Monitoring of vegetation and land use changes process using Landsat data (Case study: Sarvestan plain)

Desertification is a serious environmental and socio-economic threat to the planet. The aim of this study is to use a scientific, reasonable and repeatable method to evaluate the process of vegetation and land use as two important factors in the process of desertification on different scales (local-regional and global). In this study, Sarvestan plain in Fars province was selected as the study area. For this purpose, Landsat images were used for TM (1993), ETM + (2001 and 2006) and OLI / TIRS (2016). Image monitoring was performed using image differentiation, NDVI index difference and land use maps. In 1993, 2001, and 1993, and 2016 difference maps, the decrease in the amount of water in the mouth of Lake Maharloo can be clearly seen as increasing changes in the infrared band. The results of the difference between the vegetation index and the increase in vegetation in the form of agricultural lands in 2016 compared to 2006 and 1993. According to the results of the monitoring classification, from 1993 to 2016, irrigated areas decreased from 7.11 hectares to 0.7575 hectares, on the other hand, the level of saline lands increased from 143.99 hectares to 223.83 hectares and the level of cultivated lands increased. (Agricultural and horticultural) has increased from 113.28 hectares to 14/2014 hectares, which due to the importance of saline lands and land use change indicators in the studies of the desertification assessment process, it can be concluded that the desertification process in the study area is growing.