Monitoring Land Use Changes Research Articles

Testing effectiveness in nature reserve management using GIS-based tools: a 25 years monitoring of land use change in a Mediterranean coastal wetland

Land-cover change dynamics were investigated in a Mediterranean coastal wetland to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of nature reserve management. A multitemporal analysis of land cover maps was conducted, utilizing visual interpretation of aerial orthophotos from the summer seasons of 1996, 2008, 2015, and 2021. Landscape changes were evaluated by transition matrices and chord diagrams. Maps were classified in accordance with CORINE land cover types at a fourth level of detail. The multitemporal analyses provided a comprehensive overview of landscape changes within the reserve over the past 25 years. The most notable changes were the increase of wetland areas and the reduction of agricultural and artificial areas. Moreover, seminatural vegetation constantly extended over time. These changes reflected the continuous management activities within the nature reserve, encompassing agreements for water supply, restoration projects, and measures to counteract illegality. These operational actions induced fine-grained ecological changes (outcomes at ecosystem level). This study highlighted the importance of remote sensing and landscape analysis, matched with fine-grained management data, as tool for long-term monitoring. Such an approach provides valuable support in evaluating the effectiveness of strategies promoted in nature reserves hosting wet coastal ecosystems of high conservation concern.

Monitoring of land-use change in 2 periods by using Remote Sensing Technology and Spectral indices

This research aims to monitor land-use change in 2 periods, i.e., 2019 and 2023, by using Remote Sensing Technology and band indices. Research methodology consisted of: 1) classifying land-use based on data obtained from Sentinel-2 satellite into 4 types including: agriculture, forest, urban, and water; 2) analyzing Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Normalized Difference Built - up Index (NDBI), and Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) as well as analyzing relationship between land-use and NDVI, NDBI, and NDWI; and 3) comparing land-use change of 2019 and 2023. The results revealed that land-use change in Mueang Maha Sarakham District, Maha Sarakham Province, in 2 periods of time was as follows: reduced areas were agriculture and forest, and increased areas were urban and water.

The effect of landuse dynamics on water balance components in the Upper Oum Er Rabia Basin, Morocco

The Upper Oum Er-Rbia Basin (UOERB) has been facing significant land use/land cover change and urban sprawl dynamics in recent years, in addition to significant climatic variability leading to disruption of precipitation intensity and quantity. Our approach is to identify the morphometric characteristics of the study region and monitor changes in land use and land cover by analyzing Landsat images. These factors form the input parameters for the HEC-HMS (Hydrologic Engineering Center - Hydrologic Modeling System) hydrological model for simulating daily historical hydro-climatic events. The classification of Landsat images shows that the Upper Oum Er-Rbia Basin has experienced significant landuse dynamics over the past 30 years, resulting in disrupted rainfall and recurrent flooding events. Overall, the hydrological simulation shows good agreement between observed and simulated flow hydrographs, with Nash criteria between 0.6 and 0.8. This knowledge enables us to better estimate the return flows in the catchment area, and to take appropriate action in terms of hydraulic management and development in the Upper Oum Er-Rbia Basin.

Balancing urban growth and the sustainability of groundwater and agricultural land: Case of the berrechid-settat area

Urbanization is an inevitable global phenomenon characterized by the exponential growth of urban areas in terms of both population and infrastructure. However, this rapid urban expansion often comes at a significant environmental cost. This article explores the multifaceted consequences of urbanization, shedding light on its role in contributing to desertification, compromising water quality, and depleting groundwater resources. To assess the scale of urbanization’s impact, comprehensive landuse studies are crucial. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing techniques offer valuable tools for mapping and monitoring land-use changes over time. These methods enable the quantification of the conversion of agricultural land into urban areas and identify trends in urban sprawl, providing essential data for understanding the scale of the issue. Water quality assessments are equally vital; we can employ water sampling and laboratory analyses to quantify pollutant concentrations in urban runoff and groundwater. Monitoring the presence of contaminants such as oil, chemicals, and litter, as well as their effects on water quality; helps measure the environmental impact of urbanization. Groundwater studies can utilize hydrogeological investigations, including the use of monitoring wells and geophysical methods, to evaluate changes in groundwater levels and quality. These data are instrumental in gauging the depletion of groundwater reserves and their potential contribution to water scarcity issues. In conclusion, the consequences of urbanization extend far beyond the confines of urban areas, affecting agriculture, ecosystems, and water resources. As urbanization continues to advance, it is imperative to develop sustainable urban planning and management strategies that mitigate its environmental impact, preserve agricultural land, protect groundwater resources, and ensure the long-term health of the planet.

