Mobile Application and GeoSpatial Technology in Urban Farming: Fid-Bau Portal

Mobile Application and GeoSpatial Technology in Urban Farming

Che’Ya, Nik Norasma / Abdullah, Wan Nor Zanariah Zainol / Roslan, Siti Nur Aliaa / Mohidem, Nur Adibah / Ariffin, Norazrin / Kemat, Nurashikin

Abstract

Food security is the main issue globally, affecting the Nation’s population. As an initiative to grow our food can reduce the demand in the local area or any shortage in the community area. Therefore, urban farming is a practical example of solving the issue. Combining Geoinformatics (GIS), Remote Sensing (RS) and mobile apps will help analyse the suitability of urban farming in the city and manage urban farming. Users can use geospatial coordinates on Geocoder using mobile apps and search for urban farming information. This method could help to search the suitability of urban agricultural areas by using geospatial technology, such as prediction from satellite imagery and spatial analysis. The involvement of the learning groups among community members will help investigate GIS or geospatial technology adoption in urban cities. The map can illustrate spatial information and the suitability of urban farming, and user can manage their farm using mobile apps. GIS can be used to screen the undefined farming area and suitability of the area and interview the local community. Classification of characteristics of urban farming such as scale, location, manpower, facilities, slope, water source, climate and type of crops can be executed. Remote sensing and GIS data can estimate the availability of ground and rooftop areas for urban agriculture. The rooftop area is the potential agriculture area instead of ground level merely. The fertile land was reduced due to usage for non-agricultural purposes, such as construction lands, without proper spatial planning. Therefore, urban farming can be implemented since users can use polybags. The stakeholders and government support urban farming and promote the benefits of urban farming activities to the community residential. The obtained result from GIS can help the stakeholders and policymakers plan the usage of empty land. Mobile apps help users monitor urban farming efficiently by installing sensors in the fertigation or hydroponic system. As a result, users can solely monitor their crops through mobile applications, and the dashboard will provide notifications or alerts to keep users informed.