Increase In Built-up Area Research Articles

Assessment of Forest Transitions and Regions of Conservation Importance in Udupi district, Karnataka

The current study prioritizes regions of conservation importance at the disaggregated level in the Udupi district, Central Western Ghats, based on ecological, geo-climatic, land, and social aspects. Conservation importance regions (CIR) or Ecological Sensitive Regions (ESR) are the distinct ecological units with exceptional biotic and abiotic elements which need at most care and sustainable development. CIR prioritization at grid levels (5' × 5' grids or 9 × 9 km) acts as a spatial decision support system to better understand the forest landscape dynamics and planning. The analyses of forest landscape dynamics using the temporal remote sensing data in reveal an increase in built-up areas by 8.8% with a decline in forest cover, resulting in the rise in maximum temperature by 40C in Udupi district during 1990-2018. Multivariate statistical analysis is done to understand the role of landscape dynamics on the land surface temperature (LST). The correlation analysis shows an increasing trend of LST across the CIR region with r = 0.8 where CIR 1 indicates the lowest temperature and CIR 4 has the maximum temperature.

Assessment of the anthropogenic interventions and related responses of Karala River, Jalpaiguri, India: a multiple indicator-based analysis.

The sub-Himalayan foothill region is experiencing rapid land-use transformation over the last few decades resulting in the decay of several rivers such as Mahananda, Balason, Sahu, Rakti, Panchanai, Dharala, and Karala. A small rain-fed tributary of Teesta, Karala, has almost decayed in recent years but no notable assessment of its condition has been done to date. This study mainly aims to measure the intensity of human interventions and related responses of Karala through reach-wise, multiple indicator-based assessments. Initially, the reaches have been delineated by segmenting the river into 10 equidistant segments. Characterization of land-use and land-cover has been done for all such reaches. To determine the nature of hydro-geomorphology and water quality of the river 14 indicators are selected and categorized into 3 indices. According to the measured reach-wise mean (Rm), with the highest 4.70 (Reach 1) and lowest 2.21 (R9), it is clear that the need for restoration increases downstream since those areas portray massive deviation from least disturbed conditions (LDC). It is also revealed that the change in the bar area (ID7), vegetation condition (ID3), non-point sources of pollution (NPSP), and channel width (ID8) indicate also an alarming condition within the lower part of the river channel. It is evident that as the river approaches downstream, the natural state of landcover is lost due to intensive human intervention, mostly due to massive land-use transformation reflected in a 600% increase in built-up area in and around the Jalpaiguri region from 1990 to 2020. Hydrologically as well as ecologically sensitive rivers like Karala are the inseparable parts of the sub-Himalayan foothills. Degradation of such, due to, the human alteration would eventually disarrange the entire ecosystem. This easy-to-use, rapid, and coast effective methodology was found useful in distinguishing the extent of alterations by human intervention and the responses of such river systems.

Time-Series Assessment of Camp-Type Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining Sectors with Large Influxes of Miners Using LANDSAT Imagery

Mining sites development have had a significant impact on local socioeconomic conditions, the environment, and sustainability. However, the transformation of camp-type artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) sites with large influxes of miners from different regions has not been properly evaluated, owing to the closed nature of the ASGM sector. Here, we use remote sensing imagery and field investigations to assess ASGM sites with large influxes of miners living in mining camps in Bone Bolango Regency, Gorontalo Province, Indonesia, in 1995–2020. Built-up areas were identified as indicators of transformation of camp-type ASGM sites, using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index, from the time series of images obtained using Google Earth Engine, then correlated with the prevalent gold market price. An 18.6-fold increase in built-up areas in mining camps was observed in 2020 compared with 1995, which correlated with increases in local gold prices. Field investigations showed that miner influx also increased after increases in gold prices. These findings extend our understanding of the rate and scale of development in the closed ASGM sector and the driving factors behind these changes. Our results provide significant insight into the potential rates and levels of socio-environmental pollution at local and community levels.

