Transformation of land use and land cover and its implication to the local climate in Aceh Besar District, Aceh, Indonesia

Abstract

Many researchers claim that human influence on local climate change is unavoidable. Global climate change can cause catastrophic damage (disturbing human health, ecosystems, and socio-economic aspects). Characteristics of areas that affect rainfall, such as topography, slope, and land use and cover (LULC). This study aimed to specify the relationship between LULC changes and the local climate context in Aceh Besar District. LULC changes are analyzed with a transformation matrix. The method used to determine the occurrence of climate change is the Mann-Kendall Test, which looks at whether there is a trend in a data series based on the relative rankings of the data spanning 1992-2020. The Mann-Kendall test analysis results show that climate variables that change significantly on rainy days are weather temperature, humidity, and wind speeds. The statistical test results show that there has been a change in the local climate, as indicated by the variables of The Sen’s Slope Estimator test results in an increase in temperature of 0.002°C every year, and humidity increases by 0.01%. When viewed from LULC, one of the influences is changing (2000-2020) from forest, cropland, and bareland to built-up areas.