Watershed Land Cover/Land Use Mapping Using Remote Sensing and Data Mining in Gorganrood, Iran

Masoud Minaei,Wolfgang Kainz

doi:10.3390/ijgi5050057

Abstract

The Gorganrood watershed (GW) is experiencing considerable environmental change in the form of natural hazards and erosion, as well as deforestation, cultivation and development activities. As a result of this, different types of Land Cover/Land Use (LCLU) change are taking place on an intensive level in the area. This research study investigates the LCLU conditions upstream of this watershed for the years 1972, 1986, 2000 and 2014, using Landsat MSS, TM, ETM+ and OLI/TIRS images. LCLU maps for 1972, 1986, and 2000 were produced using pixel-based classification methods. For the 2014 LCLU map, Geographic Object-Based Image Analysis (GEOBIA) in combination with the data-mining capabilities of Gini and J48 machine-learning algorithms were used. The accuracy of the maps was assessed using overall accuracy, quantity disagreement and allocation disagreement indexes. The overall accuracy ranged from 89% to 95%, quantity disagreement from 2.1% to 6.6%, and allocation disagreement from 2.1% for 2014 to 2.7% for 2000. The results of this study indicate that a significant amount of change has occurred in the region, and that this has as a consequence affected ecosystem services and human activity. This knowledge of the LCLU status in the area will help managers and decision makers to develop plans and programs aimed at effectively managing the watershed into the future.

Highlights

Land Cover/Land Use (LCLU) change studies have become an essential part of current plans for dealing with environmental and natural resource management across the globe, both by national and local organizations [1]
In 2006, and based on census statistics, about 600,000 people were living in six cities and more than 500 villages located across the Gorganrood watershed (GW) area [7]
Visual interpretation was integrated into the ISPRclSaIsnsti.fJi.cGateioo-Innfr. e2s0u16l,ts5,w5i7thin the Geographic Information Science (GIS) environment, to enhance the quality of the final maps

Summary

Introduction

Land Cover/Land Use (LCLU) change studies have become an essential part of current plans for dealing with environmental and natural resource management across the globe, both by national and local organizations [1]. As a result of population growth, agricultural and urban expansion, and a reduction in forest cover and rangelands, different types of LCLU change are taking place at an intensive level in developing countries [2,3]. Both [4] and [5] have confirmed the significant influence of LCLU change on the planet. To better understand environmental change and to identify the influence of LCLU changes on related events (for instance, natural hazards like floods, landslides), the use of LCLU maps can be seen as a necessary first step in the process [8]

Methods

Results

Conclusion