A generalized control chart for anomaly detection in SAR imagery

Synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imagery is widely used in Earth observation (EO) applications such as land-use change monitoring and target detection. For such applications, it is important to have accurate knowledge of the statistical properties of SAR images to make good use of the information available. Therefore, it is essential to have appropriate statistical distributions to model the SAR data. In this context, the goal of this paper is threefold. First, a new parameterization of the Burr XII distribution that generalizes some widely used distributions for modeling SAR data is proposed. Second, based on the reparameterized distribution, a generalized control chart for anomaly detection in digital images is introduced. Using Monte Carlo simulations, the power detection of the proposed control chart by the empirical run length distribution is evaluated. Finally, the proposed methodology is applied to a real problem of anomaly detection. The problem of interest is the detection of military targets concealed in a forest region. The results suggest the relevance of the proposal to detect anomalies in SAR imagery, evidencing its practical applicability in EO problems.

Contaminated Groundwater by Nitrate in Sidoarum Village, Godean District, Sleman Regency, Special Region of Yogyakarta

Sidoarum Village, Godean District, Sleman Regency, Special Region of Yogyakarta become one of the developing areas for getting influenced by Yogyakarta City center which is only 8 kilometers away. Population growth has occurred from 2010 to 2019 which has led to land use changes from agricultural areas to residential areas. Land use change, population growth, incorrect space using, excessive use of fertilizers, agricultural activities, and industrial waste disposal affects the groundwater quality resources, especially nitrate (NO3) compound. This research was aimed to determine the distribution of groundwater quality based on nitrate parameters and to analyze the relationship between land use changing and nitrate concentrations in groundwater. This mixed-method research used to survey and mapping methods to collect the data. The analysis was conducted by laboratory tests and spatial analysis method using Arc GIS software. The sampling of groundwater was carried out by purposive sampling method based on differences in land use. The results indicated that most of the groundwater in Sidoarum Village has been contaminated by nitrate due to activity in agricultural areas like intense fertilizer application and farming in household-scale in densely populated areas, especially with the bad sanitation system. The distribution of nitrate contaminated groundwater was correlated to the types of land use. The monitoring of land use change is needed especially from the agricultural areas to residential areas due to excessive population growth.

Erosion and sedimentation analysis due to land use changes in the Krueng Pase watershed

Human interactions with watershed can have positive and negative impact. The positive impact can improve socio-economic conditions. However, the negative impact is the degradation of the watershed function. For example, it’s continued increase in erosion rate on the land. The purpose of this study is to analyze erosion and sedimentation due to land use changes using the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) and Modified Universal Soil Loss Equation (MUSLE) methods. Data collecting to determine erosion and sedimentation values are rainfall, soil erodibility and soil moisture, land use, and river water samples. The biggest decreased land use changes occurred in forest by 5.87%, followed by agriculture which decreased by 0.65% and water body 0.047%. On the other hand, built-up area increased by 0.65% and land used for agriculture increased by 6.15%. Furthermore, the level of erosion hazard in the Krueng Pase watershed from 2009 to 2019 increased in area, the mild level of erosion hazard increased by 7.9% and the moderate level erosion hazard by 27.4%. The amount of sedimentation obtained using the MUSLE method in 2019 was 6,869,98 tons and in 2009 was 41,692,97 tons. Erosion valuein 2019 is relatively small compared to other years. It’s really depends on the rainfall and the discharge that occurs. Therefore, a good land management system, proper and appropriate technology used, eco-hydrology concept and the monitoring of land use change regularly are needed, so damage that impact the Krueng Pase watershed can be prevented and minimize.

