How and Why the Land Resources Changed

2021 ◽  
pp. 88-110
Author(s):  
Lasantha Manawadu ◽  
M. D. K. L. Gunathilaka ◽  
V. P. I. S. Wijerathne ◽  
K. L. W. I. Gunathilake
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Land Resource ◽  
Land Resources ◽  
Rapid Changes ◽  
History Of ◽  
Land Use Policies ◽  
Land Changes

Human activities have recognized in recent years as the most significant force shaping the biosphere. This is completely true concerning rapid changes in the land surface. Concerning land resources, it is important to understand how this change happens. Thus, this chapter aims to review how this change has occurred throughout the history of Sri Lanka. A piecemeal approach in the unsustainable manner of land resource utilization towards severe land changes illustrates and compares the land use and land cover changes in significant phases in the history of Sri Lanka. This was further revitalized as well as influenced by the land-use policies introduced throughout history. The absence of a clearly defined land-use policy in the country after independence is problematic when addressing land-related issues. Consequently, chronological changes in land use and land cover existed within the country has now doubled and more intensified than ever.

scholarly journals Spatiotemporal Influence of Land Use/Land Cover Change Dynamics on Surface Urban Heat Island: A Case Study of Abuja Metropolis, Nigeria

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 272
Author(s):  
Auwalu Faisal Koko ◽  
Wu Yue ◽  
Ghali Abdullahi Abubakar ◽  
Akram Ahmed Noman Alabsi ◽  
Roknisadeh Hamed
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Urban Expansion ◽  
Urban Heat Islands ◽  
Sustainable Land Use ◽  
Land Use Land Cover ◽  
Urban Centers ◽  
Rapid Urbanization ◽  
Urban Heat

Rapid urbanization in cities and urban centers has recently contributed to notable land use/land cover (LULC) changes, affecting both the climate and environment. Therefore, this study seeks to analyze changes in LULC and its spatiotemporal influence on the surface urban heat islands (UHI) in Abuja metropolis, Nigeria. To achieve this, we employed Multi-temporal Landsat data to monitor the study area’s LULC pattern and land surface temperature (LST) over the last 29 years. The study then analyzed the relationship between LULC, LST, and other vital spectral indices comprising NDVI and NDBI using correlation analysis. The results revealed a significant urban expansion with the transformation of 358.3 sq. km of natural surface into built-up areas. It further showed a considerable increase in the mean LST of Abuja metropolis from 30.65 °C in 1990 to 32.69 °C in 2019, with a notable increase of 2.53 °C between 2009 and 2019. The results also indicated an inverse relationship between LST and NDVI and a positive connection between LST and NDBI. This implies that urban expansion and vegetation decrease influences the development of surface UHI through increased LST. Therefore, the study’s findings will significantly help urban-planners and decision-makers implement sustainable land-use strategies and management for the city.

Modelling future land use land cover changes and their impacts on land surface temperatures in Rajshahi, Bangladesh

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 ◽  
pp. 100314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdulla - Al Kafy ◽  
Md. Shahinoor Rahman ◽  
Abdullah-Al- Faisal ◽  
Mohammad Mahmudul Hasan ◽  
Muhaiminul Islam
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Land Cover Changes ◽  
Land Use Land Cover ◽  
Surface Temperatures ◽  
Land Surface Temperatures

Pastoralists-farmers’ conflicts in Nigeria’s mid-Benue Trough: Socio-ecological drivers and pathways to addressing the conflicts.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chukwudi Njoku ◽  
Francis Okpiliya ◽  
Joel Efiong ◽  
Chinwe Ifejika Speranza
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Land Use ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Land Development ◽  
Policy Formulation ◽  
Landsat 8 ◽  
Land Resource ◽  
Hotspot Analysis ◽  
Benue Trough ◽  
Year 2000

