USING REMOTE SENSING TO DETECT AND MONITOR

LAND USE AND LAND COVER CHANGE IN DHAKA

METROPOLITAN OF BANGLADESH IN 2008 FROM
1960

INTRODUCTION

Land cover refers to the Land’s physical attributes (e.g. forest, grassland), whereas land use
expresses the purpose to which those attributes are put or how they are transformed by human
action (e.g. cropping, ranching). The physical and human forcing factors that result in
changes of land cover and land use are manifested through different phenomena such as
changes inland ownership or land management practices (e.g. urban expansion, agricultural
expansion, deforestation, logging, reforestation), and natural hazards (e.g. fires, droughts,
floods, insect infestations) (G.Garik et al., 2004).

Variability in weather, climate, socio-economic conditions to and internal ecosystem

dynamics drive land cover changes on temporal scales from days (e.g. cyclones) to years (e
.g. logging) to decades (urban sprawl). Population changes economic activities are critical
factors that determine the type; distribution and intensity of land cover modification and
changes in land use. The rapid industrialization and urbanization of an area require quick
preparation of actual land Use/land cover (LU/LC) maps in order to detect and avoid over use
and damage of the landscape beyond sustainable development limits. Remote sensing
technology fits well for long-term monitoring and assessment of such effects (Mustafa G et
al. 2007). Recently, remote sensing with multi-temporal high resolution satellite data has
become a strong tool for monitoring aspects such as vegetation cover, soil degradation, and
urban expansion and more generally for most types of LU/LC changes (sited by Mustafa G et
al., 2007).

Like other developing countries, Bangladesh experienced a fast increase of urban population
in the recent decades (14.1 million in 1981, 22.5 million in 1991, 31.1 million in 2001; BBS
2001), and 35 million in 2005 (CUS et al. 2006). Rapid urban growth leads to the
transformation of rural lands to built-up areas, and it is estimated that each year more than

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809 km2 of agricultural land is being diverted to cities, roads and infrastructures in
Bangladesh (BBS 1996). Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh could be the best illustration of
human activities and associated environmental change. Dhaka is expanding apace, at an
average rate of 4.24%/year and is projected to be the third largest megacity in the world by
the year 2020 (World Bank 2007). The growth of the city is phenomenal after independence
(Chowdhury and Faruqui 1989) and highest among other cities in Bangladesh due to its
socio-economic and political importance. The growth is mainly attributed to the large influx
of rural to urban migration (Islam 1996). Rapid urbanization led to the deterioration of city’s
environment.

Official land use statistics of Dhaka Metropolitan seems to have appeared in 1991 by ground
observation (Islam 1996; FAP 8A 1991). Many factors including financial constraints, data
scarcity, bureaucracy and/or lack of geoinformatics expertise in the planning agencies are
responsible for the absence of historical as well as current land use/cover data. In addition, as
many as 18 ministries are effectively involved in developing Dhaka (Mohit 1991) and such
multiple involvements obviously result in meager coordination. In effect, a good number of
private organizations have been evolved, generating “City Maps” by ground investigation and
in an inefficient manner. Consequently, confusion and disparities in the data are widespread
and fairly misleading.

While current and accurate information on land use/ cover is a prerequisite to the
management and planning of urban areas, data paucity and up-to-date information on land
use/cover exist in Dhaka. In the absence of such information, sustainable urban development
cannot be achieved and may lead to the mismanagement of scarce resources which is
prevalent in Dhaka (Hasan and Mulamoottil 1994). Thus, space-borne remotely sensed data is
deemed to be predominantly important for Dhaka Metropolitan, as there is a lack of
consistent spatial information. Timely and reliable land cover information is not only
imperative to comprehend the past and present condition of the land but also used to facilitate
the development of integrated resource management policies, to achieve sustainable urban
development (Alphan 2003), and to derive sound environmental planning.

This study describes the results of land use/cover classification in Dhaka Metropolitan of
Bangladesh derived from topographic maps and multi-temporal remotely sensed data.
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Specifically, the aim is to dynamically map and monitor the land use/ cover change in the
year 2008 from 1960. Since there is a lack of reliable data such as official land use maps and
restricted access to aerial photographs, it was appropriate to use satellite data for the
assessment of land cover change.

