Department of Environmental Science, Wolaita Sodo University, Wolaita Sodo, Ethiopia.
Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Arba Minch University, Arba Minch, Ethiopia.
Environ Monit Assess. 2022 May 27;194(7):460. doi: 10.1007/s10661-022-10039-2.
Biodiversity conservation areas include National Parks which are integral parts of protected areas. In parks, the dynamics of land and vegetation covers are significantly affected by anthropogenic activities and natural factors. These resources are exposed to challenges due to unwise practices. Assessing and monitoring the status of park's natural resources enables us to understand the extent of land and vegetation resources. Few studies have been conducted in Maze National Park (MzNP) but none of them quantified the land and vegetation cover dynamics. The purpose of this study is, therefore, to quantify the extents spatiotemporal dynamics of land and vegetation cover of MzNP using GIS and RS technology considering three decades Landsat images acquired from USGS. GPS and GCPs were collected for the analysis of land cover classification and accuracy assessment, respectively. The trend analysis result revealed that scattered tree and grass land cover area have increased from 19.8% in 1987 to 51.6% in 2019. The area of sparse vegetation cover increased from 19.7% in 2000 to 78.4% in 2019. Highly dense and dense vegetation cover decreased remarkably. Accuracy assessment was 98% and computed Kappa coefficient was 0.97. The results suggested that the extent of MzNP's vegetation cover change was basically due to anthropogenic pressure. This study could be used to alarm responsible bodies to restructure and implement better environmental protection strategies for restoration of the rapidly deteriorating vegetation resource of MzNP.
生物多样性保护区包括国家公园，国家公园是保护区的组成部分。在公园里，土地和植被覆盖的动态受到人为活动和自然因素的显著影响。由于不明智的做法，这些资源面临着挑战。评估和监测公园自然资源的状况使我们能够了解土地和植被资源的范围。在 Maze 国家公园（MzNP）进行了一些研究，但没有一项研究量化了土地和植被覆盖的动态。因此，本研究的目的是利用 GIS 和 RS 技术，考虑从美国地质调查局获取的三十年 Landsat 图像，量化 MzNP 的土地和植被覆盖时空动态。分别收集了 GPS 和 GCP 以进行土地覆盖分类分析和精度评估。趋势分析结果表明，分散的树木和草地覆盖面积从 1987 年的 19.8%增加到 2019 年的 51.6%。稀疏植被覆盖面积从 2000 年的 19.7%增加到 2019 年的 78.4%。高密度和高密度植被覆盖显著减少。精度评估为 98%，计算的 Kappa 系数为 0.97。结果表明，MzNP 植被覆盖变化的范围主要是由于人为压力。这项研究可以用来警告有关部门，以调整和实施更好的环境保护战略，以恢复 MzNP 迅速恶化的植被资源。