The Impact of Rapid Urban Growth on Potential Groundwater Pollution in Ngemplak Sub-District, Sleman District

Ngemplak Sub-District is one of the administrative regions in Sleman Regency which has experienced quite intensive urban development. Based on several studies, this region experienced a fairly rapid change in landuse. This landuse changes has resulted in pressure on the natural resources in this region, especially water resources. The study aims to develop a strategy to maintain the sustainable function of land resources in the midst of massive land changes in Ngemplak Sub-District. This research uses landuse comparative method at two different times to identify rapid urban growth. Whereas to identify potential groundwater pollution, this research uses the GOD method which is use three parameters, they are groundwater occurrence (G), overall aquifer class (O), and depth to water table (D). Based on the results of data processing, there was an increase in built-up area in Ngemplak Sub-District from 2006 to 2015 amounting to 235. 58 hectares. This increase in built-up area is a trigger factor for the emergence of environmental problems, namely the exploitation of water resources found in this region. Based on the results of data processing using the GOD method, the overall potential groundwater pollution in the Ngemplak Sub-District is included in the extreme class.

Rural–Urban Transformation and Landuse Dynamics in Gunungpati on the Northern Flank of Mt. Ungaran, Semarang, Indonesia

Most of the northern flank of Mt. Ungaran is subject to intensive land occupation that makes landuse change inevitable. The research objectives of this study were to examine the spatial patterns of land-use dynamics from 1997 to 2018 and to analyze their impact on the rural–urban structure of Gunungpati sub-district using on-screen digitation. Rural–urban structure was analyzed based on landuse composition by area in each village. This research revealed that forest areas and paddy fields were decreasing year by year. Over the study period of 21 years, Gunungpati experienced deforestation of 1,777 ha and increase in built-up area of 1,295 ha, forcing shifting in rural structure. Most villages that were categorized as rural frame zones in 1997 had changed into urban–rural frame zones by 2018. This situation must be controlled, since much of Gunungpati territory plays a significant role as a groundwater recharge zone for the Semarang lowland area.

APPLICATION OF GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM (GIS) AND ANALYTIC HIERARCHY PROCESS (AHP) TECHNIQUE TO STUDY LAND USE CHANGES IN PENDANG, KEDAH

Urbanization process has a significant impact on land use planning. It not only affects major cities but also extends to small towns in rural areas where it has a significant role in providing urban services to rural communities. The expansion of urban areas also resulted in the loss of many agricultural lands as well as forests that are rich in natural resources. In both instances, the land use composition is substantially affected. This study uses a "mixed method approach" combining GIS spatial analysis and AHP technique to study land use changes, identify land use growth parameters, determine land use growth suitability areas and identify the direction of urban land use development. The study area is the town of Pendang, which is the main administrative centre for Pendang District, Kedah. The main findings of the study show that changes were not that significant during the period between 2005 to 2012. However, significant land use changes occurred during the period of 2012 to 2020, especially in agricultural land use, vacant land and even water bodies. These land use changes have contributed to the increase in built-up areas. The direction of development is seen heading north, south and southwest of the study area. Accessibility is a major factor influencing the growth of land use and development direction in the study area.

Spatial-Temporal Land Use and Land Cover Changes in Urban Areas Using Remote Sensing Images and GIS Analysis: The Case Study of Opole, Poland

Urban expansion is a dynamic and complex phenomenon, often involving adverse changes in land use and land cover (LULC). This paper uses satellite imagery from Landsat-5 TM, Landsat-8 OLI, Sentinel-2 MSI, and GIS technology to analyse LULC changes in 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, and 2020. The research was carried out in Opole, the capital of the Opole Agglomeration (south-western Poland). Maps produced from supervised spectral classification of remote sensing data revealed that in 20 years, built-up areas have increased about 40%, mainly at the expense of agricultural land. Detection of changes in the spatial pattern of LULC showed that the highest average rate of increase in built-up areas occurred in the zone 3–6 km (11.7%) and above 6 km (10.4%) from the centre of Opole. The analysis of the increase of built-up land in relation to the decreasing population (SDG 11.3.1) has confirmed the ongoing process of demographic suburbanisation. The paper shows that satellite imagery and GIS can be a valuable tool for local authorities and planners to monitor the scale of urbanisation processes for the purpose of adapting space management procedures to the changing environment.

