Analyzing belete-gera forest cover changes, it’s driving forces and socio-economic influences on local households

Abstract

Rapid population growth and various anthropogenic factors like agricultural expansion, woody forest product extraction and illegal settlement have caused the conversion of natural forest land cover to other land use types which have a great implication on environment and socio-economy of local households. The objective of the study is to analyze Belete-Gera forest cover changes, its major drivers and socio economic implication of forest cover changes on local households. To accomplish the objective of the study, Landsat images from 1985 TM, 2001 ETM+ , and 2015 ETM+ , and ERDAS and GIS technologies in combination with ground verification and socioeconomic survey were used. The five major land use land cover types of the study area are closed forest, open forest, agriculture, settlement and wetland. Even though, closed forest is the dominant land cover type in the study area, it decreased from time to time. In the first (1985- 2001) and second (2001-2015) 15 years, it decreased by 11.4% and 5.6%, respectively. Wetland also decreased by 17.6% and 39.1%, respectively. In contrary, agricultural land was increased by 53.9% and 11.5%, and settlement increased by 19.5% and 10.9% in the first and second 15 years, respectively. Open forest showed a very little change. Belete-Gera forest cover change was driven mainly by anthropogenic factors like agricultural expansion, illegal settlement, woody forest product extraction, free grazing, population growth, poor governance, law awareness and accessibility. Agricultural land expansion is the main driving force of Belete-Gera forest which accounted for 81-100%. Because of anthropogenic driving forces, in the past 30 years ago, 19,898.9ha (16.7%) of Belete-Gera forest was deforested and converted to other land use types. Belete-Gera forest cover change affects the main land dependent incomes of the households like cereal crops, pulse crops, NTFPs, livestock and others .Even though land dependent income of the households increased , annual income per family size was decreased from time to time. Therefore, in the past 30 years ago, great Belete-Gera forest cover changes were occurred, and the forest is disappearing annually at the rate of 0.48%. The changes are driven by interlinked direct (65%) and indirect (35%) anthropogenic factors. Belete-Gera forest cover change influences agricultural crop productivity, agricultural inputs, woody and non woody uses of forest products for subsistence purposes.