Monitoring 60 Years of Land Cover Change in the Marathon Area, Greece

Apostolos Gaitanis, Kleomenis Kalogeropoulos, Vassilis Detsis and Christos Chalkias
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Apostolos Gaitanis: Department of Geography, Harokopio University of Athens, El. Venizelou 70, Athens 17671, Greece
Kleomenis Kalogeropoulos: Department of Geography, Harokopio University of Athens, El. Venizelou 70, Athens 17671, Greece
Vassilis Detsis: Department of Home Economics and Ecology, Harokopio University of Athens, El. Venizelou 70, Athens 17671, Greece
Christos Chalkias: Department of Geography, Harokopio University of Athens, El. Venizelou 70, Athens 17671, Greece

Land, 2015, vol. 4, issue 2, 1-18

Abstract: This study deals with the landscape evolution reflected in the changes of land cover in the suburban area of Marathon, Attica, Greece. The study was based on remote sensing images covering the time period between 1945 and 2007. Several other types of data were also used, such as a digital terrain model, historical orthophotos, vegetation maps, geological maps, cadastral maps and aerial photos. These types of data were used in order to create the spatial database for the classification/interpretation of land cover and to identify the land cover changes that occurred during the period in question. The results of this study showed significant land cover changes, especially for the land covered by forests and wetlands with a 47% and a 37% decrease, respectively. The spatial arrangement of the development of residential areas was partially predictable, while the occurrence of land cover changes due to retrogressive vegetation succession appeared rather idiosyncratically throughout the area initially covered by forest.

Keywords: land cover changes; land cover monitoring; remote sensing; Marathon; Attica; Greece; retrogressive succession; residential development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q15 Q2 Q24 Q28 Q5 R14 R52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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