Assessment of Urban Expansion’s Impact on Changes in Vegetation Patterns in Dhofar, Oman, Using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques
The impact of urbanization on vegetation is poorly studied in sparsely vegetated desert steppe-type vegetation. This study investigates the spatial and temporal impacts of urbanization over 40 years on plant species in Dhofar’s mountains, plains, and bay areas. Satellite images covering 1...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IEEE
2022-01-01
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| Series: | IEEE Access |
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| Online Access: | https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9857886/ |
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| author | Yaseen Al-Mulla Amna Al-Ruheili Ali Al-Lawati Krishna Parimi Ahsan Ali Nadya Al-Sadi Faisal Al-Harrasi |
| author_facet | Yaseen Al-Mulla Amna Al-Ruheili Ali Al-Lawati Krishna Parimi Ahsan Ali Nadya Al-Sadi Faisal Al-Harrasi |
| author_sort | Yaseen Al-Mulla |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The impact of urbanization on vegetation is poorly studied in sparsely vegetated desert steppe-type vegetation. This study investigates the spatial and temporal impacts of urbanization over 40 years on plant species in Dhofar’s mountains, plains, and bay areas. Satellite images covering 1978 to 2018 were used as Remote Sensing (RS) tools, along with Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques, to detect changes in vegetation patterns. The results showed an increase in urban development in Dhofar over the 40 years, reaching 173.3%, which contributed to the decline in vegetation cover of 36.4%. However, both percentages indicate that other factors, including climate change, have also impacted the vegetation. It was found that air temperature in the study area increased from 1978 to 2018 by 0.8°C, whereas precipitation decreased by 104 mm. The results also indicate a 23.2% and 18.5% reduction in plant species in coastal areas and mountains, respectively, between 1978 and 2018 due to the increase in urbanization. This warns of the impact of urban expansion on rare plant species in the governorate, as 48 plant species only found in Dhofar are threatened with extinction due to construction and urbanization. We recommend making the biodiversity of Dhofar a priority in developing any urban projects, especially at sites that house rare species. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T20:35:59Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-5c9c0a369b754de381bfc91198e28c1d |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2169-3536 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T20:35:59Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | IEEE |
| record_format | Article |
| series | IEEE Access |
| spelling | doaj.art-5c9c0a369b754de381bfc91198e28c1d2022-12-22T03:17:35ZengIEEEIEEE Access2169-35362022-01-0110867828679210.1109/ACCESS.2022.31989429857886Assessment of Urban Expansion’s Impact on Changes in Vegetation Patterns in Dhofar, Oman, Using Remote Sensing and GIS TechniquesYaseen Al-Mulla0https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4346-799XAmna Al-Ruheili1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3611-0423Ali Al-Lawati2https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8286-6358Krishna Parimi3Ahsan Ali4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9476-2043Nadya Al-Sadi5Faisal Al-Harrasi6Remote Sensing and GIS Research Center, Sultan Qaboos University, Al-Khod, Muscat, OmanDepartment of Plant Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University, Al-Khod, Muscat, OmanNatural and Medical Sciences Research Center, University of Nizwa, Birkat Al-Mauz, Nizwa, OmanRemote Sensing and GIS Research Center, Sultan Qaboos University, Al-Khod, Muscat, OmanRemote Sensing and GIS Research Center, Sultan Qaboos University, Al-Khod, Muscat, OmanOman Animal and Plant Genetic Resources Center, The Research Council, Al-Athaiba, Muscat, OmanEarth Science Research Center, Sultan Qaboos University, Al-Khod, Muscat, OmanThe impact of urbanization on vegetation is poorly studied in sparsely vegetated desert steppe-type vegetation. This study investigates the spatial and temporal impacts of urbanization over 40 years on plant species in Dhofar’s mountains, plains, and bay areas. Satellite images covering 1978 to 2018 were used as Remote Sensing (RS) tools, along with Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques, to detect changes in vegetation patterns. The results showed an increase in urban development in Dhofar over the 40 years, reaching 173.3%, which contributed to the decline in vegetation cover of 36.4%. However, both percentages indicate that other factors, including climate change, have also impacted the vegetation. It was found that air temperature in the study area increased from 1978 to 2018 by 0.8°C, whereas precipitation decreased by 104 mm. The results also indicate a 23.2% and 18.5% reduction in plant species in coastal areas and mountains, respectively, between 1978 and 2018 due to the increase in urbanization. This warns of the impact of urban expansion on rare plant species in the governorate, as 48 plant species only found in Dhofar are threatened with extinction due to construction and urbanization. We recommend making the biodiversity of Dhofar a priority in developing any urban projects, especially at sites that house rare species.https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9857886/Image classificationimage processingremote sensinggeographic information systemsvegetationgeospatial and temporal mapping |
| spellingShingle | Yaseen Al-Mulla Amna Al-Ruheili Ali Al-Lawati Krishna Parimi Ahsan Ali Nadya Al-Sadi Faisal Al-Harrasi Assessment of Urban Expansion’s Impact on Changes in Vegetation Patterns in Dhofar, Oman, Using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques IEEE Access Image classification image processing remote sensing geographic information systems vegetation geospatial and temporal mapping |
| title | Assessment of Urban Expansion’s Impact on Changes in Vegetation Patterns in Dhofar, Oman, Using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques |
| title_full | Assessment of Urban Expansion’s Impact on Changes in Vegetation Patterns in Dhofar, Oman, Using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques |
| title_fullStr | Assessment of Urban Expansion’s Impact on Changes in Vegetation Patterns in Dhofar, Oman, Using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assessment of Urban Expansion’s Impact on Changes in Vegetation Patterns in Dhofar, Oman, Using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques |
| title_short | Assessment of Urban Expansion’s Impact on Changes in Vegetation Patterns in Dhofar, Oman, Using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques |
| title_sort | assessment of urban expansion x2019 s impact on changes in vegetation patterns in dhofar oman using remote sensing and gis techniques |
| topic | Image classification image processing remote sensing geographic information systems vegetation geospatial and temporal mapping |
| url | https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9857886/ |
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