Land Use and Land Cover Change Detection Using Remote Geospatial Techniques: A Case Study of an Urban City in Southwestern, Nigeria

Many cities in developing countries are experiencing ecosystem modification and change. Today, about 10 million hectares of the world’s forest cover have been converted to other land uses. In Nigeria, there is an estimated increase of 8.75 million ha of cropland and decrease of about 1.71 million ha of forest cover between 1995 to 2020, indicating that Nigeria has been undergoing a wide range of land use and land cover changes. This paper analyses the changes in land use/cover in Ila Orangun, Southwestern, Nigeria from 1986 to 2018, with a view to providing adequate information on the pattern and trend of land use and land cover changes for proper monitoring and effective planning. The study utilized satellite images from Landsat 1986, 2002 and 2018. Remote sensing and Geographical Information System techniques as well as supervised image classification method were used to assess the magnitude of changes in the city over the study period. The results show that 26.36% of forest cover and 44.48% of waterbody were lost between the period of 1986 and 2018. There was a rapid increase in crop land by 365.7% and gradual increase in built-up areas by 103.85% at an annual rate of 3.25%. Forest was the only land cover type that recorded a constant reduction in areal extent. The study concluded that the changes in land use and land cover is a result of anthropogenic activities in the study area.

Modeling the relationship between land use/land cover and land surface temperature in Dhaka, Bangladesh using CA-ANN algorithm

Rises in land surface temperature (LST) significantly impacted by land use/land cover (LULC) changes. The increase in LST massively impacted the urban biodiversity, ecosystem and population health. This study aims to estimate the changes in LULC classes and identify their impacts on LST in Dhaka city, Bangladesh using Landsat satellite images from 2000 to 2020. Based on the past estimated change maps of LULC and LST, the study finally predicted the future LULC and LST scenario for the year 2030. The support vector machine algorithm was applied to perform the LULC classification. Artificial neural network and cellular automata algorithms were used to predict the LST and LULC changes for 2030. Results suggested a significant reduction in vegetation cover (5%) and an increase in built-up area (14%) from 2000 to 2020. Due to this massive increase in built-up areas, the LST increment took place by 7.24 °C in the last two decades. The maximum temperature was recorded in built-up areas (34 °C), and water bodies (19 °C) exhibited minimum temperature. A strong positive correlation was found between LST and Normalized Difference Built-up Index (NDBI), where negative relation estimated between LST and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI). The predicted results for 2030 also exhibit significant loss of urban green cover areas by 13% and rises in built-up areas by 21%. The maximum LST will likely be increased by 9.29 °C in the predicted year. For ensuring sustainable urban development and minimizing the urban heat island effects, this study will play a significant role by providing effective guidelines for urban planners, policymakers and respective authorities of Dhaka city.

Impact of land cover change on land surface temperature over Greater Beirut Area – Lebanon

