Spatio-temporal analysis of land use/land cover (LULC) changes using GIS techniques in Upper Bhavani River Basin, Nilgiri Hills, India

Abstract

The study investigates the land use and land cover (LULC) changes in Upper Bhavani River basin of the Western Ghats over the past four decades (1989–2019) using remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS) techniques. It also explores the correlation between LULC changes and population growth during this period. The study highlights the importance of mapping and monitoring LULC changes in developing better management strategies for the sustainable development of natural resources. The iterative self-organising data analysis technique was used for unsupervised classification to create LULC maps of the riverbasin.The study identified and categorised seven LULC categories, namely water bodies, deciduous forest, evergreen forest, agriculture, plantation, barren land, and settlement. The results of the study showed a complex series of modifications in the LULC in the study basin over the past forty years due to policy changes and conventional agroforestry systems. The study revealed a decrease in agriculture, evergreen forest, and deciduous forest by − 6.88%, − 31.42%, and − 9.88%, respectively, while water bodies, plantations, barren land, and settlement area increased by 7.06%, 17.64%, 13.29%, and 10.23%, respectively. The findings of the study provide insights into specific changes in LULC and help predict which land uses will be impacted in the future. The overall accuracy of the classification was0.73.Overall, this study emphasised the importance of monitoring and mapping LULC changes using RS and GIS techniques to develop better management strategies for the sustainable development of natural resources. The findings of the study were useful for policymakers, land-use planners, and conservationists in developing effective strategies to maintain the ecological balance of the Western Ghats.