Application of remote sensing technology for Impact Assessment of Watershed Development Programme

The current study was taken up to investigate the utility of remote sensing and GIS tools for evaluation of Integrated Wasteland Development Programme (IWDP) implemented during 1997–2001 in Katangidda Nala watershed, Chincholi taluk, Gulbarga district, Karnataka. The study was carried out using IRS 1C, LISS III data of December 11, 1997 (pre-treatment) and November 15, 2002 (post-treatment) covering the watershed to assess the changes in land use / land cover and biomass that have changed over a period of five years (1997–2002). The images were classified into different land use/land cover categories using supervised classification by maximum likelihood algorithm. They were also classified into different biomass levels using Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) approach. The results indicated that the area under agriculture crops and forest land were increased by 671 ha (5.7%) and 1,414 ha (11.94%) respectively. This is due to the fact that parts of wastelands and fallow lands were brought into cultivation. This increase in the area may be attributed to better utilization of surface and ground waters, adoption of soil and water conservation practices and changes in cropping pattern. The area under waste lands and fallow lands decreased by 1,667 ha (14.07%) and 467 ha (3.94%), respectively. The vegetation vigour of the area was classified into three classes using NDVI. Substantial increase in the area under high and low biomass levels was observed (502 ha and 19 ha respectively). The benefit-cost analysis indicates that the use of remote sensing and GIS was 2.2 times cheaper than the conventional methods. Thus, the repetitive coverage of the satellite data provides an excellent opportunity to monitor the land resources and evaluate the land cover changes through comparison of images for the watershed at different periods.     

Impact Assessment of Watershed Programme Through Remote Sensing and Geographical Information System

Impact assessment of watershed development activity assumes greater importance in present day agriculture. Considering the ability of remote sensing technology in watershed monitoring and impact assessment, a study was carried out to investigate the Impact Assessment of Karnataka Watershed Development Project (DANIDA) in Koralahallihalla Sub watershed in Sindagi taluk of Bijapur district in Northern Karnataka using satellite data of two periods i.e., IRS 1?C, LISS-III data of 30 December, 1997 (pre-treatment) and IRS P6, LISS-III data of 17 December, 2004 (post-treatment). The land use/land cover map was derived from the supervised classification. The results revealed that there has been no major shift in cropping patterns over a period of 7?years (1997?C2004). However, rabi cropped area has decreased drastically (187?ha), which might be due to the continuous droughts that occurred during the implementation period. On the other hand, kharif and double cropped area have increased marginally (103?ha and 96?ha, respectively). Increase in double cropped area showed that there was increase in irrigated land, which were earlier being used as rainfed and wastelands turned in to cultivated lands as seen in scrub lands and rabi cropped areas of the sub watershed. Wastelands in the sub-watershed has decreased marginally (36?ha). The vegetation vigour of the sub-watershed has been derived from the NDVI maps of both the periods. These NDVI maps indicate that there was a significant change in biomass status of the sub watershed. The vegetation vigour of the area was classified into three classes using NDVI. Substantial increase in the area under high and low biomass levels was observed (319?ha and 77?ha, respectively). The benefit-cost analysis indicates that the use of remote sensing technology was 2 times cheaper than the conventional methods. Thus, the repetitive coverage of the satellite data provides an excellent opportunity to monitor the land resources and evaluate the land cover changes through comparison of images for the watershed at different periods.     

Land-Cover change analysis of garur Ganga watershed using GIS/Remote Sensing technique

Land-use change and Land-cover classes in Garur Ganga watershed of Bageshwar district in Uttranchal State during the periods 1963–1996 and 1986–1996 were analyzed through Survey of India Topographical Sheet and visual interpretation of LANDSAT 5 TM image bands 2, 3 and 4 using Geographical Information System (GIS). The detailed analysis have revealed that the area under agriculture and settlement increased from 34.98 to 42.34%. whereas the forest and barren land show a declining trend. Expansion of agriculture land and builtup areas have been found to be maximum in the 1200–1600 m elevation zone with 7–14° slope class. The loss of vegetation cover has been estimated to be 5.07% between 1963-1996 and 0.81% between 1986–1996.     

