Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Landscape Transformation in Western Balkans’ Metropolitan Areas

Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Landscape Transformation in Western Balkans’ Metropolitan Areas

Human-caused landscape transformation represents a danger to conserving the Earth’s natural habitats. Landscape fragmentation (LF) caused by transportation infrastructure and urban development poses a threat to human and environmental health by increasing traffic noise and pollution, reducing the si...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Land (Basel) Vol. 11; no. 11; p. 1892
Main Authors: Hyka, Isra, Hysa, Artan, Dervishi, Sokol, Solomun, Marijana Kapovic, Kuriqi, Alban, Vishwakarma, Dinesh Kumar, Sestras, Paul
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Basel MDPI AG 01-10-2022
Subjects:
Biodiversity
Cities
Climate change
connectivity
Developing countries
Environmental aspects
Environmental health
fragmentation
Habitats
Introduced species
Invasive species
Land cover
Land use
landscape
Landscape assessment
LDCs
Methods
Metropolitan areas
Noise pollution
patches
Pollution control
Population
Public awareness
Roads & highways
Sea level
Statistical analysis
Surface area
Sustainable development
territorial fragmentation
Transformations
Transportation noise
Urban areas
Urban development
urban fragmentation
Urban sprawl
Urbanization
Wildlife
Wildlife habitats
North Macedonia
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Albania
Europe
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Summary:Human-caused landscape transformation represents a danger to conserving the Earth’s natural habitats. Landscape fragmentation (LF) caused by transportation infrastructure and urban development poses a threat to human and environmental health by increasing traffic noise and pollution, reducing the size and viability of wildlife populations, facilitating the spread of invasive species, and reducing the recreational qualities of the landscape. It is especially noticeable in the metropolitan areas of developing countries due to rapid and unsupervised urban sprawl. In this context, this study aims to protect natural landscapes and biodiversity, promoting forms of sustainable development. To exemplify our aim, we bring a spatio-temporal analysis of landscape change comparing three metropolitan areas in the Western Balkans (WB). First, we compare the land use land cover (LULC) changes in Tirana (Albania), Skopje (North Macedonia), and Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina). The comparison was based on the Urban Atlas (UA) data of 2012 and 2018. The analysis was performed on two levels, at the metropolitan and urban spatial scales. Apart from descriptive statistics about the changes in surface area and patch counts, we used effective mesh size (meff) as a landscape metric to quantify the LF level. Our results show that each city has faced significant LULC change between 2012 and 2018, with a dominant increase in artificial surfaces. Furthermore, the cumulative natural surface area reduction is followed by increased landscape patch counts, indicating an increased LF at both levels. This study enhances public awareness about the landscape transformation trends in the developing metropolitan regions of WB. The respective administrative bodies at both local and central levels are invited to consider our results and adopt proper measurements to reduce the adverse consequences of subsequent spatial development decisions.
ISSN:2073-445X
2073-445X
DOI:10.3390/land11111892