Remote Sensing of African Mountains: Geospatial Tools Toward Sustainability

Description

This edited volume focuses on the use of remote sensing techniques to assess and monitor mountainous ecosystems in Africa, with a focus on tracking changes related to climate change and human activity. The book is timely, as the interaction of mountain environmental dynamics with conservation and sustainability is an under-researched issue. The chapters in this volume use remotely sensed data to study a variety of topics related to mountains and their ecosystems, including but not limited to vegetation, energy systems, environmental hazards, ecosystem services, diseases, climatic shifts, geological formations and geomorphological dynamics. The ability to monitor, assess and analyze mountainous regions is aided by the availability of remote sensing products such as optical and microwave sensors and low-cost unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The works presented here push the frontier of knowledge on mountain studies and will help shape local, national and global assessments and policies, including efforts toward the achievement of the African Agenda 2063. The book will be of interest to researchers and students in remote sensing, geography, ecology and sustainability, as well as to government organizations and conservation specialists. Acknowledgment Reviewers Introduction References Contents List of Figures List of Tables Chapter 1: Montane Grasslands: Biomass Estimations Using Remote Sensing Techniques in Africa 1.1 Introduction 1.2 Methodology 1.2.1 Data Source 1.2.2 Data Retrieval 1.2.3 Data Analysis 1.3 AGB and RS in Montane Grasslands 1.4 BGB and RS in Montane Grasslands 1.5 Grasslands Biomass Estimation in Montane Environments: Global Knowledge 1.6 Issues and Challenges in Africa 1.7 Conclusion References Chapter 2: Unravelling Regional Geodiversity: A Grid-Mapping Approach to Quantify Geodiversity in the uThukela District, KwaZulu-Natal 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Materials and Methods 2.2.1 Regional Settings 2.2.2 Geodiversity Classification 2.2.2.1 Grid Resolution 2.2.2.2 Geodiversity Partial Index Classification 2.2.2.3 Geodiversity Partial Index Classification 2.3 Results and Discussion 2.3.1 UTDM Sub-partial Diversity Quantification 2.3.2 Geodiversity Index Map for UTDM 2.4 Future Work 2.5 Conclusion References Chapter 3: Monitoring the Wildfire Activity and Ecosystem Response on Mt. Kilimanjaro Using Earth Observation Data and GIS 3.1 Introduction 3.2 Study Area 3.3 Materials and Methods 3.3.1 Datasets 3.4 Method 3.5 Results and Discussion 3.5.1 Active Fire Detection on Mt. Kilimanjaro 3.6 Post-fire Monitoring and Vegetation Loss at Mt. Kilimanjaro 3.7 Vegetation Reconstruction 3.8 Conclusion and Recommendation References Chapter 4: Ecological Vulnerability Assessment to Grassland Fires in a Protected Mountainous Area Using Remote Sensing and GIS 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Study Area 4.3 Methodology 4.3.1 Erosion Sensitivity 4.3.2 Vegetation Response Ability 4.3.3 Ecological Vulnerability 4.3.4 Validation 4.4 Results and Discussion 4.5 Ecological Vulnerability Validation 4.6 Conclusion References Chapter 5: Natural Hazards Magnitude, Vulnerability, and Recovery Strategies in the Rwenzori Mountains, Southwestern Uganda 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Materials and Methods 5.2.1 Description of Study Area 5.2.2 Natural Hazards in Mountain Rwenzori 5.2.3 Elements at Risk in Mountain Rwenzori 5.2.4 Disaster Recovery Assessment 5.3 Results 5.3.1 Spatial Exposure Profile of Hazards in Mt. Rwenzori 5.3.2 Vulnerability of Elements to Natural Hazards in Mt. Rwenzori 5.3.2.1 Elements Vulnerable to Drought Hazard 5.3.2.2 Elements Vulnerable to Earthquake Hazard 5.3.2.3 Elements Vulnerable to Flood Hazard 5.3.2.4 Element Vulnerable to Hailstorm Hazard 5.3.2.5 Elements Vulnerable to Landslide Hazard 5.3.2.6 Elements Vulnerable to Lightning Hazard 5.3.2.7 Elements Vulnerable to Windstorm Hazard 5.3.3 Disaster Recovery Strategies to Natural Hazards in the Rwenzori Mountains 5.3.3.1 Buildings 5.3.3.2 Croplands 5.3.3.3 Police Posts 5.3.3.4 Health Facilities 5.3.3.5 Road Network 5.3.3.6 Schools 5.3.3.7 Water Sources 5.4 Discussion 5.4.1 The Magnitude and Vulnerability of Natural Hazards Experienced in Mt. Rwenzori 5.4.1.1 Elements Vulnerable to Drought Hazard 5.4.1.2 Elements Vulnerable to Earthquake Hazard 5.4.1.3 Elements Vulnerable to Flood Hazard 5.4.1.4 Element Vulnerable to Hailstorm Hazard 5.4.1.5 Elements