An Integrated Remote Sensing and GIS in Monitoring Landuse and Land Cover Change in Egbeda Local Government Area, Oyo State, Nigeria

Abstract

Effective planning relies on accurate and up-to-date information on existing land use and land cover. The timely detection of trends in land use and land cover change and a quantification of such trends are of specific interest to planners and decision makers. The aim of this research is to use remote sensing and GIS to monitor landuse and land cover change in Egbeda Local Government Area, Oyo State with a view to determining how useful such information can be to planners and decision makers for effective urban management. The research was conducted using remote sensing and Geographical information System at determining the trend and extent of land use and land cover change and its driving force in Egbeda Local Government Area, Oyo State. The methods used include: digitization, digital image processing and spatial analysis using an inverse distance weighted (IDW) technique, Maximum likelihood supervised classification and post classification change detection techniques were applied to Landsat imageries acquired in 1984, 2006 and 2018. Imageries were classified into built-up area, vegetation, bare surface, cultivation and water body. The results of the analysis obtained showed drastic change in built-up area which rose to 32.8% from 25.4% between 1984 and 2018 periods. To reduce the effect of land use expansion in the study areas, policy measures were recommended which include proper inventory of land use and land cover, regular monitoring of urban areas spread of development and regional development programs. These will enable the government, stakeholders, policy makers and planners to make informed decisions provided by these technologies to attain and sustain future urban development.