Land-use changes in Northern Ukraine: patterns and dynamics of illegal amber mining during 1986-2016.

Political instability and economic crises may trigger informal, unsustainable and often illegal land use, leading to land degradation. One of the most recent and striking examples of such a phenomenon within Europe is demonstrated by the Polissia region in Northern Ukraine, famous for its amber deposits. Amid severe political disturbances and subsequent economic recession in Ukraine in 2014 and 2015, amber mining flourished in the region. However, the extent and spatial pattern of degraded land caused by amber mining over the entire region has remained unknown. To fill this gap and track land surface changes, we used multi-source satellite imagery. We found a gradual decrease of the area without vegetation cover, as a proxy for degraded land, from the late Soviet period until 2014 in most of the analysed administrative districts of Polissia. In contrast to this, we identified substantial conversion of forest and agricultural land to bare soil that occurred between 2014 and 2016, which can be attributed to the rush of illegal amber mining in the region. The estimated total area of affected land on the produced Landsat-based map for 2016 was 1066ha, 60% of which occurred in 2014-2016. Land cover classification within a key study area suggests that utilization of very high-resolution images from the WorldView-2 satellite enables more accurate mapping of land degradation and identification of small mining sites. Further monitoring of land-use change caused by amber mining is essential to improving understanding of long-lasting environmental impacts on regional ecosystems and biodiversity.

Spatial variation characteristics of vegetation phenology and its influencing factors in the subtropical monsoon climate region of southern China.

Understanding the response mechanism of ecosystems to climate change and human disturbance can be improved by analyzing the spatial patterns of vegetation phenology and its influencing factors. Because the diverse phenological patterns are impacted by cloud cover contamination issues in the satellite observations, there are few remote sensing phenological research data in subtropical monsoon climate regions. To better understand the horizontal and vertical changes of vegetation phenology in these regions and how it may be affected by climatic factors and topographical features, we first extracted vegetation phenological information (such as start of growth season (SOS), end of growth season (EOS) and length of growth season (LEN)) from a reconstructed MODIS EVI time-series data. We then used geographic detectors to identify the influencing factors of phenology in different elevation zoning areas. We have found that in the Xiangjiang River Basin: 1) gradual changes in the longitudinal or latitudinal gradient of vegetation phenology were not obvious. Instead of horizontal changes, the variation pattern of phenology was similar to the striped river network of the Xiangjiang River. Earlier SOS mainly appeared in the areas far away from the river; later SOS appeared in the midstream and downstream reaches.2) Elevation played an important role in the regional differentiation of phenology. Boundaries at elevations of 320 m and 520 m distinctly separated the region into plain, hilly, and mountain vegetation phenological characteristics. 3) The impacts of climatic factors were quite different in the three vertical zoning areas. Precipitation was the most crucial factor affecting SOS both in plain and mountain areas. There was no significant factor affecting EOS in the plain area, but temperature had an essential effect on EOS in the mountain area. The hilly areas had a concentrated growth period with no significant factors affecting phenology. These findings highlight the importance of elevation in phenology at a watershed scale, enhance our understanding of the impact of climate changes on subtropical ecosystems, and provide a reference for further land-use change monitoring.

