Analysis of Land Use/Cover Changes in the Menengai Landscape, Geothermal Prospect Using Landsat TM

Abstract

As the population increased, land use and/or land cover in the Menengai Landscape has been changing rapidly due to the increased interactions of human activities like geothermal energy development. These changes are likely to cause a shift in the generation of goods and services from the biophysical environment, and thus need to be understood. As an integral part of geothermal exploration and development one should map, evaluate and monitor those changes. In the last few years, remote sensing techniques have been increasingly used in managing and monitoring land-cover and land-use and their changes at a variety of spatial scales. With population growth, the land base declines and the exploitation of natural resources increases to meet human needs. Satellite remote sensing techniques have been used to collect and interpret data, and to classify features. In this study, the supervised classification method was used to generate the land cover maps. Multi-temporal Landsat images (obtained in 1989, 2000 and 2010) together with physical and population data were then used in a post classification analysis with GIS technology to map land use/land cover distribution and to analyze factors influencing the land use/land cover changes. Preliminary results revealed that substantial land use/land cover changes had taken place with population increase (1989- 2000). Rapid urbanization, deforestation and energy generation were noted to be the major factors influencing rapid land use/land cover changes. Since the quest for more energy resources is evident, this study recommends a detailed study to accurately detect such changes and thus help understand the relationships between human, geothermal resource exploration and natural phenomena so as to facilitate effective decision-making.