Exploring relationships among landownership, landscape diversity, and ecological productivity in Kentucky

Abstract

Kentucky has varied landscapes favorable for different land use land cover and agroecosystem management. The changes in land use land cover concerning a change in landownership structure can potentially alter landscape diversity and ecological productivity. This research examined the relationship among land cover, ownership structure (small, medium, and large parcel), and ecological productivity in Scott, Morgan, and Graves counties of Kentucky. Landsat 4–5 TM and 8 OLI (30-meter) imagery were used for supervised classification, accuracy assessment, and change detection at the pixel level in the years 2001, 2011, and 2016 for major land cover classes. The correlations in landscape diversity were analyzed using parcel data and thematic maps. Ecological productivity was estimated using the MODIS-NDVI 250 m, 16-day mean composite data along with parcel data. The change in land cover was primarily noticed in the cultivated crops and water, cultivated crops, and forest and pasture in Scott, Morgan, and Graves Counties, respectively. There was a strong negative correlation among agriculture, forest, and developed lands. The parcel size was significant (p < 0.05) for most of the land cover classes, but the relationships were not consistent in all combinations of year and counties. The ecological productivity was significantly different (p < 0.05) between small, medium, and large parcels. Further research is needed on other driving factors so that appropriate policy and decisions can be set for sustainable agroecosystem management.