Geospatial modelling of biological richness in Sunderbans

The present study attempts to assess the biological richness in Sunderban Biosphere Reserve (SBR) using a three-pronged approach i.e. satellite image (IRS 1D LISS-III) for vegetation/land use stratification, landscape analysis for disturbance regimes assessment and the disturbance regimes together with the ecosystem uniqueness, species richness and importance value for biological richness modelling. The study showed that four mangrove categories, viz., Avicennia, Phoenix, mixed mangroves and mangrove scrub, cover 23.21 per cent of the total geographical area of SBR. The largest area is occupied by mixed mangroves (18.31%). The overall accuracy of the vegetation/land use map worked out to be 91.67 per cent. The disturbance analysis revealed that the vegetation types were not much disturbed. Shannon-Weaver’s index of diversity was highest in case of mixed mangrove. The results revealed that 75 per cent forest area has high biological richness.     

Geospatial approach for tiger habitat evaluation and distribution in Corbett Tiger reserve,India

India has a rich repository of flora and fauna, but the rapid decline of wildlife and threat to its habitat has been a serious cause of concern. Hence, protected areas have been set up to achieve specific conservation objectives to facilitate timely and reliable information on forest types and its composition, degradation status and their suitability for different species of flora and fauna. In the present study, evaluation of tiger habitat in Corbett Tiger reserve is carried out using remote sensing, ground and other ancillary sources and is integrated using GIS using multi-criteria model. The results indicated that sal, mixed sal, miscellaneous forest, plantation, grassland, agriculture and scrub land are the major land use/land cover types and majority of the study area is covered under dense forest. Tiger habitat suitability analysis showed that large proportion of the area (51.4%) was found to be highly suitable followed by moderately suitable area (31%). Further, the correlation drawn between range-wise suitability area and actual tiger population in Corbett Tiger Reserve CTR indicated a positive correlation of 0.73. Disturbance to wildlife habitat, vegetation degradation and shrinking passage corridor are the major concern in CTR.     

Jerdon’s courser habitat analysis using Remote sensing

Jerdon’s courser (Cursorius bitorquatus) considered as lost bird is found in Sri Lankamalleswaram Sanctuary, Cuddapah District, Andhra Pradesh. It is listed in Red data book as endangered bird. Analysis of satellite imagery of 1989, 1996, 1998 and ground information have revealed an improvement of Jerdon courser’s habitat after declaration of area as sanctuary in 1988. Large open grounds show a decrease, white small open grounds surrounded by scrub plants offering protection and food cover increase. Analysis of satellite imagery shows core niche covering 4 x 3 km area and larger area of sanctuary (7.3 x 13.1 km) having various land cover classes. Comparison of satellite imagery from 1989 to 1998 shows degradation of larger area of sanctuary where birds are not seen.     

基于遥感和GIS的中国土地利用/土地覆盖的现状研究

通过利用土地利用程度指数和植被指数等指标。采用ＧＩＳ工具和数学模型方法,对中国土地利用／土地覆盖的现状进行分析,结论为：中国现有土 况代表着中国总的土地利用程度指数为２０２的一种开发利用水平。从土地利用程度指数极限为４００看,中国土地资源总的开发程度仅达开发极限的一半;东部湿润区以耕地型覆盖为主,开发利用程度高;     

Changing landscape in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area of Yangtze River from 1977 to 2005: Land use/land cover,vegetation cover changes estimated using multi-source satellite data

The eco-environment in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area (TGRA) in China has received much attention due to the construction of the Three Gorges Hydropower Station. Land use/land cover changes (LUCC) are a major cause of ecological environmental changes. In this paper, the spatial landscape dynamics from 1978 to 2005 in this area are monitored and recent changes are analyzed, using the Landsat TM (MSS) images of 1978, 1988, 1995, 2000 and 2005. Vegetation cover fractions for a vegetation cover analysis are retrieved from MODIS/Terra imagery from 2000 to 2006, being the period before and after the rising water level of the reservoir. Several analytical indices have been used to analyze spatial and temporal changes. Results indicate that cropland, woodland, and grassland areas reduced continuously over the past 30 years, while river and built-up area increased by 2.79% and 4.45% from 2000 to 2005, respectively. The built-up area increased at the cost of decreased cropland, woodland and grassland. The vegetation cover fraction increased slightly. We conclude that significant changes in land use/land cover have occurred in the Three Gorges Reservoir Area. The main cause is a continuous economic and urban/rural development, followed by environmental management policies after construction of the Three Gorges Dam.     

