shown more clearly in Figure 7 that shows the marine cadastre concept and its relationship to sustainable development (Binns and others,
2004).
Figure 7. The marine cadastre concept
(Binns and others, 2004)
CHALLENGES AND CONCLUSION
One of the problems that face many well developed cadastral systems such as
Australia, is that after one and a half Centuries of cadastral endeavor, where excellent systems have been built and operate, is that the system(s) works so well. There is an ongoing challenge to convince our political masters that the cadastral system needs ongoing attention and improvement. It is not uncommon for them to question why we should spend funds to fix something that works!
What is often forgotten is that the cadastre and the over arching land administration system exists to support various policy objectives based on the humankind to land relationship. The reality is that humankind to land relationships is continually evolving due to social changes, policy changes, technical changes, economic changes and environmental changes, whether that is caused by global warming, the global financial crises, environmental

awareness or whatever. As a result the land administration system and its cadastral core must also evolve and change.
There have been recent cases such as in Australia where government has seen the cadastre and title registration as a “cash cow” ripe for privatization without government oversight and management – a very high risk strategy. While some governments have been supportive of research and development in the cadastral area, it is becoming increasingly difficult to convince them of the need for an ongoing commitment.
At the higher education level there has been a reduction over the years in the emphasis on cadastral and land administration issues in university degrees. This is not only an Australian phenomenon, but also an international trend with university programs that historically educated professional land surveyors reducing their commitment or even ceasing to exist. This undermines the capacity of countries to design, build and manage the modern cadastres needed for the decades ahead.
So I pose the question that the biggest threat to modern, efficient and effective cadastres is complacency. In fact it is remarkable how well the current cadastral systems have evolved in the developed world at a time when the political commitment to them appears to be reducing at both a government and educational level.
In summary, the three key messages I wish to give are:
• first, that all cadastres evolve in response to the changing people to land relationship, and as such must be continually re-engineered, fine tuned and improved;
• second, the importance to remember the basic principles and justification of cadastre, something commonly overlooked or even forgotten; and lastly
• the biggest threat to modern cadastres is complacency – simply governments often forget how important they are!
REFERENCES (all web addresses accessed 7 April, 2015)
Binns, A., Rajabifard, A., Collier, P.A. and Williamson, I.P. 2004. Developing the
Concept of a Marine Cadastre: An Australian Case Study . Trans Tasman Surveyor
No. 6, August, 2004, Australia. http://www.csdila.unimelb.edu.au/publication/journals/Developing%20the%2
0Concept%20of%20a%20Marine%20Cadastre%20An%20Australian%20Case
%20Study.pdf
Bogaerts,T., Williamson, I.P. and Fendel, E.M. 2002. The Role of Land
Administration in the Accession of Central European Countries to the European
Union . Journal of Land Use Policy, Vol.19, 29-46. http://www.csdila.unimelb.edu.au/publication/journals/The_Role_ofLA_(Europ eanUnion).pdf

FIG, 1995. Statement on the Cadastre. International Federation of Surveyors. https://www.fig.net/commission7/reports/cadastre/statement_on_cadastre.ht
ml
ICSM, 2014. CADASTRE 2034 - Cadastral Reform and Innovation for Australia – A
National Strategy, Intergovernmental Committee on Surveying and Mapping,
2014, 36p. http://www.icsm.gov.au/cadastral/index.html#nscri
PCGIAP, 2004. International Workshop on Marine Administration – the Spatial
Dimension. Working Group 3, United Nations sponsored Permanent Committee on GIS Infrastructure in Asia and the Pacific. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 4-6 May,
2004. Also see Williamson and others (2010) p207.
Williamson, I.P. 2011. Lessons for federated countries that have state land registries - the Australian experience. Presentation at the 11TH SOUTH EAST
ASIAN SURVEY CONGRESS and 13TH INTERNATIONAL SURVEYORS' CONGRESS
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia 22- 24 JUNE 2011. http://www.csdila.unimelb.edu.au/publication/conferences/Landregistriesand
AAAMalaysia.pdf
Williamson, I.P. and Angus-Leppan, P. 1985. A project for upgrading the cadastral system in Thailand . The Survey Review, Part 1-28(215):2-14; Part 2-28(215):63-
73. http://www.csdila.unimelb.edu.au/publication/journals/A_project_for_upgradin g_the_cadastral_system_in_Thailand_part-1.pdf
and http://www.csdila.unimelb.edu.au/publication/journals/A_project_for_upgradin g_the_cadastral_System_in_thailand_part2.pdf
Williamson, I.P., Enemark, S., Wallace, J. and Rajabifard, A. 2010. “Land
Administration for Sustainable Development”, ESRI Press Academic, Redlands,
USA, 2010. 487p. http://www.esri.com/landing-pages/industries/landadministration/e-book#sthash.Lp4BYcKW.qZ61YAce.dpbs
Williamson, I.P., Rajabifard, A., Kalantari, M. and Wallace, J. 2012. AAA Land
Information: Accurate, Assured and Authoritative . Presented at the 8th FIG
Regional Conference 2012, Surveying towards Sustainable Development,
Montevideo, Uruguay, 26-29 November 2012. http://www.fig.net/pub/uruguay/papers/ts01c/TS01C_williamson_abbas_et_al_
6278.pdf