Remote sensing (RS) technology has been used together with geographic information systems (GIS) to determine the LC types, retrieve LST, and analyze their relationships. The term Greater Beirut Area (GBA) is used to refer to the city of Beirut and its suburbs which witnessed rapid urban growth, after the end of the civil war, in the last decade of the twentieth century, due to the increase in the number of its inhabitants, and the prosperity and development of sectors such as; industrial, trade, tourism, and construction. These factors led to a wide change in the land cover (LC) types and increased land surface temperature LST. The results showed an increase in built-up areas by 29.1%, and agricultural lands by 6%, while bare land, forests, and seawater decreased by 28.5%, 4.9%, and 1.9%, respectively. These changes caused large differences in the LST between built-up areas and other LC types. The highest LST recorded was in built-up areas (33.03°C in 1985, and 34.01°C in 2020), followed by bare lands (32.61 °C in 1985 and 33.49°C in 2020), cropland (31.23°C in 1985 and 32.17°C in 2020), forest (30.08°C in 1985 and 30.47°C in 2020), and water (24.97°C in 1985 and 28.15°C in 2020). Consequently, converting different LC types into built-up areas led to increases in LST and changed microclimate.

Analysis of the Future Land Use Land Cover Changes in the Gaborone Dam Catchment Using CA-Markov Model: Implications on Water Resources

Land use/land cover (LULC) changes have been observed in the Gaborone dam catchment since the 1980s. A comprehensive analysis of future LULC changes is therefore necessary for the purposes of future land use and water resource planning and management. Recent advances in geospatial modelling techniques and the availability of remotely sensed data have become central to the monitoring and assessment of both past and future environmental changes. This study employed the cellular automata and Markov chain (CA-Markov) model combinations to simulate future LULC changes in the Gaborone dam catchment. Classified Landsat images from 1984, 1995, 2005 and 2015 were used to simulate the likely LULCs in 2015 and 2035. Model validation compared the simulated and observed LULCs of 2015 and showed a high level of agreement with Kappa variation estimates of Kno (0.82), Kloc (0.82) and Kstandard (0.76). Simulation results indicated a projected increase of 26.09%, 65.65% and 55.78% in cropland, built-up and bare land categories between 2015 and 2035, respectively. Reductions of 16.03%, 28.76% and 21.89% in areal coverage are expected for shrubland, tree savanna and water body categories, respectively. An increase in built-up and cropland areas is anticipated in order to meet the population’s demand for residential, industry and food production, which should be taken into consideration in future plans for the sustainability of the catchment. In addition, this may lead to water quality and quantity (both surface and groundwater) deterioration in the catchment. Moreover, water body reductions may contribute to water shortages and exacerbate droughts in an already water-stressed catchment. The loss of vegetal cover and an increase in built-up areas may result in increased runoff incidents, leading to flash floods. The output of the study provides useful information for land use planners and water resource managers to make better decisions in improving future land use policies and formulating catchment management strategies within the framework of sustainable land use planning and water resource management.

ASSESSMENT OF URBAN HEAT ISLAND IN KADUNA METROPOLIS BETWEEN 2000 AND 2018

Urbanization is a major event in human history and there is no doubt the world is urbanizing rapidly and this is resulting in changes in temperature. This research aims is to identify changes in land surface temperature (LST) between 2000 and 2018. The technique used is the Landsat TM. The result of the land cover classification revealed a +15.93% increase in built-up areas, -27.21% decrease in vegetative cover, +11.19% increase in bare land and +0.09 increase in water bodies between 2000 and 2018. NDVI analysis showed a +0.02 and +0.17 increase in the maximum and minimum range and a +2.16 and -7.76 increase and decrease in maximum and minimum temperature respectively for LST. The finding revealed that the repelling of vegetative cover by built-up is an evidence of rapid urbanization taking place in Kaduna metropolis and a major driver of UHI in Kaduna metropolis. Conclusively, there is a correlation between the various land covers of study i.e built-up, vegetative cover, bare land and water body and LST in Kaduna metropolis between 2000 and 2018. Likewise, urban development has a major impact on urban climate particularly in the increase in land surface temperature which in turn contributes to the development of urban heat. This is true because changes in urban land cover tend to alter the spectral signature and emissivity of the urban surface as observed using remote sensing. The researcher suggests further studies should focus on the assessment of UHI under different land cover and micro-climate in Kaduna metropolis.