Temporal Land Use Change Analysis of Saleran Dam Catchment in Shivalik Foot-hills of Punjab using Geospatial Techniques

Mapping and monitoring of land use change in Shivalik foot-hills of north-west India is important for development, planning, and management of various catchments situated in this region. The present study was thus undertaken to monitor changes in land use of Saleran dam catchment located in Shivalik foot-hills of Punjab for the periods of 1999- 2009, 2009-2019, and 1999-2019 using remote sensing and GIS. The satellite imageries from Landsat-5 and Landsat-8 were used for change analysis. The supervised classification technique with maximum likelihood algorithm was applied to prepare land use maps of the catchment. Four major land use classes viz. mixed forest, degraded land, streams, and water bodies were identified. The accuracy of classified maps was assessed using high-resolution Google earth images, and ground realities were verified and determined through field observations. The results obtained from the accuracy assessment of classified images indicated the overall accuracy of 93.65%, 92.06%, and 92.86% with corresponding kappa values of 0.85, 0.89, and 0.84 for the classified image of the years 1999, 2009 and 2019, respectively. The results demonstrated significant changes in the catchment land use during the period of past 20 years (1999-2019), indicating significant decrease in mixed forests from 552.07 ha (74.87%) to 483.17 ha (65.53%), whereas an increase in degraded land from 142.39 ha (19.31%) to 221.1 ha (29.99%) was observed. The area under water bodies and mixed forest decreased by 36.49% and 12.48%, respectively, while the area under streams increased by 14.01 per cent. The study highlights the important policy implications for the sustainable land use management in the Saleran dam catchment of Shivalik foot-hills.

Evaluation of vegetation changes in desertification projects using remote sensing techniques in Bam, Shahdad and Garmsar regions, Iran

The face of the earth is always changing due to human activities and natural phenomena. Therefore, to optimize the management of the natural areas, knowledge of the trend, extent and estimation of land cover / use changes is considered necessary. Reviewing these changes through satellite images and evaluating their potential through modeling can help environmental planners and natural resource managers to make more informed decisions. In the present study, quantitative detection and evaluation of changes in vegetation were performed in the areas with combat desertification projects, Shahdad, Bam and Garmsar in Iran, during a 30-year period within 1987, 2002 and 2017. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and land use maps were produced using the Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+), Thematic Mapper (TM) and Operational Land Imager (OLI) satellite images in the three corresponding periods for the vegetation/non-vegetation, and agricultural lands. The Kappa coefficient of 0.83 to 0.86, 0.91 to 0.92, and 0.94 to 0.95 was calculated for 1987, 2002, and 2017 respectively, and the total accuracy was between 88 and 97. After providing the land use maps in different years, the monitoring of land use changes was investigated using the Change Detection method. According to the trend of changes during the periods, the results exhibited that the vegetated lands in these three areas had an increasing trend in average 31.33%, and the non-vegetated lands were turned to vegetated lands over time. In other words, they have declined by an average of 35%. Moreover, an increasing trend was found for the agricultural lands during the periods in average 4%. Eventually, the cost-effectiveness of projects implemented in the studied areas was calculated.

Monitoring land-use change using selected indices

This article presents various indices for describing the characteristics of land use and monitoring land-use change in various periods. These indices were either developed by the authors or were derived from landscape metrics. They were calculated for five selected sites of agricultural land (sites) for the time when the Franciscean Cadaster was introduced and for 2015. A comparison of the values of the indices revealed the changes in the selected sites, and the conclusions present an opinion on their suitability. It was found that the numerical values of the indices reflect visually detected changes in the graphic representation of land use, and they could therefore be introduced into the system for monitoring land-use changes.

Landuse change monitoring and population density analysis of Penjaringan, Cengkareng, and Cakung Urban Area in Jakarta Province

Rapid landuse change in an urban area is inevitable. Jakarta as the capital city of Indonesia is experiencing rapid landuse change. Jakarta is the centre of administration, economic activities, and entertainment pull people coming in to Jakarta. The dynamics of demography in Jakarta influences landuse change strongly. This research use three districts in Jakarta to see how landuse change over period of time. They are Penjaringan, Cengkareng, and Cakungsubdistrict. By combining landuse data, demographic features, and spatial data, such as satellite imagery, landuse change can be monitored and explained. The most significant landuse changes are industrial area and settlements. Both landuses are expanding. Meanwhile open spaces are decresing in size. This happens due to high demand of settlements caused by migrants coming in to work in industrial are. The result of this phenomenon is slum area in the city and lack of opened green spaces that can degrade environmental quality.

