Abstract
Spatial-temporal changes of land use and land cover in Luang Namtha Province in northern part of Laos was analyzed using Landsat TM (Thematic Mapper)/ETM+ (Enhanced Thematic Mapper) images from 1990 to 2010 since the opening of the Boten border adjacent to China. The results showed that: (1) “forest land—cultivated land—grassland” was the primary landscape structure. Woodland was the major land cover type, while paddy field was the dominant land use type replaced by rubber plantation in 2010; (2) since the opening of the border crossings in 1994, the rate and intensity of land use change were accelerated and enhanced gradually, especially in the recent decade. Woodland decreased significantly, while shrubland, rubber plantation and swidden land increased obviously. Rubber plantation and swidden land showed the fastest growth derived from woodland and shrubland, indicating continuous human activities and slash-and-burn farming; and (3) during 1990–2010, swidden land was mainly located in northern mountainous areas with frequently increased changing spatial distribution in the recent decade. Rubber plantation was mainly distributed in the border region of China and Laos with the expansion from the border region into the non-frontier of Laos with Luang Namtha City as the center. Woodland reduction was so obvious along the Kunming-Bangkok highway.
Highlights
Land use and land cover change (LUCC) is one of the important focuses in the area of global environmental change research because it is the significant component and the major reason of global changes [1,2]
Rubber plantation was mainly distributed in the border region of China and Laos, with the largest area in Sing District and Luang Namtha City (Figure 5e)
The land use degree comprehensive index increased from 201.76 to 208.66, and the comprehensive land use dynamic degree increased from 35.37% to 38.30%
Summary
Land use and land cover change (LUCC) is one of the important focuses in the area of global environmental change research because it is the significant component and the major reason of global changes [1,2]. LUCC is focusing on key areas, which have the important strategic roles in global changes (e.g., tropical rainforest), hot spots, which have active artificial and natural driving force (e.g., Beijing City), and vulnerable regions that have the fragile ecological environment features (e.g., ecotone between agriculture and animal husbandry) [3]. Along with the openness of neighboring countries and the enhancement of economic trade, border regions with geopolitical and geo-economic advantages with a special role in the international political and economic environment undergo dramatic LUCC, which significantly influences border security and ecological security. Roads and paved highways provide an economic impetus for industrial logging, agribusiness, mining, and tourism, which are the main driving forces of LUCC in tropical rainforests [15]
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