Prioritization of sub-watersheds based on morphometric and land use analysis using remote sensing and GIS techniques

Watershed prioritization has gained importance in natural resources management, especially in the context of watershed management. Morphometric analysis has been commonly applied to prioritization of watersheds. The present study makes an attempt to prioritize sub-watersheds based on morphometric and land use characteristics using remote sensing and GIS techniques in Kanera watershed of Guna district, Madhya Pradesh. Various morphometric parameters, namely linear and shape have been determined for each sub-watershed and assigned ranks on the basis of value/relationship so as to arrive at a computed value for a final ranking of the sub-watersheds. Land use/land cover change analysis of the sub-watersheds has been carried out using multi-temporal data of IRS LISS II of 1989 and IRS LISS III of 2001. The study demonstrates the significant land use changes especially in cultivated lands, open scrub, open forest, water bodies and wastelands from 1989 to 2001. Based on morphometric and land use/land cover analysis, the sub-watersheds have been classified into three categories as high, medium and low in terms of priority for conservation and management of natural resources. Out of the seven sub-watersheds, two sub-watersheds viz., SW1 and SW6 qualify for high priority, whereas SW7 has been categorised as medium priority based on the integration of morphometric and land use change analysis.     

Satellite-based analysis of the role of land use/land cover and vegetation density on surface temperature regime of Delhi,India

The knowledge of the surface temperature is important to a range of issues and themes in earth sciences central to urban climatology, global environmental change and human-environment interactions. The study analyses land surface temperature (LST) estimation using temporal ASTER (Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer) datasets (day time and night time) over National Capital Territory Delhi using the surface emissivity information at pixel level. The spatial variations of LST over different land use/land cover (LU/LC) at day time and night time were analysed and relationship between the spatial distribution of LU/LC and vegetation density with LST was developed. Minimum noise fraction (MNF) was used for LU/LC classification which gave better accuracy than classification with original bands. The satellite derived emissivity values were found to be in good agreement with literature and field measured values. It was observed that fallow land, waste land/bare soil, commercial/industrial and high dense built-up area have high surface temperature values during day time, compared to those over water bodies, agricultural cropland, and dense vegetation. During night time high surface temperature values are found over high dense built-up, water bodies, commercial/industrial and low dense built-up than over fallow land, dense vegetation and agricultural cropland. It was found that there is a strong negative correlation between surface temperature and NDVI over dense vegetation, sparse vegetation and low dense built-up area while with fraction vegetation cover, it indicates a moderate negative correlation. The results suggest that the methodology is feasible to estimate NDVI, surface emissivity and surface temperature with reasonable accuracy over heterogeneous urban area. The analysis also indicates that the relationship between the spatial distribution of LU/LC and vegetation density is closely related to the development of urban heat islands (UHI).     

土地覆被变化对陆地碳循环的影响—以黄河三角洲河口地区为例

土地利用/土地覆被变化是全球变化研究的重点，是影响陆地碳循环的一个重要因子。该文对黄河三角洲河口地区1992年和1996年9月份的TM影像进行非监督分类，做出该地区土地覆被类型分布图，以及估算土地覆被类型的变化面积，计算结果显示1992年该研究地区植被碳库和土壤碳库分别为11.43×10     

Mapping and Assessment of Groundwater Potential in Bilrai Watershed (Shivpuri District, M.P.)—A Geomatics Approach

The main objective of the present work is to delineate the groundwater potential zones in Bilari watershed of district Shivpuri, Madhya Pradesh. Remote Sensing data and GIS were used to delineate the groundwater potential zones of the area. IRS-1D (LISS III) data have been utilized to extract information on various themes such as geomorphology, structure, drainage and land use/land cover. Available lithology and soil maps have also been used. DEM has been generated from contours taken from Survey of India topographical maps in order to obtain the slope percentage and slope aspect of the area. The groundwater potential zones were delineated by weighted overlay analysis. The themes geology, geomorphology, slope and soil were considered and the weightages assigned to different classes of respective themes according to their role in groundwater potential. Finally, five groundwater potential zones viz., very good, good, moderate; poor and very poor were delineated for the study area. It was estimated that about 110.41?sq km area which forms 37.55% of the total area are in the zones of very poor, poor and moderate category and about 183.75?sq km (62.45%) in zones of good and very good category.     