Characterizing urban area dynamics in historic city of Kurukshetra, India, using remote sensing and spatial metric tools

Developing countries like India are an urbanization hotspot with many upcoming towns and cities. Growth in small and medium sized towns and cities have been unnoticed and growing without appropriate urban planning. Utilizing the available medium resolution satellite data and geospatial platforms, the growth dynamics of Kurukshetra city was analysed over a period of 24 years. The study employed a combination of change detection technique and spatial metrics (six each of class and landscape levels) analysis to delineate the growth track of the city and its environs. A significant increase in urban built up (dense 237%; open 1038%) is seen majorly at the cost of open area (70%) and tree clad (58%). Phases of city’s aggregation and diffusion are observed using class and landscape level spatial metrics. Understanding and monitoring of land use changes in and around city limits using integrated spatial tools provide better decision making capability.

Spatial data analysis for the marine fisheries and habitat management of Sri Lanka

Satellite Remote Sensing (RS) can be effectively used for the fisheries applications, including stock assessment, management of marine resources and fish harvesting. Further, there is an extensive range of fisheries related applications of RS data, including identifying marine managed areas, detection of harmful algal blooms, bycatch reduction, long term monitoring of fisheries related habitat changes and control of illegal fishing. Applications on RS related to marine fisheries sector in Sri Lanka, seem to be meager. Limited studies have been conducted on the fisheries related ecosystem damage assessment using RS after December 2004 Tsunami disaster. To fulfill the gaps of research on coastal fisheries identified, the author conducted some research on habitat changes such as monitoring of land use changes and water quality at economically important estuarine environments around Sri Lanka using multi temporal satellite imageries. In these studies, several environmental issues have been addressed such as localized eutrophication, disturbance of water circulations and sudden fish kills etc. Furthermore, since satellite RS is a useful tool that could be applied for planning marine fisheries development in Sri Lanka, the National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA) is currently conducting forecasting of fishing ground using satellite data for off-shore/ high seas fishery, providing accurate information on large pelagic fishing grounds considering sea surface temperature and chlorophyll distribution. As illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing is a serious threat to the long-term economic and environmental sustainability of Sri Lankan oceans, RS techniques exhibit great potential for supporting to develop fisheries monitoring system around Sri Lankan waters which is timely important for control IUU fishing. VIIRS Boat Detection system of NOAA and Global Fishing Watch were discussed as the possible systems that can support the future monitoring and management of Sri Lankan marine fisheries sector. This paper summarizes the present RS related applications to the marine fishery sector of Sri Lanka. Further, it also provides guidelines for sustainable management of the sector that can result from RS, and identify existing applications which can effectively support the marine fishery management of the country.

Land Use Development of Vineyards in Goriška Brda, Slovenia

Land development analyses play a fundamental role in understanding how land use change shapes the land, depending on continuously changing social, economic, and environmental factors that reflect the interests in space. It is especially important to follow land use changes in rural areas due to their role in food security, environmental hazards, cultural landscape preservation, etc. Continuous analyses and monitoring of land use changes allow for the identification and prevention of negative trends in land use (over intensification, land fragmentation, etc.) that might affect biodiversity, change physical and chemical properties of soil, causing soil degradation, change the spatial balance, stability and natural equilibrium in the rural area. The use of the cross-tabulation matrix methodology was suggested for land use change analyses. The methodology, when the cross-tabulation matrix elements are correctly interpreted, allows us to gain as much insight as possible in the process of land use change. This approach enabled a detailed analysis of vineyards in Goriška brda, Slovenia. It was found that the existing methodology fails to analyse the location of change. For this reason, additional analyses of spatial distribution of change and of the locations where changes in space occur were suggested. The study demonstrated that the land use category of vineyards changes systematically, although seemingly randomly. By comparing land use categories over several time periods, the study determined that the size and speed of change varied across different time intervals. The identified land use changes were assessed in the context of their high pressure on agricultural land. The results of the analyses showed different trends shaping the typical agrarian landscape in Goriška brda.