Monitoring the extent and impacts of watershed urban development in the Lake Victoria Basin, Kenya, using a combination of population dynamics, remote sensing and GIS techniques

Abstract Several urban centres of different sizes have developed over time, and continue to grow, within the basin of Lake Victoria. Uncontrolled urban development, especially along the lake shore, puts environmental pressure on Lake Victoria and its local ecosystem. This study sought to monitor the extent and impacts of urban development (as measured by population growth and built-up land use/land cover) in the Lake Victoria basin, Kenya, between 1978 and 2018. Remote sensing and GIS-based land use/land cover classification was conducted to extract change in built-up areas from Landsat 3, 4, 5 and 8 satellite imagery obtained for the month of January at intervals of ten years. Change in population distribution and density was analysed based on decadal census data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics between 1979 and 2019. A statistical regression model was then estimated to relate population growth to built-up area expansion. Results indicate that the basin’s built-up area has expanded by 97% between 1978 and 2018 while the population increased by 140% between 1979 and 2019. Urban development was attributed to the rapidly increasing population in the area as seen in a positive statistical correlation (R2=0.5744) between increase in built-up area and population growth. The resulting environmental pressure on the local ecosystem has been documented mainly in terms of degradation of lake water quality, eutrophication and aquatic biodiversity loss. The study recommends the enactment and implementation of appropriate eco-sensitive local legislation and policies for sustainable urban and rural land use planning in the area. This should aim to control and regulate urban expansion especially in the immediate shoreline areas of the lake and associated riparian zones.

The evolution of built-up areas in Ghana since 1975.

We use high resolution satellite data on the proportion of buildings in a 250x250 meter cell to study the evolution of human settlement in Ghana over a 40 year period. We find a strong increase in built-up area over time, mostly concentrated in the vicinity of roads, and also directly on the coast. We find strong evidence of agglomeration effects both in the static sense-buildup in one cell predicts buildup in a nearby cell-and in a dynamic sense-buildup in a cell predicts buildup in that cell later on and an increase in buildup in nearby cells. These effects are strongest over a 3 to 15 Km radius, which corresponds to a natural hinterland for a population without mechanized transportation. We find no evidence that human settlements are spaced more or less equally either over the landscape or along roads. This suggests that arable land is not yet fully utilized, allowing rural settlements to be separated by areas of un-farmed land. By fitting a transition matrix to the data, we predict a sharp increase in the proportion of the country that is densely built-up by the middle and the end of the century, but no increase in the proportion of partially built-up locations.

Built-up area expansion in the Wa Municipality of Ghana: implications for vegetation cover loss and fragmentation

ABSTRACT This study draws on the patch-mosaic model and uses geospatial and statistical methods to assess vegetation fragmentation specifically from built-up area expansion between 1990 and 2018 in the Wa Municipality of Ghana. The study finds that 0.19% and 0.33% annual expansion in the built-up area from 1990-2006 and 2006-2018 contributed to annual vegetation patch size variability (coefficient of variation in the patch size) of 1.82% and 120.97% from 1990-2006 and 2006-2018, respectively. Our results suggest that a higher rate of increase in built-up area would likely create larger quantities of intermixed vegetation and built-up patches.

Hydrogeological characterization of the Quaternary aquifer of south Bengal Basin in India and the impact of urbanization on the groundwater resources of the system

