Significant Changes In Land Cover Research Articles

Attribution of Changes in Streamflow to Climate Change and Land Cover Change in Yangtze River Source Region, China

The quantitative attribution of changes in streamflow to climate change (CC) and land cover change (LCC) for the Yangtze River Source Region (YRSR), China, was assessed. We used a combination of the SWAT model along with the statistical technique one factor at a time (OFAT) and innovative trend analysis (ITA) to achieve the study objectives. The climate and hydrology data from 1961 to 2016 and land-cover maps of 5 years’ difference from 1985 to 2015 were used. The model was calibrated (1964–1989) using a land-cover map of 1985 and validated for 1990–2016. This validated model was further validated for all other land-cover maps used in this study. The SWAT model simulation showed that streamflow had been significantly influenced by CC compared to LCC using land-cover maps of 1985–1990, 1990–1995. However, the SWAT model simulations did not result in further changes in streamflow for land cover maps of 2000–2005, 2005–2010, and 2010–2015 because there have not been any significant changes in land cover after 2000 while the main contributing factor was climate change. The SWAT model simulations showed that the main driver of changes in streamflow in the Yangtze River Source Region is climate change. This study shows that the individual impacts are more critical than combined impacts for designing hydraulic structures, water resources planning and management, and decision-making policies at the regional/basin scale.

Spatio-Temporal Distribution Characteristics of Global Annual Maximum Land Surface Temperature Derived from MODIS Thermal Infrared Data From 2003 to 2019

Land surface temperature (LST) is an important parameter in the physical processes of energy and water balance at the local and global scales. Annual maximum composite of LST provides important information about ecosystem exposure patterns to extreme LST. It has the ability to characterize the changes associated with extreme climatic events and significant land-cover changes. In this study, the spatio-temporal distribution characteristics of global annual maximum LST extracted from the MODIS LST product (MYD11A1) during the period 2003-2019 were investigated. The results indicate that the spatial pattern of annual maximum LST is associated with the biophysical and biogeographic factors of Earth's ecosystems. The inter-annual variability of annual maximum LST during the period 2003-2019 is relatively small. The change trend of annual maximum LST during the period 2003-2019 in the globe is 0.1°C/decade. The annual maximum LST data was applied to detect thermal anomalies, including drought, heat wave, and ice melting. Some significant thermal anomaly events were well identified using the annual maximum LST data with standardized anomaly index larger than 2.5.

Shea ( Vitellaria paradoxa C. F. Gaertn.) – the emergence of global production networks in Burkina Faso, 1960–2021 1

After Burkina Faso's independence, shea butter continues to be the key staple edible oil used by Burkinabe households although alternatives are now being placed in local markets. Shea (Vitellaria paradoxa C. F. Gaertn.) is primarily managed as a food tree crop for African consumers but has been promoted as a wild and abundant crop which gives African women cash and empowerment. New international demand for edible Cocoa Butter Equivalents (CBEs) from the 1960s onwards led to the introduction of several state-led efforts to regulate and control the shea trade through stabilization funds and parastatal marketing boards. These were abandoned after 1984, when cocoa prices collapsed and shea markets were liberalized. Increasingly since 2003, several leading Trans-National Corporations that manufacture CBEs are involved in sourcing shea kernels to meet the growing demands of the multi-billion-dollar confectionary and cosmetics industries. Burkina Faso and Ghana are two of the main exporting countries producing 60–75% of all international shea offtake. West, Central and East African women shea collectors and their associations have also managed, more recently, to meet the growing demand for 'hand-crafted' shea butter for the global personal care sector and new niches in the edible oil industry. Attempts to explain the radical transformation of shea supply chains in West Africa have focused on relatively recent events and actions detached from the broader historical context in which they are embedded. This paper adopts a broad periodization, stemming from the formulation of CBEs incorporating shea and palm stearin in the 1960s, and using a Global Production Network approach to understand the role and position of women shea producers and their associations at the intersection of global, regional, and local periodic markets. It challenges the assumption that global markets are necessarily a more viable alternative to reliance on local, domestic, or regional markets. The growth of global trade in shea kernels and shea butter has been accompanied by significant land cover and land use changes which has led to the progressive loss of trees, biodiversity, and other ecosystem services such as pollination and carbon sequestration. This presents new socio-economic challenges, including threats to local food and nutrition security, tenure rights and the livelihoods of local communities.