DESCRIPTION OF THE STUDY AREA

The study area is greater Dhaka which is the capital city of Bangladesh,
geographically located between 23°58´ and 23°90´ North latitude and 90°33´ and
90°50´ East longitude. The study area and adjoining areas are composed of
alluvial terraces of the southern part, popularly known as the Madhupur tract of
the Pleistocene period. Dhaka is located in the central region, topographically of
the flat deltaic plain of the large rivers, the Ganges, the Brahmaputra and the
Meghna. The city is surrounded by the Buriganga River to the south, the Balu
and the Shitalakhya Rivers to the east, the Tongi Canal to the north and the
Turag River to the west. Dhaka is 2m to 13m above mean sea level (MSL);
about 75km2 are between 6m and 8m, and 170km2 are below 6m. (Alam
et.al.2009; Nishat et el. 2000). Dhaka has hot, humid summers, short, mild
winters and heavy rain during the monsoon season. Annual average rainfall in
Dhaka is approximately 2000 mm. More than 80% of the annual rainfall occurs
during monsoon season. The average mean temperature is 26°c with long term
average maximum monthly temperature of Dhaka ranges from 25.5°C and
11.7°C.

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DATA AND METHODOLOGY

Source of Data

 For satellite image of 2008, raster data of spectral bands 1 to 4 of ALOS (Figure)
scene taken on January 2008 for the test site of Greater Dhaka City. ALOS data are
only suitable for Level I LU/LC mapping according to the USGS survey scheme.
 For satellite image of 1960, raster data of spectral bands 1 to 4 taken on 1960 by U.S.
Spy Satellite (CORONA/ARGON).
 Both the satellite image courtesy: Department of Geography, University of Dhaka.

Figure 1 Satellite image of Dhaka city (Left-1960, Right-2008)

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Design of Classification Scheme

Classification schemes that can readily incorporate LU/LC data obtained by the interpretation
of remotely sensed data have been developed (e.g. U.S. Geological Survey LU/LC
Classification System, US Fish & Wild life Service Wetland Classification System, NOAA
Coast Watch Land Cover Classifi cation System, Asian Land Cover Classification System)
(Jensen,1996). The US Geological Survey Land Use/Land Cover Classification System
(USGS) was chosen and referred for the classification system for this study. Anderson et al.
(1976) determined that ALOS data are only suitable for Level I LU/LC mapping according to
the USGS Survey scheme. So, an adaptive version USGS Level I was chosen and referred to
for the classification system in this study. Classification scheme and detailed descriptions
were given in Table 1.

No. Classes Definition

1 Built up/ Urban Areas covered by asphalt, concrete, typically commercial and
industrial buildings with open roofs as well as open transportation
facilities, airports, parking lots and multiline interstate/state
highways, single/multiple family houses and public rental housing
estate.
2 Agriculture/ Characterized by high percentages of grasses, other herbaceous
Cultivated land vegetation and crops; including lands that are regularly mowed for
hay and/or grazed by livestock, regularly tilled and planted
cropland.
3 Water All areas of open water, generally with greater than 95% cover of
water, including streams, rivers, lakes and reservoirs.
4 Wetland/Low land All areas of marsh, fen, peat land, or water, whether natural or
artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or
flowing, fresh, brackish, or salt.
5 Landfill/Barren Ground that has been filled in with soil and rocks for a specific
land purpose, such as for building houses. Converted to other uses in
the near future.
6 Vegetation Areas covered by dense vegetation with relatively darker green
colors.
Deciduous forest, mixed forest lands, palms, conifer, scrub etc.
Table 1 Land use/land cover classes used in this study and their brief definitions
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Image Preprocessing

Geometric correction of the images had already been carried out, so it was not applied. But
the images were enhanced radiometrically by using Histogram equalization tool. Histogram
equalization allows areas of lower local contrast to gain a higher contrast to gain a higher
contrast without affecting the global contrast. Histogram equalization accomplishes this by
effectively spreading out the most frequent intensity values. The brightest regions of the
image will be assigned a larger range of digital number (DN) values so that radiometric detail
is enhanced.

