Evaluation of land use and land cover Spatio-temporal change during rapid Urban sprawl from Lahore, Pakistan

This study evaluates land use/cover changes and urban expansion in Lahore, Pakistan from 2000 to 2020 using satellite images and socio-economic data. Spatial and temporal dynamics of land use/cover changes were quantified using five Landsat images, a supervised classification algorithm post-classification change detection and the intensity analysis technique in GIS. Landsat images 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015 and 2020 were classified into four dominant land use categories in the study area: built up area, agricultural land, barren land and water bodies. The intensity analysis of time interval revealed that the annual change rate during 2000-2005, and 2010-2015 was 28.76% and 16.45% respectively, while during the 2005-2010 and 2015-2020 was 11.49% and 6.04%. The transition level of intensity analysis indicated that the built-up area is expanded at agricultural land and gained area 886 km2 and 861 km2 in the period from 2000 to 2005, and 2010-2015, respectively. The built up area significantly growth from 22.99% to 47.17% of total study area 2000 and 2020 respectively. The driving force behind this change was economic development and population growth and climate change. The rapid population growth and rapid urbanization resulted in a wide range of environmental impacts, including degraded habitat quality.

Automated summary

The study evaluated land use/cover changes and urban expansion in Lahore, Pakistan from 2000 to 2020 using satellite images and socio-economic data. It found that the built-up area significantly expanded during this period, accounting for 22.99% to 47.17% of the total study area. The driving forces behind this change were economic development, population growth, and climate change, leading to various environmental impacts.