Landscape ecological planning in a Basaltic terrain, central India, using Remote sensing and GIS techniques

In the present study, detailed field survey in conjunction with remotely sensed (IRS-1D, LISS-III) data is of immense help in terrain analysis and landscape ecological planning at watershed level. Geomorphologically summit crust, table top summits, isolated mounds. plateau spurs, narrow slopes, plateau side drainage floors, narrow valleys and main valley floor were delineated. The soil depth ranges from extremely shallow in isolated mounds to very deep soils in the lower sectors. Very good, good, moderate, poor and very poor groundwater prospect zones were delineated. By the integrated analysis of slope, geomorphology. soil depth, land use/land cover and groundwater prospect layers in GIS. 29 landscape ecological units were identified. Each landscape ecological unit refers to a natural geographic entity having distinctive properties of slope, geomorphology. soil depth, land use/ land cover and groundwater prospects. The landscape ecological stress zone mapping of the study area has been carried out based on the analysis and reclassification of tandscape ecological units. The units having minimum ecological impact in terms of slope, geomorphology, soil depth and land use/land cover were delineated under very low stress landscape ecological zones. The units having maximum ecological stress in the form of very high slopes, isolated mounds, table top summits and summit crust, extremely shallow soils, waste lands and very poor groundwater prospects were delineated into very high stress landscape ecological zones. The integrated analysis of remotely sensed data and collateral data in GIS environment is of immense help in evaluation of landscape ecological units and landscape ecological stress zones. The delineated landscape ecological stress zones in the watershed have been recommended for landscape ecological planning for better utilization of natural resources without harming the natural geo-ecosystem of the area.     

Analysing spatio-temporal footprints of urbanization on environment of Surat city using satellite-derived bio-physical parameters

Our study examines the relationships among various environmental variables in Surat city using remote sensing. Landsat Thematic Mapper satellite data were used in conjugation with geospatial techniques to study urbanization and correlation among satellite-derived biophysical parameters namely, normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), normalized difference built-up index (NDBI), normalized difference water index (NDWI), normalized difference bareness index (NDBaI) and land surface temperature (LST). A modified NDWI (MNDWI) was used for extracting areas under water. Land use/land cover classification was performed using hierarchical decision tree classification technique using ERDAS IMAGINE Expert classifier with an accuracy of 90.4% for 1990 and 85% for 2009. It was found that city has expanded over 42.75 sq.km within two decades. Built-up, fallow and sediment land use classes exhibited high dynamics with increase of nearly 200% and 50% and decrease of 55% respectively from 1990 to 2009. Vegetation and water classes were less dynamic with 20% decrease and 15% increase. The transformation of land parcels from vegetation to built-up, vegetation to fallow and fallow to built-up has resulted in increase of LST by 5.5 ± 2.6°C, 6.7 ± 3°C and 3.5 ± 2.9°C, respectively.     

Application of remote sensing technology for land use/land cover change analysis

Land use/land cover changes over a period of 30 years were studied using remote sensing technology in a part of Gohparu block, Shahdol district of Madhya Pradesh. Land use/ land cover maps were prepared by visual interpretation of two period remotely sensed data. Post-classification comparison technique was adopted for this purpose. The loss of vegetation cover was estimated to be 22 percent and 14 percent of the land was found to have been tranformed into wasteland between 1967 and 1996. Overall rate of change was found to be 1.8 percent per year during this period.     

陕北黄土高原植被覆盖时空变化及其归因分析北大核心CSCD

本文借助Google Earth Engine(GEE)云平台,以Landsat影像、气温降水和土地利用类型为基础,利用Theil-Sen Median趋势分析、Mann-Kendall检验、偏相关性和多元回归残差分析法,分析了1999—2018年陕北黄土高原植被覆盖时空特征、变化趋势及气候变化与人类活动对于不同土地利用类型的影响,得出以下结论:(1)1999—2018年陕北黄土高原年际FVC呈改善趋势,其平均增速为0.004 9/a(P<0.01),植被覆盖度呈增加趋势的面积占总面积的74.43%;(2)植被覆盖度与降水和气温的偏相关系数具有明显的空间差异,植被生长对降水变化较敏感;(3)气候变化和人类活动的共同作用是植被生长的主要原因,其中气候变化对植被FVC的影响范围为-0.001 0/a~0.003 6/a,而人类活动对植被FVC的影响范围为-0.046 1/a~0.049 0/a;(4)在不同土地利用类型中,气候变化对水体增幅影响最大,对针叶林和阔叶林增幅影响最小,而人类活动变化对人类占用地增幅影响最大,对阔叶林增幅影响最小。     