EFFECTS OF HYDROELECTRIC DAM CONSTRUCTION ON LAND USE LAND COVER CHANGES IN BUI NATIONAL PARK, GHANA

Abstract The construction of hydroelectric dams in forest reserves has become a matter of concern for biodiversity conservationists. Spatio-temporal change of land cover in the Bui National Park was analyzed using indices calculations of the landscape based on land cover maps obtained from Landsat satellite images for pre-and post-dam construction periods. Significant changes in land cover following the dam construction were observed. Notable changes include the built-up areas and water body, while the forest area decreased. Significant reduction in rainfall and an increase in temperature were observed between the pre-and post-dam construction periods. Increased human activities within the reserve after dam construction could likely compound the changes in land cover.

Land Cover Change and Coastal Sustainability in the Coastal Area of Kendari Bay, Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia

Coastal areas provide invaluable resources which have important environment, economic and social value. These resources encourages growing population and development which induced rapid changes in coastal areas. This study aims to analyse the changes in land cover of the coastal areas of Kendari Bay to provide recent perspectives of how land cover has changed using Landsat TM and Landsat OLI images for the period of 1998, 2008 and 2018. The classified land cover classes are categorized as waterbodies, built-up, bareland, forest, wetland, vegetation and mangrove. The land cover map of each period was acquired from supervised classification using maximum likelihood algorithm in ArcGIS, then the land cover change was analysed through post-classification change detection of GIS-based method. . Accuracy assessment of classified images shows the overall accuracy is estimated as 88.71%, 85.81% and 91.61%, and overall Kappa coeffient statistical values of 0.87, 0.83 and 0.90 for the year 1998, 2008 and 2018 respectively. This study found that there was significant land cover change in the coastal areas of Kendari Bay. It was dominated by the expansion of built-up areas and bareland by 55% and 469.77% respectively, which was gained from the conversion of vegetation and wetland. Meanwhile, considerable reduction were shown in mangrove, wetland, forest and vegetation which have declined by 48.65%, 43.39%, 38.72% and 27.20%. Analysing land cover change is an effective way to understand the dynamics of land cover in coastal areas, and can be used for future land use planning and policies.

Mapping Land-Use/Land-Cover Change in a Critical Biodiversity Area of South Africa.

Land-use/land-cover (LULC) changes have implications for the long-term outlook of environmental processes, especially in the face of factors such as climate change. These changes can have serious consequences for humans. In this study, remote sensing and geographic information system methods were used to investigate LULC changes in a critical biodiversity area (CBA) in the northern sections of Limpopo Province in South Africa from 1990 to 2018 using data obtained from the South African National Land Cover project. In 1990, the dominant land cover comprised thickets and dense bush, followed by woodland and built-up areas, covering proportions of 40, 24 and 18% of the total land-cover area, respectively. Bare and forest areas were the least dominant classes during this time. In 2018, the dominant land cover was woodland, followed by built-up areas, comprising 71 and 20% of the total area, respectively. Subsistence agriculture is a land-cover class with a relatively higher area compared to water bodies, wetlands and other classes. Between 1990 and 2018, significant changes in land-cover were noted for thickets and dense bush, woodland, water bodies, subsistence agriculture and built-up areas. Woodland increased by over 1000 hectares (ha) per year, while thickets decreased by over 900 ha per year. Interviews were conducted with local residents to determine what they thought were the drivers behind the observed changes. According to these interviews, the drivers included deforestation, agricultural activities in wetlands, sand and gravel mining, among others. The study’s outcomes are critical for future land-use planning exercises and the long-term conservation of this CBA, an area rich in biodiversity and a strategic water source for the communities.