The study defines the hydrogeological framework of the Quaternary aquifer of south Bengal Basin, India, and the impact of urbanisation on the groundwater resources in and around the twin cities of Kolkata-Howrah. The estimated groundwater overdraft in 2016 was 408 × 103 m3/day, which lowered the piezometric surface by 34 cm. Due to the long-term decline of water levels at the rate of 13–37 cm/year, at some places the piezometric surface occurs below the base of the upper confining bed, generating unconfined conditions. This increases the chance of land subsidence and groundwater quality deterioration. The situation will worsen if the piezometric surface drops further due to over-pumping. The estimated land subsidence for a 1-m drop in the piezometric surface varies between 2.7 and 6.20 cm within the study area. The pre-monsoon groundwater trough represented by the −10 m isopotential line increased from an area of 19 km2 in 1985 to 285 km2 in 2016. Alarmingly, in just over three decades the area of the trough has increased by 15 times, at an average rate of 8.60 km2/year. The exponential expansion of the groundwater trough and the increased susceptibility of groundwater to hazards are the result of an increase of built-up area from 143 to 243 km2 between 1985 and 2016. The urbanization happened mostly in the western part of the study area, which has resulted in the shift of the −10 m isopotential line towards the west and it will further shift in the future.

Monitoring Land Use/Cover Change Using Remotely Sensed Data in Guangzhou of China

Land use/cover change (LUCC) has a crucial influence on ecosystem function, environmental change and decision support. Rapid and precise monitoring of land use/cover change information is essential for utilization and management of land resources. The objectives of this study were to monitor land use/cover change of Guangzhou of China from 1986 to 2018 using remotely sensed data, and analyze the correlation between artificial surface expansion and the gross domestic product (GDP) growth. Supervised classification was performed using Random Forest classifier, and the overall accuracy (OA) ranged from 86.42% to 96.58% and kappa coefficient (K) ranged from 0.8079 to 0.9499. The results show that the built-up area of Guangzhou of China from 1986 to 2018 continued to increase. However, the vegetation area continued to decrease during 32 years. The built-up area increased by 1315.56 km2 (increased by 439.34%) with an average growth of 41.11 km2/year. The vegetation area reduced by 1290.78 km2 (reduced by 19.99%) with an average reduction of 40.34 km2/year. Research has shown that the reduced vegetation area was mainly converted into built-up area. The area of water bodies and bare lands was relatively stable and had a little change. The results indicate that the GDP had a strong positive correlation with built-up area (R2 = 0.98). However, there is a strong negative correlation between the GDP and vegetation area (R2 = 0.97) in Guangzhou City, China. As a consequence, the increase of built-up area was at the cost of the reduction of vegetation area.

Assessing the Impact of Urbanization on Outdoor Thermal Comfort in Selected Local Government Areas in Ogun State, Nigeria

This study seeks to assess the land use land cover (LULC) and spatial-temporal trends of six outdoor thermal comfort indices in four Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Ogun state, Southwestern, Nigeria. Data used for this study are air temperature, relative humidity, cloud cover and wind speed which span from 1982 to 2018. These data were obtained from ERA-INTERIM archive. The 1986, 2000 and 2018 used for the analysis of the LULC were from the satellite imagery hosted by the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Landsat Thematic Mapper, Landsat 7 and Landsat 8 Operational Land Imager data of 1986, 2000 and 2018 to assess the changes that have taken place between these periods. Thermal comfort indices such as Effective Temperature (ET), Temperature Humidity Index (THI), Mean radiant temperature (MRT) and Relative Strain Index (RSI) were used. Rayman model was used for the computation of the three thermal comfort indices (MRT, PET, PMV). The results show decrease in vegetation, forest, and an increase in percentage of built-up areas between 1986–2000, and 2000–2018. A rapid increase in built-up areas in the three (Abeokuta South, Ifo, Shagamu,) of the four LGAs, while one (Ijebu East) has a slow increase in the built-up areas. The trend in the thermal comfort indices also shows that thermal discomfort had been on increase for the past 37 years and it was observed that the level of comfort has deteriorated more in the last decade compared to the previous decade especially in the built-up areas. This work suggests a framework for evaluating the relationship between the quantitative and qualitative parameters linking the microclimatic environment with subjective thermal assessment. This will contribute to the development of thermal comfort standards for outdoor urban settings. Also, the study will help urban planners in their decision making, and in heat forecast.

