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

Abstract

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.

Tourism Effect on the Spatiotemporal Pattern of Land Surface Temperature (LST): Babolsar and Fereydonkenar Cities (Cases Study in Iran)

“…In the case investigated in this study (Babolsar and Fereydonkenar), tourism had a significant moderating effect on the LST in the tourism zones through developing green spaces that were constantly irrigated, and constructing on bare lands that were generally covered with sand. Although this study focused on the effects of the physical development of tourism instead of urban development, its results on the correlation between the land cover indices such as NDVI, MNDWI and EBBI with the LST are consistent with previous research [92][93][94][95][96][97][98][99][100][101][102][103][104][105][106][107][108][109][110].…”

“…This result shows that the LST has increased with increases in the area of built-up and bare lands, while increasing the area of vegetation and water bodies has reduced the LST in the study area. These particular results is in line with previous research showing the significant effect of vegetation on the LST [37,[100][101][102][103][104][105][106][107][108][109][110]. In this regard, Rahman et al [97], by modeling the spatial changes in the coastal lands and their effects on the LST characteristics, showed that physical changes due to urban development and built-up lands have a direct and significant effect on the LST, and this could pose a challenge for the residents of the studied areas in the future.…”

“…A review of similar research also shows that, first, the relationship between the LST and NDVI is significant and inverse. The value of this correlation has been reported to be −0.4 and more [100,101,107,110]. In contrast, the correlation between the LST and EBBI was significant and direct, so that in all six time periods studied, the correlation between these two variables was from at least 0.69 to 0.88.…”

Thirty Years of Land Use/Land Cover Changes and Their Impact on Urban Climate: A Study of Kano Metropolis, Nigeria

“…Countries like India, China, and Nigeria will have an estimated urban population of approximately 416 million, 255 million, and 189 million, respectively [20]. This growth could increase land surface temperatures, leading to the development of Urban Heat Islands (UHI) in these geographical areas [21]. The emergence of urban heat islands that influence urban climate can be attributed to the transformation of land uses and the rapid urbanisation of cities [22][23][24][25].…”

“…The micro-climate of the Bangkok metropolitan region in Thailand was recently estimated relative to the city's future expansion [39]. The results showed that modification of the vegetated areas in the city's western region with low-rise and mid-rise buildings would increase the future surface temperature of the region by approximately 1 to 2 • C. Other studies conducted in Nigeria's cities of Abuja [21] and Potiskum [40], China's urban area of Shenzhen [41], Turkey's Sivas City [23], and five coastal cities in Pakistan [42] have demonstrated the relationship between LULC changes and LST using various satellite data and GIS techniques. However, comprehensive studies of cities in developing countries such as Nigeria are still limited.…”