The Critical Effect of Subgrid‐Scale Scheme on Simulating the Climate Impacts of Deforestation

AbstractLand surface schemes (LSSs) in Earth System Models simulate how vegetation regulates land‐atmosphere fluxes of heat, water, carbon, and momentum. Despite advances in the spatial resolution of regional climate modeling, significant land cover changes occured at sub‐grid scale still not properly treated. Here, we investigate the response of evapotranspiration, representing the fluxes of heat and water, to deforestation in Southeast Asian Massif by employing three LSSs (Noah mosaic, Noah‐MP and Community Land Model (CLM)) with different approaches in representing sub‐grid variability, implemented in the Weather Research and Forecasting model. Two experiments, with and without satellite‐observed deforestation, were performed for each scheme. Results show that the simulations are highly sensitive to the subgrid‐scale approaches embedded in the LSSs. Compared with the observed historical climate, CLM outperforms other schemes and Noah mosaic shows the largest bias. However, if we target the simulation of the climate impacts of land cover change, the Noah mosaic scheme taking the sub‐grid approach can better capture the response of evapotranspiration to deforestation. The NoahMP and CLM schemes underestimate the evapotranspiration response in the grid cells where the dominant land cover type has not changed, but overestimate the response in those grid cells with dominant type changed, which is a characteristic of dominant‐grid approach. To improve our understanding of climate impacts induced by fine‐scale land cover change, future efforts to better represent subgrid‐scale variability and land‐atmosphere flux exchange in climate models are desirable.

Impacts of land use and land cover change and reforestation on summer rainfall in the Yangtze River basin

Abstract. Land use and cover have been significantly changed all around the world during the last decade. In particular, the Grain for Green (GG) program has resulted in significant changes in regional land use and cover, especially in China. Land use and cover change (LULCC) may lead to changes in regional climate. In this study, we take the Yangtze River basin as a case study and analyze the impacts of LULCC and reforestation on summer rainfall amounts and extremes based on the Weather Research and Forecasting model. Firstly, two observed land use and cover scenarios (1990 and 2010) were chosen to investigate the impacts of LULCC on summer rainfall during the last decade. Secondly, two hypothetical reforestation scenarios (i.e., scenarios of 20 % and 50 % cropland changed to forest) were taken based on the control year of 2010 to test the sensitivity of summer rainfall (amounts and extremes) to reforestation. The results showed that average summer rainfall and extreme summer daily rainfall decreased in the Yangtze River basin between 1990 and 2010 due to LULCC. Reforestation could increase summer rainfall amount and extremes, and the effects were more pronounced in populated areas than over the whole basin. Moreover, the effects of reforestation were influenced by the reforestation proportion. In addition, the summer rainfall increased less conversely, with the transform proportion of cropland to forest increased from 20 % to 50 %. By analyzing the changes in water vapor mixing ratio, upward moisture flux, and 10 m wind, it is suggested that this result might be caused by the horizontal transportation processes of moisture. Although a comprehensive assessment of the impacts of LULCC on summer rainfall amounts and extremes was conducted, further studies are needed to investigate the uncertainty better.

Assessment and Prediction of Land Use/Land Cover Change in the National Capital of Burundi Using Multi-temporary Landsat Data and Cellular Automata-Markov Chain Model

