Mapping and Assessment of Land Use and Land Cover for Different Ecoregions of Ecuador Using Phenology-Based Classification

Abstract

Land use and land cover (LULC) mapping are required by some government institutions to manage their natural resources sustainably at various temporal and spatial scales. Our study, set in Ecuador, use Sentinel-2 and Landsat-8 from 2017 to 2019 applying an adapted Phenology-Based Synthesis (PBS) method, which originally only classifies land cover, to additionally classify land use categories and eventually obtain LULC map in yearly period with different spatial resolution. Copernicus Global Land Cover map with 100-meter spatial resolution was used as a reference LULC map and provided a critical analysis on PBS classifications, which showed, a consistent representation of the LULC patterns, with vegetation and non-vegetation types well described across the country. Furthermore, we evaluated the LULC changes which showed conversion transition occurred in each class. Finally, entire Ecuador was mapped confirming that adapted PBS mapping approach could be considered as a reliable, replicable and low-cost LULC monitoring tool.