<p>Violent conflicts related to pastoralists-farmers’ interactions in Nigeria have assumed an unprecedented dimension, causing loss of lives and livelihoods. The mid-Benue trough (Benue and Taraba States) has suffered most from the conflicts. This study aims to provide knowledge on the socio-ecological drivers of pastoralists-farmers’ conflicts in the mid-Benue trough from the year 2000 to 2020 and to identify pathways to solving them. First, data from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project were used to map the conflicts. Second, to understand the nexus of climate change, land use and the conflicts, the study analyzed satellite data of Land Surface Temperature (LST) as a proxy for climate change, using data from the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite and Land Use Land Cover (LULC), using LandSat 7 ETM and LandSat 8 ETM+ data, then linked them to the mapped conflicts. Third, to understand causes and impacts of the conflict on pastoralists and farmers’ livelihoods, 100 interviews were conducted, 50 for each group and analyzed using content analysis and descriptive statistics. Results showed that there were 2532 fatalities from 309 conflict events between pastoralists and farmers. The incidents exhibited statistically significant clustering and were minimal between the year 2000 and 2012, increasing gradually until the year 2013 when it began to rise geometrically. The Getis-Ord Gi hotspot analysis revealed the conflict hotspots to include Agatu, Oturkpo, Gwer East and Gashaka Local Government Areas. The results from the LST analysis showed that the area coverage of high LST increased from 30 percent in 2000 to 38 percent in 2020, while extremely high LST area also increased from 14 to 16 percent. A significantly high percentage of the conflicts (87 percent) occurred in areas with high LST (>30⁰C). In addition, the LULC analyses showed that built-up land area increased by 35 km<sup>2 </sup>(0.1 percent) and dense forests reduced by 798 km<sup>2</sup> (0.1 percent). Notably, shrublands and grasslands, which are the resource domains of the pastoralists reduced by 11,716 km<sup>2  </sup>(13.1 percent) and croplands of farmers increased by 12,316 km<sup>2 </sup>(13.8 percent)<strong>. </strong>This presents an apparent transition of LULC from shrublands and grasslands to croplands in the area. Further analyses showed that 63 percent of the conflicts occurred in croplands and 16 percent in shrublands and grasslands. Hence, the reduction of land resource available to pastoralists and their subsequent cropland encroachment were identified as major causes of the conflict. It was therefore concluded that land development for other purposes is a major driver of pastoralists-farmers’ conflicts in the study area. There is thus a need to integrate conflict maps, LST and LULC dynamics to support dialogue, land use planning and policy formulation for sustainable land management to guide pastoral and farming activities.</p>

scholarly journals Inferring past land use-induced changes in surface albedo from satellite observations: a useful tool to evaluate model simulations

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 1501-1516 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. P. Boisier ◽  
N. de Noblet-Ducoudré ◽  
P. Ciais
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Surface Albedo ◽  
Climate Models ◽  
Vegetation Type ◽  
Seasonal Pattern ◽  
Satellite Observations ◽  
Secondary Importance ◽  
Past Land Use

Abstract. Regional cooling resulting from increases in surface albedo has been identified in several studies as the main biogeophysical effect of past land use-induced land cover changes (LCC) on climate. However, the amplitude of this effect remains quite uncertain due to, among other factors, (a) uncertainties in the extent of historical LCC and, (b) differences in the way various models simulate surface albedo and more specifically its dependency on vegetation type and snow cover. We derived monthly albedo climatologies for croplands and four other land cover types from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite observations. We then reconstructed the changes in surface albedo between preindustrial times and present-day by combining these climatologies with the land cover maps of 1870 and 1992 used by seven land surface models (LSMs) in the context of the LUCID ("Land Use and Climate: identification of robust Impacts") intercomparison project. These reconstructions show surface albedo increases larger than 10% (absolute) in winter, and larger than 2% in summer between 1870 and 1992 over areas that experienced intense deforestation in the northern temperate regions. The historical surface albedo changes estimated with MODIS data were then compared to those simulated by the various climate models participating in LUCID. The inter-model mean albedo response to LCC shows a similar spatial and seasonal pattern to the one resulting from the MODIS-based reconstructions, that is, larger albedo increases in winter than in summer, driven by the presence of snow. However, individual models show significant differences between the simulated albedo changes and the corresponding reconstructions, despite the fact that land cover change maps are the same. Our analyses suggest that the primary reason for those discrepancies is how LSMs parameterize albedo. Another reason, of secondary importance, results from differences in their simulated snow extent. Our methodology is a useful tool not only to infer observations-based historical changes in land surface variables impacted by LCC, but also to point out deficiencies of the models. We therefore suggest that it could be more widely developed and used in conjunction with other tools in order to evaluate LSMs.

scholarly journals Dynamics of human-induced lakes and their impact on land surface temperature in Toshka Depression, Western Desert, Egypt

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rasha Abou Samra
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
Surface Temperature ◽  
Land Surface Temperature ◽  
Land Surface ◽  
Vegetation Index ◽  
Research Area ◽  
Western Desert ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Land Use Land Cover

Abstract Land surface temperature (LST) is a significant environmental variable that is appreciably influenced by land use /land cover changes. The main goal of this research was to quantify the impacts of land use/land cover change (LULC) from the drying of Toshka Lakes on LST by remote sensing and GIS techniques. Landsat series TM and OLI satellite images were used to estimate LST from 2001 to 2019. Automated Water Extraction Index (AWEI) was applied to extract water bodies from the research area. Optimized Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index (OSAVI) was utilized to predict the reclaimed land in the Toshka region until 2019. The results indicated a decrease in the lakes by about 1517.79 km2 with an average increase in LST by about 25.02 °C between 2001 and 2019. It was observed that the dried areas of the lakes were converted to bare soil and are covered by salt crusts. The results indicated that the land use change was a significant driver for the increased LST. The mean annual LST increased considerably by 0.6 °C/y between 2001 and 2019. A strong negative correlation between LST and Toshka Lakes area (R-square = 0.98) estimated from regression analysis implied that Toshka Lakes drying considerably affected the microclimate of the study area. Severe drought conditions, soil degradation, and many environmental issues were predicted due to the rise of LST in the research area. There is an urgent need to develop favorable strategies for sustainable environmental management in the Toshka region.

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