Gitega District has experienced significant land use and land cover changes due to human activity. This has increased land degradation and environmental issues. However, there is no data on LULC change to guide land-use planning. This study assessed the rate and magnitude of LULC change over the last 35 years and also simulated future scenarios using Geoinformatics. In the first step, five LULC classes were extracted from satellite images from 1984, 2002, and 2019 using the supervised classification method. Overall accuracy and Kappa statistics of more than 85% and 82% respectively were achieved with 30 reference samples. Change analysis highlighted by Land Change Modeler (1984-2019) indicated a significant increase in Agriculture of 94 km2, a slight increase in Shrub Land and Built-up Area of 5.5 km2 and 2 km2, respectively; and a steep decrease in Trees Cover and Grass Land of 62.5 km2 and 39 km2, respectively. Markov Chain and CA-Markov models were further calibrated to simulate LULC changes in 2038 and 2057 using the 2019 base map. Evaluation and analysis of 2019-2057 simulation results showed a moderate agreement of 75% for Kappa and the same trends of LULC change: Trees Cover, Grass Land, and Shrub Land will decrease by 11.5 km2, 13 km2, 11.5 km2 respectively, whereas Agriculture and Built-up Area will increase by 30 km2 and 6 km2 respectively in 2057. These study outcomes can support decision-making towards restoration measures of land degradation and long-term environmental conservation in the region.

INVASION OF SAVANNAS BY PROSOPIS TREES IN EASTERN AFRICA: EXPLORING THEIR IMPACTS ON LULC DYNAMICS, LIVELIHOODS AND IMPLICATIONS ON SOIL ORGANIC CARBON STOCKS

Abstract. Trees of the genus Prosopis from the Americas, were introduced in Eastern Africa in the 1970s to mitigate land degradation and its associated disservices. However, over time these trees have spread and invaded valuable grasslands and croplands and consequently led to significant land use and land cover (LULC) changes and livelihood stress. Early detection of invasive species is essential for formulating effective management strategies to prevent further spread into non-invaded lands and for monitoring the outcome of management interventions. We mapped the spatio-temporal evolution and dynamics of Prosopis invasion, its impacts on LULC and livelihoods in Baringo, Kenya by applying a Random Forest classifier on Landsat satellite data over seven-year intervals from 1988 – 2016. We then linked the LULC changes to soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks that we had measured for the different LULCs and also to socio-economic data on annual costs of clearing Prosopis from farmlands. By 2016, Prosopis had invaded 18,792 ha of land, spreading at a rate of 640 ha/yr, while all other land uses and land cover declined, each by over 40% of its original coverage in 1988. Through LULC specific SOC measurements, and relating the changes to annual costs of clearing Prosopis, we found that Prosopis removal and restoration to grassland is more effective for climate change mitigation compared to Prosopis “cultivation” while also avoiding trade-offs with other ecosystem services and livelihoods. Therefore, future management of this species in Kenya and Eastern Africa should be based on a more collaborative and integrated approach.

Mapping past human land use using archaeological data: A new classification for global land use synthesis and data harmonization.

In the 12,000 years preceding the Industrial Revolution, human activities led to significant changes in land cover, plant and animal distributions, surface hydrology, and biochemical cycles. Earth system models suggest that this anthropogenic land cover change influenced regional and global climate. However, the representation of past land use in earth system models is currently oversimplified. As a result, there are large uncertainties in the current understanding of the past and current state of the earth system. In order to improve representation of the variety and scale of impacts that past land use had on the earth system, a global effort is underway to aggregate and synthesize archaeological and historical evidence of land use systems. Here we present a simple, hierarchical classification of land use systems designed to be used with archaeological and historical data at a global scale and a schema of codes that identify land use practices common to a range of systems, both implemented in a geospatial database. The classification scheme and database resulted from an extensive process of consultation with researchers worldwide. Our scheme is designed to deliver consistent, empirically robust data for the improvement of land use models, while simultaneously allowing for a comparative, detailed mapping of land use relevant to the needs of historical scholars. To illustrate the benefits of the classification scheme and methods for mapping historical land use, we apply it to Mesopotamia and Arabia at 6 kya (c. 4000 BCE). The scheme will be used to describe land use by the Past Global Changes (PAGES) LandCover6k working group, an international project comprised of archaeologists, historians, geographers, paleoecologists, and modelers. Beyond this, the scheme has a wide utility for creating a common language between research and policy communities, linking archaeologists with climate modelers, biodiversity conservation workers and initiatives.

