Development of a map for land use and land cover classification of the Northern Border Region using remote sensing and GIS

Abstract

The land use and land cover study (LULC) play an essential role in regional socio-economic development and natural resource management to develop sustainable development in vegetation changes, water quantity and quality, land resources, and coastal management. This study uses remote sensing data to investigate LULC in the Northern Border Region (NBR) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The purpose of this study is to obtain a better understanding of the patterns and drivers of changes in LULC in the NBR over the past three decades. Remote sensing data from Landsat imagery between 1990 and 2022 were used to classify LULC types, and a time series analysis was performed using Landsat imagery to detect changes over time. The classification finds four main classes: bare land, built-up area, rocks, and vegetation. The results indicate a significant increase in urban development. The outcomes revealed that most urbanization occurred in the outskirts of the cities, where previously there were bare soil lands. The main drivers of urbanization were population growth and economic development. These findings have important implications for city planning, the management of green spaces, and the sustainable development of cities. Maximum Likelihood classifier was used to perform the classification. The accuracy assessment demonstrated satisfactory results, with an overall accuracy of 92.6%. The study paves the way for further monitoring LULC changes in the NBR geographic location. The technique used was adequate to address the objectives of this study.