Impact of urbanization on flooding in chalakudy river

Extreme events like floods are a concern for any country in terms of the damages caused to life as well as property. The recent trend of unpredictable rainfall in India leads to significant changes in the flow of the river and basin characteristics, which contribute to the aggravation of floods. In the cataclysmic flood in the year 2018 in Kerala, the Chalakudy river basin was completely inundated. This region has undergone extensive environmental changes since the 1990s due to agricultural expansion, deforestation, increased urbanization etc. These indicate the need for conducting a hydrologic and land use/land cover (LULC) change analysis to identify the causes, effects and solutions to mitigate the devastating effect of floods. This goal is achieved with the help of Geographic Information System (ArcGIS) and a hydrological model (HEC-HMS). The results from the study shows that tremendous change in land use pattern has occurred over the past few decades and the notable among them is the 1003.9% increase in built-up area. The increase in flood peak of the devastating Kerala Flood 2018, exclusively due to this land use change/urbanization is found to be about 22% in this study area.

Landslide probability mapping by considering fuzzy numerical risk factor (FNRF) and landscape change for road corridor of Uttarakhand, India

Landslide poses severe threats to the natural landscape of the Lesser Himalayas and the lives and economy of the communities residing in that mountainous topography. This study aims to investigate whether the landscape change has any impact on landslide occurrences in the Kalsi-Chakrata road corridor by detailed investigation through correlation of the landslide susceptibility zones and the landscape change, and finally to demarcate the hotspot villages where influence of landscape on landslide occurrence may be more in future. The rational of this work is to delineate the areas with higher landslide susceptibility using the ensemble model of GIS-based multi-criteria decision making through fuzzy landslide numerical risk factor model along the Kalsi-Chakrata road corridor of Uttarakhand where no previous detailed investigation was carried out applying any contemporary statistical techniques. The approach includes the correlation of the landslide conditioning factors in the study area with the changes in land use and land cover (LULC) over the past decade to understand whether frequent landslides have any link with the physical and hydro-meteorological or, infrastructure, and socioeconomic activities. It was performed through LULC change detection and landslide susceptibility mapping (LSM), and spatial overlay analysis to establish statistical correlation between the said parameters. The LULC change detection was performed using the object-oriented classification of satellite images acquired in 2010 and 2019. The inventory of the past landslides was formed by visual interpretation of high-resolution satellite images supported by an intensive field survey of each landslide area. To assess the landslide susceptibility zones for 2010 and 2019 scenarios, the geo-environmental or conditioning factors such as slope, rainfall, lithology, normalized differential vegetation index (NDVI), proximity to road and land use and land cover (LULC) were considered, and the fuzzy LNRF technique was applied. The results indicated that the LULC in the study area was primarily transformed from forest cover and sparse vegetation to open areas and arable land, which is increased by 6.7% in a decade. The increase in built-up areas and agricultural land by 2.3% indicates increasing human interference that is continuously transforming the natural landscape. The landslide susceptibility map of 2019 shows that about 25% of the total area falls under high and very high susceptibility classes. The result shows that 80% of the high landslide susceptible class is contained by LULC classes of open areas, scrubland, and sparse vegetation, which point out the profound impact of landscape change that aggravate landslide occurrence in that area. The result acclaims that specific LULC classes, such as open areas, barren-rocky lands, are more prone to landslides in this Lesser Himalayan road corridor, and the LULC-LSM correlation can be instrumental for landslide probability assessment concerning the changing landscape. The fuzzy LNRF model applied has 89.6% prediction accuracy at 95% confidence level which is highly satisfactory. The present study of the connection of LULC change with the landslide probability and identification of the most fragile landscape at the village level has been instrumental in delineation of landslide susceptible areas, and such studies may help the decision-makers adopt appropriate mitigation measures in those villages where the landscape changes have mainly resulted in increased landslide occurrences and formulate strategic plans to promote ecologically sustainable development of the mountainous communities in India's Lesser Himalayas.