Affiliation(s)
1. WWF International, Nairobi 62440-00200, Kenya
2. Department of Environmental Sciences, Kenyatta University, Nairobi 43844-00100, Kenya
3. School of Environmental Studies, Kenyatta University, Nairobi 43844-00100, Kenya
4. Directorate of Resource Surveys and Remote Sensing, Nairobi 47146-00100, Kenya
ABSTRACT
Detection of land cover change helps in the understanding of how humans
modify the natural environment. Modification is attributed to both restoration
and degradation processes. Such information guides decisions on mitigating
landscape degradation and advancing restoration. This study sets to determine land
cover changes from 1973 to 2013 in the Malewa River Basin (1,760 km2)
in central rift valley, Kenya. Satellite imageries from Landsat (Landsat
Multispectral Scanner, 1973; Landsat TM (Thematic Mapper), 1986; ETM+ (Enhanced
Thematic Mapper Plus), 2000; and SPOT, 2013) were analyzed using various
imaging techniques available in ArcGIS 10.1 and ERDAS Imagine software. The
results showed a cumulative growth of 25,617.0 ha (28.8%) in area under
cropland, an increase of 4,310.1 ha (11.3%) in forestland and 688.0 ha (490.7%)
of wetland. There was a net decrease of 28,953.8 ha (72.2%) in the area under
shrubland and 1,747.4 ha (19.2%) under grassland. The findings suggest that
increased demand for arable land is mainly driven by food and income needs of
the human population. This exerted enormous pressure particularly on shrublands
and grassland. Increased forest cover suggests an improvement in forest
restoration efforts during the last ten years. There is need to manage
expansion into new arable areas by improving land productivity and tackling the
drivers of land cover change.
KEYWORDS
Land cover change, degradation, restoration, change
detection, imagery.
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