Are Brazil deforesters avoiding detection? Reply to Richards et al. 2016

AbstractThe paper “Are Brazil deforesters avoiding detection?” recently published in Conservation Letters by Richards et al. 2016 has critical shortcomings and conclusions based on biased and not very robust analyses. Here, we provide clarifications to some of the most critical points regarding the monitoring of land use changes in the Brazilian Amazon and related greenhouse emissions. Such clarifications are relevant to the readers of Conservation Letters and to a broader audience that rely on sound and robust science for a better management of environmental issues.

Assessment of impacts of land use changes on surface water using L-THIA model (case study: Zayandehrud river basin).

Land use changes in a basin are the most important factors affecting its hydrology and water quality. A hydrological model is an effective tool in assessing the effects of land use change on surface water. In this study, the effects of land use changes in the Zayandehrud basin are estimated using long-term hydrologic impact assessment model. This model is applicable using long-term data on climate, soil hydrological groups, and land use maps. The study covered three land uses across 18years (from 1997 to 2015), and we used data on 30years of precipitation (from 1985 to 2015) in the model. The results of modeling revealed that the average runoff volume increased from around 5,765,034m3 in 1997 to 8,894,525m3 in 2015. The results also showed an increase in runoff depth. Land use changes over the study period showed an increase of residential areas, bare land, and agricultural lands and a decrease of pasture and forests. The results can be used to make decisions and monitor changes in land use to control the depth and volume of runoff. Using output maps helps in delimitation of the areas that have high runoff average and in implementation of the management plans for controlling the amount of runoff in these areas. Appropriate land use design can decrease impacts of land use changes including hydrologic effects.

Spatial modeling of urban sprawl around Greater Bhubaneswar city, India

In developing countries, where urbanization rates are high, urban sprawl is a significant contributor of the land use change. However, characterizing sprawl has become a contentious issue with numerous arguments both for and against the phenomenon. Meanwhile, effective metrics to characterize sprawl in India are required to characterize this. We have attempted to capture urban sprawl over the landscape and hence adopt landscape metrics, entropy and principal component analysis for characterizing sprawling process. The measurement and monitoring of land-use changes in these areas are crucial to government officials and city planners who urgently need updated information for planning and management purposes. This paper examines the use of landscape metrics and entropy in the measurement and monitoring of urban sprawl by the integration of remote sensing and GIS techniques. The advantages of the entropy method are its simplicity and easy integration with GIS. The measurement of entropy is devised based on locational factors-distances from central business district and reveal spatial patterns of urban sprawl. The entropy space can be conveniently used to differentiate various kinds of urban growth patterns. The application of the method in the Bhubaneswar Metropolitan Area, one of the fastest growing and planned cities in India, has demonstrated that it is very useful and effective for the monitoring of urban sprawl. It provides a useful tool for the quantitative measurement that is much needed for rapidly growing regions in identifying the spatial dynamics, variations and changes of urban sprawl patterns.

Conservation in Brazil needs to include non‐forest ecosystems

AbstractIn the past decades, Brazil made important progress in the conservation of forest ecosystems. Non‐forest ecosystems (NFE), in contrast, have been neglected, even though they cover large parts of the country and have biodiversity levels comparable to forests. To avoid losing much of its biodiversity and ecosystem services, conservation and sustainable land use policies in Brazil need to be extended to NFE. A strategy for conservation of Brazil's NFE should encompass the following elements: (1) creation of new large protected areas in NFE; (2) enforcement of legal restrictions of land use; (3) extension of subsidy programs and governance commitments to NFE; (4) improvement of ecosystem management and sustainable use in NFE; and (5) improvement of monitoring of land use change in NFE. If Brazil managed to extend its conservation successes to NFE, it not only would contribute significantly to conservation of its biodiversity, but also could take the lead in conservation of NFE world‐wide.