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Trends of Land Use and Land Cover Change in Mountain Regions

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Montology Palimpsest

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Abstract

We identified land use and land cover change (LULCC) trends in mountain regions worldwide. Specific objectives were to (1) identify the recurrent trends of land use change, (2) identify the trends of land cover change, and (3) describe regional patterns. We developed a database of 80 peer-reviewed articles published since 2010 that addressed both land use and land cover change in a mountain environment. We identified five trends in land use change, ranging from “no change” to “increase/intensification of land use over multiple sectors.” Seven trends characterizing varying degrees of natural and anthropogenic land cover change were also identified among the 80 case studies. Within the study period, an increase in anthropogenic activity leading to the replacement of natural land covers with anthropogenic types has been a dominant trend in African and Asian Mountains. Land abandonment has dominated the literature about European mountains. Technological and systemic factors limit the LULCC approach in the mountains of South America. Overall, linking cause and effect, especially through interpretation of remotely sensed imagery, is problematic in mountain regions where complex terrain, climate change, ecosystem sensitivities, rapid geophysical processes, and resource development coincide at different spatial and temporal scales.

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Resler, L.M., Gunya, A. (2022). Trends of Land Use and Land Cover Change in Mountain Regions. In: Sarmiento, F.O. (eds) Montology Palimpsest. Montology, vol 1. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-13298-8_9

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