Land Use Change and Land Degradation in Southeastern Mediterranean Spain |
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Authors: | Elias Symeonakis Adolfo Calvo-Cases Eva Arnau-Rosalen |
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Institution: | CSIRO Mathematical and Information Sciences, Private Bag 5, Wembley 6913, Australia. elias.symeonakis@csiro.au |
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Abstract: | The magnitude of the environmental and social consequences of soil erosion and land degradation in semiarid areas of the Mediterranean
region has long been recognized and studied. This paper investigates the interrelationship between land use/cover (LULC) changes
and land degradation using remotely sensed and ancillary data for southeastern Spain. The area of study, the Xaló River catchment
situated in the north of the Alicante Province, has been subjected to a number of LULC changes during the second half of the
20th century such as agricultural abandonment, forest fires, and tourist development. Aerial photographs dating back to 1956
were used for the delineation of historic LULC types; Landsat ETM+ data were used for the analysis and mapping of current
conditions. Two important indicators of land degradation, namely, susceptibility to surface runoff and soil erosion, were
estimated for the two dates using easily parametrizable models. The comparison of 1956 to 2000 conditions shows an overall
“recuperating” trend over the catchment and increased susceptibility to soil erosion only in 3% of the catchment area. The
results also identify potential degradation hot-spots where mitigation measures should be taken to prevent further degradation.
The readily implemented methodology, based on modest data requirements demonstrated by this study, is a useful tool for catchment
to regional scale land use change and land degradation studies and strategic planning for environmental management. |
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Keywords: | Land use/cover change Land degradation Soil erosion Remote sensing Hot-spots Land degradation indicators |
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