Roba Zenebe Reta, Moisa Mitiku Badasa, Purohit Sanju, Deribew Kiros Tsegay, Gemeda Dessalegn Obsi
Department of Forestry, College of Natural Resource and Agricultural Economics, Mattu University, Bedele Campus, Bedele, Ethiopia.
Department of Earth Science, College of Natural and Computational Science, Wollega University Nekemte Campus, Nekemte, Ethiopia.
Environ Monit Assess. 2025 Jan 14;197(2):169. doi: 10.1007/s10661-024-13611-0.
Assessing the impacts of forest cover change on carbon stock and soil moisture dynamics is critical for understanding environmental degradation and guiding sustainable land management. This study evaluates the effects of forest cover change on carbon stock and soil moisture dynamics in Nensebo Forest from 1993 to 2023 using geospatial techniques. Landsat imagery including TM (1993), ETM + (2009), and OLI/TIRS (2023) were used. Land use land cover (LULC) classification was performed using supervised classification approach with maximum likelihood algorithm. The study reveals that agricultural land expanded significantly from 143.2 km (21.8%) to 230.0 km (35.1%), along with increases in bare land and grassland. Moreover, result reveals a substantial decline in vegetation health (forest), with the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) decreasing from 0.78 in 1993 to 0.55 in 2023, indicating an increase of deforestation and land degradation. The soil moisture index (SMI) shows a reduction in soil moisture retention from 0.51 to 0.39, reflecting the adverse impact of forest loss on soil moisture dynamics. Carbon stock analysis reveals a dramatic decrease in forest area from 489.5 to 220.5 km, leading to increased carbon dioxide emissions from forest loss, which rose from 293.03 tons to 1550.34 tons. The study underscores the urgent need for integrated land management strategies that balance agricultural development with ecological conservation. Therefore, to mitigate climate change and maintain ecological stability, the study recommends implementing sustainable land use practices, promoting reforestation, and developing environmental related policies to preserve the remaining forest cover while supporting agricultural productivity.
评估森林覆盖变化对碳储量和土壤水分动态的影响对于理解环境退化和指导可持续土地管理至关重要。本研究利用地理空间技术评估了1993年至2023年期间森林覆盖变化对嫩塞博森林碳储量和土壤水分动态的影响。使用了包括TM（1993年）、ETM +（2009年）和OLI/TIRS（2023年）的陆地卫星图像。采用最大似然算法的监督分类方法进行土地利用土地覆盖（LULC）分类。研究表明，农业用地从143.2平方公里（21.8%）显著扩大到230.0平方公里（35.1%），同时裸地和草地面积增加。此外，结果显示植被健康状况（森林）大幅下降，归一化植被指数（NDVI）从1993年的0.78降至2023年的0.55，表明森林砍伐和土地退化加剧。土壤湿度指数（SMI）显示土壤持水能力从0.51降至0.39，反映了森林损失对土壤水分动态的不利影响。碳储量分析表明，森林面积从489.5平方公里急剧减少到220.5平方公里，导致森林损失产生的二氧化碳排放量增加，从293.03吨增至1550.34吨。该研究强调迫切需要制定综合土地管理战略，平衡农业发展与生态保护。因此，为了缓解气候变化并维持生态稳定，该研究建议实施可持续土地利用实践，促进植树造林，并制定与环境相关的政策，以保护剩余的森林覆盖，同时支持农业生产力。
