Deforestation is recognized as one of the most significant component in LULC and global changes scenario. It is imperative to assess its trend and the rates at which it is occurring. The changes will have long-lasting impact on regional climate and in turn on biodiversity. In North-East India, one of the recognized global biodiversity hotspots, approximately 30% of total forest cover is under pressure of rapid land use changes. This region harbors variety of rare and endemic species of flora and fauna. It also has a strong bearing on regional climatic conditions. Extensive shifting cultivation, compounded by increasing population pressure and demands for agriculture land are the prime drivers in addition to other proximate drivers of deforestation. It is therefore of prime concern to analyse forest cover changes in the region, assess rate of change and extent and to identify the areas, which show repetitive changes. We analyzed forest cover maps from six temporal datasets based on satellite data interpretation, converted to geospatial database since 1972 till 1999. The states of Meghalaya, Nagaland and Tripura show highest changes in forest cover. Arunachal Pradesh shows least dynamic areas and maintains a good forest cover owing to its topographical inaccessibility in some areas. The present study reports the forest cover changes in the region using geospatial analysis and analyse them to devise proper management strategies.
Abstract:The Cauvery basin of Karnataka State encompasses a range of land cover types, from dense forest areas and plantations in the Western Ghats hills, to fertile agricultural lands in the river valley. Recent demographic changes, rapid economic development and urbanization have led to the conversion of vast stretches of forested land into plantations and permanent agriculture. We examine the human drivers of forest cover change between 2001 and 2006, using MODIS 250 m data at multiple spatial scales of nested administrative units i.e., districts and taluks. Population density does not emerge as a major driver of forest distribution or deforestation. Protected areas and landscape accessibility play a major role in driving the distribution of stable forest cover at different spatial scales. The availability of forested land for further clearing emerges as a major factor impacting the distribution of deforestation, with new deforestation taking place in regions with challenging topography. This research highlights the importance of using a regional approach to study land cover change, and indicates that the drivers of forest change may be very different in long settled landscapes, for which little is known in comparison to frontier forests.
OPEN ACCESSRemote Sens. 2010, 2 307
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.