Analyzing land use intensity changes within and outside protected areas using ESA CCI-LC datasets

Abstract

Protected areas play an important role in protecting biodiversity and maintaining associated ecosystem services over the long term. In recent years, rapid expansion of agricultural land and settlement areas has occurred concurrently with significant changes in climate and land cover. Land-use/land-cover changes attributed to agricultural expansion and forest loss within and outside of protected areas have impacted on wildlife habitats. In this study, we selected the priority protected areas with the highest protection status (Category Ia protected areas established from 1993 to 2014) as study areas. The change rate of land use intensity index (LUII) within and outside (5 km buffer zone) of protected areas before and after the establishment was used as a criterion for determining land use intensity (LUI) changes of protected areas. Then, we used two indexes to specifically classify Category Ia protected areas. Our results showed that the establishment of protected areas avoided the increase of LUI within protected areas. The influence of the increase of LUI on protected areas in Europe was fewer than other continents. The proportion of protected areas that influenced by the increase of LUI gradually decreased from 1993 to 2014. Overall, this study reveals long-term trends related to the change of LUI within and outside Category Ia protected areas before and after the establishment, which provides basic data for current and future protected area management and conservation.