Vulnerable to Landslide Hazard 5.4.1.6 Elements Vulnerable to Lightning Hazard 5.4.1.7 Elements Vulnerable to Windstorm Hazard 5.4.2 The Appropriate Disaster Recovery Strategies to Natural Hazards in the Rwenzori Mountains 5.4.2.1 Buildings 5.4.2.2 Croplands 5.4.2.3 Police Posts 5.4.2.4 Health Facilities 5.4.2.5 Road Network 5.4.2.6 Schools 5.4.2.7 Water Sources 5.5 Conclusion References Chapter 6: Assessing the Vulnerability of the Eastern Africa Highlands’ Soils to Rainfall Erosivity 6.1 Introduction 6.2 Materials and Methods 6.2.1 Data 6.2.2 Study Area 6.3 Assessment of Soil Abrasion as a Result of Rainfall Erosivity 6.4 Results and Discussion 6.4.1 Spatial Distribution of Rainfall Erosivity Risk Areas 6.5 Conclusion and Recommendations References Chapter 7: Development of Lightning Hazard Map for Fire Danger Assessment Over Mountainous Protected Area Using Geospatial Technology 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Material and Methods 7.2.1 Study Area 7.2.2 Material 7.2.2.1 CG Lightning Data 7.2.2.2 Terrain Elevation, Slope, and Aspect 7.2.2.3 Vegetation Type 7.2.2.4 Historical Fire 7.2.3 Methods 7.2.3.1 Temporal Distribution of Lightning Strikes Activity 7.2.3.2 Spatial Distribution of Lightning Strikes Activity 7.3 Development of Lightning Hazard Map 7.3.1 Relationship of Lightning Hazard Map with Topography (Elevation, Slope, Aspects, Vegetation Types, and Fire Scar) 7.4 Results 7.4.1 CG Lightning Strike Events and Density Maps 7.4.2 Temporal Analysis 7.5 Spatial Pattern Analysis 7.5.1 Global Moran 1 7.5.2 Hotspot Analysis Getis–Ord Gi* 7.5.3 Development of Lightning Hazard Map 7.5.4 Regression Analysis 7.6 Discussion 7.7 Conclusion References Chapter 8: Water Resources Monitoring Over the Atlas Mountains in Morocco Using Satellite Observations and Reanalysis Data 8.1 Introduction 8.2 The Atlas Mountains Context 8.3 Snow Cover Duration from MODIS Snow Product 8.4 Precipitation Variability Over the Atlas as Seen from Space 8.5 ERA5 Temperature Reanalysis Data 8.6 Conclusion References Chapter 9: Evaluating Settlement Development Change, Pre, and Post-1994 in the Drakensberg Mountains of Afromontane Region, South Africa 9.1 Introduction 9.2 Description of the Study Area 9.3 Methodology 9.3.1 Image Pre-processing, Processing, and Classification 9.4 Results 9.5 Discussion 9.6 Conclusion and Recommendations References Chapter 10: Digital Soil Mapping for Hydropedological Purposes of the Cathedral Peak Research Catchments, South Africa 10.1 Introduction 10.2 Methodology 10.2.1 Study Site 10.2.2 Classification of Hydropedological Soil Groups 10.2.3 Normalized Difference Vegetation Index Analysis 10.2.4 Rule-Based Digital Soil Mapping Utilising the Arc Soil Inference Engine (ArcSIE) 10.3 Ground Truthing and Validation 10.3.1 Statistical Validation 10.4 Results and Discussion 10.4.1 Hydropedological Classification of Soils 10.4.2 NDVI Analysis 10.4.3 Rule-Based Digital Soil Mapping 10.4.4 Validation 10.4.5 Statistical Analysis 10.5 Conclusion References Chapter 11: Effect of Climate Variability and Change on Land Suitability for Irish Potato Production in Kigezi Highlands of Uganda 11.1 Introduction 11.2 Materials and Methods 11.2.1 Study Location 11.2.2 Site Description 11.2.2.1 Geomorphology 11.2.2.2 Geology 11.2.2.3 Soil 11.2.2.4 Climate 11.2.2.5 Vegetation 11.2.3 Data Analytical Tools and Techniques 11.2.3.1 Data Sources Land Mapping Units and Soil Data Climate Data Slope Data Remote Sensing Data 11.2.4 Identification of Irish Potato Production Areas 11.2.5 Accuracy Assessment 11.2.6 Suitability Rating 11.2.7 Spatial Multi-Criteria Evaluation (SMCE) and Weighted Linear Combination (WLC) 11.2.8 Climate Change Modeling and Irish Potato Production 11.2.9 Climate Data Preparation 11.2.10 Model Calibration 11.2.11 Sensitivity Analysis 11.2.12 Model Evaluation and Validation 11.2.13 Seasonal Climate Trend Analysis and Irish Potato Production 11.3 Results and Discussion 11.3.1 Land Cover Classification 11.3.2 The Extent and Suitability of Irish Potato Production Area 11.3.3 Temperature Trends and Irish Potato Production 11.3.4 Temperature Trend in March to May Season 11.3.5 Temperature Trend in September to November Season 11.3.6 Rainfall Trends 11.3.7 Irish Potato Yield Trends 11.3.8 Climate–Irish Potato Relationship 11.3.9 Climate–Irish Potato Relationship in March to May Seasons (1980–2010) 11.3.10 Climate–Irish Potato Relationship in September to November Seasons (1980–2010) 11.4 Conclusions 11.4.1 Conclusions Drawn for the Study 11.5 Recommendations References Index