Linear unmixing of MODIS albedo composites to infer subpixel land cover type albedos

We use a linear unmixing approach to test how land use and forestry maps, in combination with the MODIS BRDF/albedo product, can be used to estimate land cover type albedos in boreal regions. Operational land use maps from three test areas in Finland and Canada were used to test the method. The resulting endmember albedo estimates had low standard errors of the mean and were realistic for the main land cover types. The estimated albedos were fairly consistent with albedo measurements conducted with a telescope mast and pure pixel albedos. Problems with the method are the possible errors in the land cover maps, lack of good quality winter MODIS albedo composites and the mismatch between the MODIS pixels and the true observation area. The results emphasize the role of tree species as determinant of forest albedo. Comprehensive spatial and temporal measurements of land cover albedo are usually not possible with in situ mast measurements, and the spatial resolution of MODIS albedo product is often too low to allow direct comparison of pixel albedos and land cover types in areas with heterogeneous vegetation. Hence, and since local forestry maps exist for most temperate and boreal regions, we believe that the proposed method will be useful in estimating average regional land cover type albedos as well as in tracking changes in them.     

Sustainable development of land and water resources using geographic information system and remote sensing

Realizing the potential of spaceborne multispectral measurements in providing spatial information on natural resources, and of Geographic Information System (GIS) in integrating such information with the socio-economic data and other collateral information to arrive at derivative information, we report here the results of a study which was taken up in a watershed in Charkhari block of Mahoba district, northern India, to generate the information on natural resources from Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS-1B) Linear Imaging Self-scanning Sensor (LISS-II) images through a systematic visual interpretation, and its subsequent integration with the collateral information in a GIS environment to develop optimal land use plan/action plan for sustainable development of its land resources. Since permanent vegetation cover in the watershed has been dwindling due to population pressure, the need for establishing more vegetation cover has been stressed.     

Predicting the Impact of Coastal Development on Water Quality Using Remote Sensing and GIS‐assisted Hydrologic Modeling Techniques

Abstract

A decline in water quality in the Okatie River, a coastal estuary located in Beaufort County, SC, has resulted in the closure of several shellfish beds. Continuing urban development within the watershed has altered land cover conditions and may be contributing to the recent decline in water quality. Remote sensing and geographic information system (GIS) technology, coupled with a water quality model were used to spatially model stormwater runoff to understand the relationship between recent changes in land cover and watershed runoff characteristics. High spatial resolution imagery acquired in 1994 and 1996 spatially documented pre‐ and post‐development land cover conditions within the watershed. The water quality model Agricultural Nonpoint Source Pollution (AGNPS) evaluated land characteristics such as soil type, topography, and land cover to simulate surface water flow and sediment transport over past and current land cover conditions. Results of the model were used to locate net increases of fresh water discharge and to suggest best management practices (BMP).     

Mapping the Land Cover of Mexico Using AVHRR Time‐Series Data Sets

Abstract

An important methodological and analytical requirement for analyzing spatial relationships between regional habitats and species distributions in Mexico is the development of standard methods for mapping the country's land cover/land use formations. This necessarily involves the use of global data such as that produced by the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR). We created a nine‐band time‐series composite image from AVHRR Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) bi‐weekly data. Each band represented the maximum NDVI for a particular month of either 1992 or 1993. We carried out a supervised classification approach, using the latest comprehensive land cover/vegetation map created by the Mexican National Institute of Geography (INEGI) as reference data. Training areas for 26 land cover/vegetation types were selected and digitized on the computer's screen by overlaying the INEGI vector coverage on the NDVI image. To obtain specific spectral responses for each vegetation type, as determined by its characteristic phenology and geographic location, the statistics of the spectral signatures were subjected to a cluster analysis. A total of 104 classes distributed among the 26 land cover types were used to perform the classification. Elevation data were used to direct classification output for pine‐oak and coastal vegetation types. The overall correspondence value of the classification proposed in this paper was 54%; however, for main vegetation formations correspondence values were higher (60‐80%). In order to obtain refinements in the proposed classification we recommend further analysis of the signature statistics and adding topographic data into the classification algorithm.