Assessment and monitoring of long-term forest cover changes in Odisha, India using remote sensing and GIS

Abstract

Deforestation and fragmentation are important concerns in managing and conserving tropical forests and have global significance. In the Indian context, in the last one century, the forests have undergone significant changes due to several policies undertaken by government as well as increased population pressure. The present study has brought out spatiotemporal changes in forest cover and variation in forest type in the state of Odisha (Orissa), India, during the last 75 years period. The mapping for the period of 1924-1935, 1975, 1985, 1995 and 2010 indicates that the forest cover accounts for 81,785.6 km(2) (52.5 %), 56,661.1 km(2) (36.4 %), 51,642.3 km(2) (33.2 %), 49,773 km(2) (32 %) and 48,669.4 km(2) (31.3 %) of the study area, respectively. The study found the net forest cover decline as 40.5 % of the total forest and mean annual rate of deforestation as 0.69 % year(-1) during 1935 to 2010. There is a decline in annual rate of deforestation during 1995 to 2010 which was estimated as 0.15 %. Forest type-wise quantitative loss of forest cover reveals large scale deforestation of dry deciduous forests. The landscape analysis shows that the number of forest patches (per 1,000) are 2.463 in 1935, 10.390 in 1975, 11.899 in 1985, 12.193 in 1995 and 15.102 in 2010, which indicates high anthropogenic pressure on the forests. The mean patch size (km(2)) of forest decreased from 33.2 in 1935 to 5.5 in 1975 and reached to 3.2 by 2010. The study demonstrated that monitoring of long term forest changes, quantitative loss of forest types and landscape metrics provides critical inputs for management of forest resources.

Land cover changes and forest landscape evolution (1985–2009) in a typical Mediterranean agroforestry system (high Agri Valley)

“…In particular, information obtained from landscape metrics can be very valuable for the improvement of silvicultural prescriptions and baselines for forest management, as well as to highlight effects of implemented actions (Sano et al, 2009;Reddy et al, 2013;Costa et al, 2014;Paliwal and Mathur, 2014).…”

Assessment of spatial changes in forest cover and deforestation rate in Eastern Ghats Highlands of Odisha, India

“…2). Deforestation in the study area started mainly after independence of India because of infrastructure development, construction of dams and population pressure (Reddy ., 2013a). Encroachment on forest lands and converting them in to cultivated area by shifting cultivation played a significant role in deforestation for the period I (Dash, 2006).…”

Spatial dynamics of deforestation and forest fragmentation (1930–2013) in Eastern Ghats, India

“…The review analysed the gross and net deforestation rates and sum up the Government initiatives for conservation of forests in India (Reddy et al, 2013a). Reddy et al, (2013b) studied long term forest cover change over Odisha, India and observed that information on historical changes in Indian forests is scarce. Harikrishna et al (2014) has spatially explicitly mapped the forest cover change in Andhra Pradesh and found large scale deforestation during period.…”