Forest cover affects gully expansion at the tropical watershed scale: Case study of Luzinzi in Eastern DR Congo

This study aimed at assessing the land use and land cover change and its effect on the gully expansion in an agricultural and woodland tropical watershed. We used the case study of Luzinzi watershed in South-Kivu, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where gullies are in development. We used very high-resolution (VHR) images downloaded from Google Earth and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) images. ArcGIS 10.7 software helped for spatial analysis and images georeferencing while ENVI 5.3 tools were used for classification. The gullies were then digitized and characterized to determine their width, length, depth, surface and volume. The digital elevation model (DEM) was used to determine the contributing area as well as the slope at the gully headcut. The land use at the headcuts and in the gully was extracted from the different land uses obtained from classified images and validated by field measures. Results showed significant changes in land use and land cover throughout the watershed; changes that affected gully expansion. From 2011 to 2020, number of gullies passed from 38 to 201. These gullies were increasing not only in number but also in characteristics such as gully length and headcut. Their volumes increased from year to year in the same trend as woodland and forest reduction. Forest played important role in gully stabilization: gullies located in forest presented a linear retreat rate (~4.6 m) than those in other land uses (~2.4 m) from 2010 to 2020. The forest cover reduced gully surface at linear rate while the depth rate still increased. A forest cover of ~10% led to a gully expansion of ~700 m3 yr−1 and reduced to 300-400 m3 yr−1 with 30% forest coverage. Thus, forest cover at the gully headcut and in the contributing area helped to stabilize gullies. The permanent maintenance of forest and woodland covers as well as the reduction of anthropogenic activities in gullies are to be promoted at the watershed scale along with other measures to contribute to effective land resource management in the region.

Monitoring land cover change in Karang Mumus Watershed, Samarinda City in 2006, 2014, and 2020

Land cover basically can change over time as a result of community needs. Moreover, it impacts environmental degradation, damaging the hydrological function of watersheds, such as an increased critical land. One significant change in land cover occurred in the Karang Mumus watershed. This study aims to analyze land cover changes in the Karang Mumus watershed in 2006, 2014, and 2020. The method used in this study is a spatial comparison of land cover changes in 2006 and 2014, also in 2014 and 2020. This study’s land cover data were obtained from manual digitization where 2006 was obtained from Landsat 5 imagery, 2014 from Landsat 8 imagery, and 2020 is obtained from the Sentinel-2a imagery. This study indicates that most changes occur in the Karang Mumus watershed middle stream into a settlement and bare land.

Climate Variability, Land Cover Changes and Livelihoods of Communities on the Fringes of Bobiri Forest Reserve, Ghana

Climate variability coupled with land use and land cover changes have resulted in significant changes in forest reserves in Ghana with major implications for rural livelihoods. Understanding the link between climate variability, land use and land cover changes and rural livelihoods is key for decision-making, especially regarding sustainable management of forest resources, monitoring of ecosystems and related livelihoods. The study determined the extent to which climate variability drives land cover changes in the Bobiri forest reserve, Ghana. Landsat images from 1986, 2003, 2010 and 2014 were used to evaluate land cover changes of the Bobiri forest reserve in Ghana. Participatory research approaches including household questionnaire surveys, focus group discussions and key informant interviews were conducted in four fringe communities of the Bobiri forest reserve. Findings showed that local people perceived changes in rainfall and temperature patterns over the past years. Historical rainfall and temperature data for the study area showed increased variability in rainfall and an increasing temperature trend, which are consistent with the perception of the study respondents. Analysis of land cover satellite images showed that there has been significant transformation of closed forest to open forest and non-forest land cover types over the 28-year period (1986–2014), with an overall kappa statistic of 0.77. Between 2003 and 2014, closed forest decreased by 15.6% but settlement/bare ground and crop land increased marginally by 1.5% and 0.9%, respectively. Focus group discussions and key informant interviews revealed that increased land cover changes in the Bobiri forest reserve could partly be attributed to erratic rainfall patterns. Other factors such as logging and population growth were reported to be factors driving land cover changes. The study concluded that the Bobiri forest reserve has witnessed significant land cover changes and recommended that alternative livelihood sources should be provided to reduce the direct dependency of fringe communities on the forest for livelihood and firewood.

