Land Use Change in Coastal Cities during the Rapid Urbanization Period from 1990 to 2016: A Case Study in Ningbo City, China

Chao Zhang, Shuai Zhong, Xue Wang, Lei Shen, Litao Liu and Yujie Liu
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Chao Zhang: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Shuai Zhong: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Xue Wang: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Lei Shen: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Litao Liu: Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
Yujie Liu: Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing 100012, China

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 7, 1-21

Abstract: Coastal cities have been experiencing tremendous land use changes worldwide. Studies on the consequences of land use change in coastal cities have provided helpful information for spatial regulations and have attracted increased attention. Changes in forests and water bodies, however, have rarely been investigated, challenging the formation of a holistic pattern of land use change. In this study, we selected Ningbo, China, as a case study area and analyzed its land use change from 1990 to 2016. Random forest (RF) classification was employed to derive land use information from Landsat images. Transition matrices and a distribution index (DI) were applied to identify the major types of land use transitions and their spatial variations by site-specific attributes. The results showed that the entire time period could be divided into two stages, based on the manifestations of land use change in Ningbo: 1990–2005 and 2005–2016. During 1990–2005, construction land expanded rapidly, mainly through the occupation of agricultural land and forest, while during 2005–2016, the main change trajectory turned out to be a small net change in construction land and a net increase in agricultural land sourced from construction land, forests, and water bodies. In terms of land use change by site-specific attributes, the rapid expansion of construction land around the municipal city center during 1990–2005 was restrained, and similar amounts of land conversion between construction and agricultural use occurred during 2005–2016. During the study period, areas undergoing land use change also showed trends of moving outward from the municipal city center and the county centers located adjacent to roads and the coastline and of moving up to hilly areas with steeper slopes and higher elevations. Protecting reclaimed agricultural land, improving the efficiency of construction land, and controlling forest conversion in hilly areas are suggested as spatial regulations in Ningbo city.

Keywords: land use change; transition matrix; spatial dynamic; random forest; Ningbo city (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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