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Post-War Land Cover Changes and Fragmentation in Halgurd Sakran National Park (HSNP), Kurdistan Region of Iraq

Author

Listed:
  • Rahel Hamad

    (Faculty of Science, Petroleum Geosciences Department, Soran University, Delzyan Campus, Soran 44008, Erbil, Iraq)

  • Kamal Kolo

    (Scientific Research Centre (SRC), Soran University, Delzyan Campus, Soran 44008, Erbil, Iraq)

  • Heiko Balzter

    (Centre for Landscape and Climate Research (CLCR), Department of Geography, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK
    National Centre for Earth Observation, University of Leicester, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH, UK)

Abstract

Context: The fundamental driving force of land use and land cover (LULC) change is related to spatial and temporal processes caused by human activities such as agricultural expansion and demographic change. Landscape metrics were used to analyze post-war changes in a rural mountain landscape, the protected area of Halgurd-Sakran National Park (HSNP) in north-east Iraq. Therefore, the present work attempts to identify the temporal trends of the most fragmented land cover types between two parts of the national park. Objectives: The objectives of this study are to compare two land cover classification algorithms, maximum likelihood classification (MLC) and random forest (RF) in the upper and lower parts of HSCZ, and to examine whether landscape configuration in the park has changed over time by comparing the fragmentation, connectivity and diversity of LULC classes. Methods: Two Landsat images were used to analyze LULC fragmentation and loss of habitat connectivity (before and after the Fall of Baghdad in 2003). Seven landscape pattern metrics, percentage of land (PLAND), number of patch (NP), largest patch index (LPI), mean patch size (MPS), euclidian nearest neighborhood distance (ENN_AM), interspersion and juxtaposition (IJI) and cohesion at class level were selected to assess landscape composition and configuration. Results: A significant change in LULC classes was noticed in the lower part of the park, especially for pasture, cultivated and forest-lands. The fragmentation trends and their changes were observed in both parts of the park, however, more were observed in the lower part. The inherent causes of these changes are the socio-economic factors created by the 1991–2003 UN post-war economic sanctions. The changes increased during sanctions and decreased afterwards. The fall of Baghdad in 2003, followed by rapid economic boom, marked the greatest cause in land use change, especially in changes-susceptible cultivated areas. Conclusions: Shrinkage of forest patches in the lower part of the park increases the distance between them, which contributes to a decline in biological diversity from decreasing habitat area. Lastly, the results confirm the applicability of the combined method of remote sensing and landscape metrics.

Suggested Citation

  • Rahel Hamad & Kamal Kolo & Heiko Balzter, 2018. "Post-War Land Cover Changes and Fragmentation in Halgurd Sakran National Park (HSNP), Kurdistan Region of Iraq," Land, MDPI, vol. 7(1), pages 1-17, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:7:y:2018:i:1:p:38-:d:136879
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Jason Reynolds & Kathryn Wesson & Arnaud L. J. Desbiez & Jose M. Ochoa-Quintero & Peter Leimgruber, 2016. "Using Remote Sensing and Random Forest to Assess the Conservation Status of Critical Cerrado Habitats in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil," Land, MDPI, vol. 5(2), pages 1-12, May.
    2. Lina Eklund & Jonathan Seaquist, 2015. "Meteorological, agricultural and socioeconomic drought in the Duhok Governorate, Iraqi Kurdistan," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 76(1), pages 421-441, March.
    3. Rahel Hamad & Heiko Balzter & Kamal Kolo, 2017. "Multi-Criteria Assessment of Land Cover Dynamic Changes in Halgurd Sakran National Park (HSNP), Kurdistan Region of Iraq, Using Remote Sensing and GIS," Land, MDPI, vol. 6(1), pages 1-17, March.
    4. von Braun, Joachim & Gerber, Nicolas & Mirzabaev, Alisher & Nkonya, Ephraim M., 2013. "The Economics of Land Degradation," Working Papers 147910, University of Bonn, Center for Development Research (ZEF).
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    Cited by:

    1. Rahel Hamad & Heiko Balzter & Kamal Kolo, 2018. "Predicting Land Use/Land Cover Changes Using a CA-Markov Model under Two Different Scenarios," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-23, September.
    2. Robert F. Baldwin & Karen F. Beazley, 2019. "Emerging Paradigms for Biodiversity and Protected Areas," Land, MDPI, vol. 8(3), pages 1-12, March.
    3. Chengjie Yang & Ruren Li & Zongyao Sha, 2020. "Exploring the Dynamics of Urban Greenness Space and Their Driving Factors Using Geographically Weighted Regression: A Case Study in Wuhan Metropolis, China," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-21, December.
    4. Willie Doaemo & Midhun Mohan & Esmaeel Adrah & Shruthi Srinivasan & Ana Paula Dalla Corte, 2020. "Exploring Forest Change Spatial Patterns in Papua New Guinea: A Pilot Study in the Bumbu River Basin," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(9), pages 1-18, August.
    5. Rahel Hamad & Kamal Kolo & Heiko Balzter, 2018. "Land Cover Changes Induced by Demining Operations in Halgurd-Sakran National Park in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(7), pages 1-15, July.

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