A Spatio-temporal Study of Land Use Land Cover Change Detection Using GIS and Remote Sensing Techniques

Land resources in India are under severe pressure and it is widely believed that marginal lands are being brought under cultivation. The extent of such changes needs to be known for better land use planning decisions. The present study illustrates the spatio-temporal dynamics of land use land cover of Nagjhari watershed in Bhatkuli block of Amravati, Maharashtra. Multi-temporal high resolution of Sentinel and Landsat satellite data were used to identify the significant positive and negative Land use land cover changes over a decade of 2007 to 2017. From 2007 to 2017, the ‘habitation’ class increased by 34% due to increasing population pressure. There was a decrease in ‘wasteland’ by 10.3%, while the area under ‘agriculture’ decreased by approximately 4.7% because of the increased area under ‘habitation’ and ‘water body’ at Nagjhari watershed. The biggest change occurred in land use class ‘water body’ increased sharply from 2013-17 by 62.7 per cent due to consequence of state policy of watershed development that was implemented after 2014. The forest class recorded maximum loss (18.3%) due to increasing population maximum land converted into habitation. The study shows overall classification accuracy as 85.46% and kappa coefficient (K) of 0.85. Kappa coefficient indicated that land use land cover assessment from remote sensing data show the best accuracy. These finding will help in deciding land use policy for future and its impact on land management of the watershed.

Hydrological regime, water availability and land use/land cover change impact on the water balance in a large agriculture basin in the Southern Brazilian Amazon

The Southern Brazilian Amazon, in the North of Mato Grosso state, has experienced significant changes in land use and cover, which can cause major changes in its hydrological regime. Moreover, data availability and technical support are very scarce in the region, which has been causing serious problems and eminent water conflicts. This study assessed the hydrological regime, water availability, and the impact of land use/land cover (LULC) change in a large agriculture river basin in the Southern agricultural frontier of the Brazilian Amazon. The water balance components such as runoff potential, evapotranspiration, lateral flow and groundwater contribution of the Upper Teles Pires basin have been simulated under different LULC scenarios using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). Overall, the SWAT model performed well and was able to reproduce the flow regime adequately for the Upper Teles Pires basin, demonstrating robustness even within a data-sparse basin. The forest conversion to agriculture use has directly impacted the surface runoff and groundwater contribution of the Upper Teles Pires basin from 1986 to 2014, increasing by 30.8% and decreasing by 5.29%, respectively. From 1986 to 2006, a 5% forest change causes a 17% (9.2 mm) change in the runoff, which represented 6.5% of the total runoff in the basin from 1986 to 2006. The information provided in this study would help local authorities and decision-makers to plan water resources strategies in this basin of strategic importance for Brazilian agriculture.

Influence of Land Use and Land Cover Change on Land surface temperature

The rapid urbanization process has recently led to significant land use and land cover (LULC) changes, thereby affecting the climate and the environment. The purpose of this study is to analyze the LULC changes in Hefei City, Anhui Province, and their relationship with land surface temperature (LST). To achieve this goal, multitemporal Landsat data were used to monitor the LULC and LST between 2005 and 2015. The study also used correlation analysis to analyze the relationship between LST, LULC, and other spectral indices (NDVI, NDBI, and NDWI). The results show that the built-up land has expanded significantly, transforming from 488.26 km2 in 2005 to 575.64 km2 in 2015. It further shows that the mean LST in Hefei city has increased from 284.0 K in 2005 to 285.86 K in 2015. The results also indicate that there is a positive correlation between LST and NDVI and NDBI, while there is a negative correlation between LST and NDWI. This means that urban expansion and reduced water bodies will lead to an increase in LST.

