Abstract
The paper employed Remote sensing data in a multi-decadal assessment of vegetal to urban land cover transition along Lagos-Ibadan expressway. The forty-year assessment commenced in 1980 and ended in 2020. Landsat imageries acquired for the respective periods were subjected to supervised classification. Results reveal massive conversion of vegetated areas into built-up areas. The transition became pronounced from the second decade with 30,226 and cumulative of 48,455 Hectares of vegetation transforming into built-up area. During the third decade (2000 to 2010), additional 44,780 and cumulative of 93,235 Hectares of green area was converted into built-up areas. The largest transition was recorded in the last decade (2010 to 2020) during which vegetated area covering 50,827 Hectares was converted to living or industrial areas giving a cumulative transition of 141,065. In year 2020 Pearson moment correlation showed a high negative correlation with a coefficient value of -0.86. Hectares of vegetal areas into built-up or bare surfaces.
Highlights
The combination of satellite remote sensing and geospatial technics has been very useful in monitoring urban sprawl, forest transition and vegetation dynamics (Xie et al, 2008; Kumar, 2011; Mensah et al, 2019; Lechner et al, 2020)
The creation of the Lagos-Ibadan express way in 1978 in response to the crucial need to link the seaports with the hinterlands of the country opened up major parts of lowland rainforest in South-west Nigeria (Falako, 2017)
The land use/ land cover classification of the respective images acquired for 1980, 1990, 2000, 2010 and 2020 are presented in figures 3 (a-e); representing the five periods required to provide an overview of the land cover changes in four decades
Summary
The combination of satellite remote sensing and geospatial technics has been very useful in monitoring urban sprawl, forest transition and vegetation dynamics (Xie et al, 2008; Kumar, 2011; Mensah et al, 2019; Lechner et al, 2020). Et al, (2020) noted that capital cities will continue to absorb population influx from the country sides, with concomitant pressures arising from increased demand of industrial and residential quarters within city core (Lawanson et al, 2017). The implication of this for a city like Lagos is increased number and sizes of satellite towns around the metropolis. Pressures will mount up on the green belt regions around the city as well as in the neighboring communities The impressions of these pressures appear as changes in vegetation condition and alteration of physical landscapes (Gaston et al, 2013; McGrane et al, 2016). There is a very urgent need to protect the remaining precinct environments as part of the conservation plan in the country
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