Evaluation of Abiotic Controls on Windthrow Disturbance Using a Generalized Additive Model: A Case Study of the Tatra National Park, Slovakia

Windthrows are the most important type of disturbance occurring in the forests of Central Europe. On 19 November 2004, the strong northeastern katabatic winds caused significant damage and land cover change to more than 126 km2 of spruce forests in the Tatra National Park. The risk of subsequent soil erosion and accelerated runoff has increased in the affected habitats. Similar situations may reoccur this century as a consequence of climate change. A geographical approach and detailed research of the damaged area with more comprehensive statistical analyses of 47 independent variables will help us to obtain a deeper insight into the problem of windthrow disturbances. The results are based on a detailed investigation of the damaged stands, soil, and topography. A comprehensive input dataset enabled the evaluation of abiotic controls on windthrow disturbance through the use of a generalized additive model (GAM). The GAM revealed causal linear and nonlinear relationships between the local dependent quantitative variables (the damage index and the uprooting index) and independent variables (various soil and topography properties). Our model explains 69% of the deviance of the total damage. The distribution of the wind force depended upon the topographical position—mainly on the distance from the slope’s foot lines. The soil properties (mainly the soil skeleton, i.e., rock fragments in stony soils) affect the rate and manner of damage (uprooting), especially on sites with less wind force. Stem breakage with no relation to the soil prevailed in places with high force winds. The largest number of uprooted trees was recorded in localities without a soil skeleton. The spruce’s waterlogged shallow root system is significantly prone to uprooting. The comprehensive research found a significant relationship between the abiotic variables and two different measures of forest damage, and can expand the knowledge on wind impact in Central European forests.

Effect of Land Use and Land Cover Change on the Changes in Net Primary Productivity in Karst Areas of Southwest China: A Case Study of Huanjiang Maonan Autonomous County

Karst areas in southwest China have experienced significant land cover and land use change (LUCC) due to utilization for human activity and a comprehensive rocky desertification control project (RDCP) since 2008. It is important to quantify the effect of LUCC on ecosystem productivity in this region for assessing the overall benefit of this ecological restoration project. In this study, we used using MODIS land cover and NPP products to investigate the relative contribution of LUCC to the change in net primary productivity (NPP) during 2008–2013 in Huanjiang County, one of first one hundred pilot counties to implement RDCP. Our results show that NPP increased in 95.53% of the county, and the average growth of NPP in non-rocky desertification area was higher than in rocky desertification or potential rocky desertification areas. LUCC has an important contribution (25.23%) to the NPP increase in the county, especially in the LUCC area (70.97%), which increased the average NPP by 3.9% and 10.5%, respectively. Across the six RDCP regions in the county, the average increase in NPP for the vegetation restoration measure of governed karst area is significantly greater than in the ungoverned karst area, and the positive change in NPP increased with the increasing implementation area of the vegetation restoration measure.

An Assessment of Environmental Impacts on the Ecosystem Services: Study on the Bagmati Basin of Nepal

The upsurges in population, internal migration, and various development works have caused significant land use and land cover (LULC) changes in the Bagmati Basin of Nepal. The effects of climate change such as increased precipitation and temperature are affecting the provision of ecosystem services (ES). In this regard, this study particularly treated water yield (WY), soil loss, nitrogen export, and carbon fluctuation in the basin. Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) tools were used to carry out a comparative analysis of ES based on LULC data for 2000 and 2010 and corresponding climate data. To analyze the future period (2010–2099), we have used climate data from the multi-model ensemble (MME) of statistically downscaled and bias-corrected 12 best global climate models (GCMs). A raw GCM analysis (based on historical observational data) from 29 GCMs was done first. The results shows with a subsequent degradation of ES providers like forests and an increment in agricultural and urban areas, ES are on a verge of degradation. Furthermore, a projection of future climate patterns depicts increased precipitation and temperature. Thus, urgent measures are required for the sustainable provision of ES. Outcomes of the study are expected to help in the incorporation of ES in development policies promoting low-impact development along with maintaining ecological and economic goals. The study closes by presenting a recommendation for model application and future study needs.