Hybrid Classification

Hybrid classification is the use of both supervised and unsupervised techniques to classify an
image. Both methods, when taken singularly, have their drawbacks. Supervised
classification requires knowledge of the area and/or detailed field data. Unsupervised
classification requires minimum initial input from the analyst, but the output takes a
significant amount of time to assign the computer-generated clusters to a known land cover.
Hybrid combines the benefits of both techniques. Unclassified has the benefit of a non-
biased, statistical method to separate clusters, while supervised classification utilizes the
analyst’s knowledge of the area. Clusterbusting is used to further define pixels that are mixed or
difficult for the program to classify.

All the satellite data were thoroughly studied using spectral and spatial profiles to ascertain
the DNs of land cover types prior to classification. Initially the images were classified each
into 50 classes by unsupervised classification using the program EDRAS IMAGINE 9.1
(Leica Geosystem). Then supervised classification with the knowledge of topography and
clusterbusting reduced them to 6 classes. Thus composing both unsupervised and supervised
classification, the images were classified into 6 classes according to table 1.

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 ALOS Satellite Image

Image Enhancement
(Histogram Equalization)

Hybrid Classification Technique

Unsupervised Classification (ISODATA)

Level I – separation between vegetation and non-vegetation classes (50 classes)

Supervised Classification Unsupervised Classification

Level I I – Clusterbusting and Mask Image Level I I – clustering fifty classes to six classes

Classified output

Figure 2 Analytic consequences of LU/LC classification procedure

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

LU/LC classifications of 1960 and 2008 of Dhaka Metropolitan of Bangladesh are shown in
figure 3 and 4 respectively.

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Figure 3 LU/LC classifications in 1960

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Figure 4 LU/LC classifications in 2008

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From the maps, areas have been calculated for each of the classes of LU/LC for the year 1960
and 2008. That is shown below.

LU/LC types Area in 1960 (hectares) Area in 2008 (hectares)

Cultivated land 7929.95 5179.9

Water bodies 1064.46 5467.37

Wetland/Low land 12636.41 5763.96

Built up area 8115.52 12914.55

Vegetation 4881.68 8959.64

Bare land 6845.83 3195.98

Table 2 Summary of LU/LC statistics of 1960 and 2008

Spatial patterns of land cover revealed that urban growth followed certain directions
depending on the ground elevation. For example, the earlier direction of the built-up land was
followed by north, north-west, and west trends but the current trend shows a horizontal
expansion (Fig. 3 & 4). Historically, the direction of urban expansion of Dhaka has greatly
been constrained by the low elevation of lands, surrounding rivers, and risk of flooding. Thus
major development was on the high and medium terraces usually not liable to inundation.
Dhaka is being started to expand in all directions, specifically to north-east, south-east and
southern trends by filling up low lying areas. In order to lessen the flood susceptibility, earth
filling is a very popular means of land development in Dhaka Metropolitan. Three sectors,
namely, public, private, and individual households, are responsible for rapid land use/cover
change in Dhaka. Earlier land developments were mainly done by ad hoc planning by the
public sector mainly onto agricultural lands. Currently, a tremendous increase of private
sectors, particularly real state agencies, is noticeable in Dhaka, developing both wetlands and
agricultural lands without considering the environmental consequences.
From table 2, it is seen that build up areas have been increased largely but wetlands/lowlands
reduced hugely. Rapid urbanization has turned these lowlands to build up areas. Samely,

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cultivated land and bare lands are affected by urbanization. But water bodies and vegetation
show a rise in 2008 from 1960 which in real seems question marked. It may be due to not
performing accuracy assessment. Accuracy needs huge amount of ground reference data
which need to be collected in the field by hand GPS. But it is time consuming, requires man
power and has a complex procedure. Here firstly have to go to any location, check the
latitude and longitude using hand GIS and then check in the classified image whether it is
exact the same in map or not. More than hundreds data were required for this purpose. So this
step was omitted. Considering these regards, classification is quite ok.

CONCLUSION
Multi-temporal land use/cover classification in Dhaka Metropolitan of Bangladesh using
topographic maps and remote sensing was described in this paper. Using a post-classification
comparison, the dynamics of land use/cover change are presented. The result revealed that
Dhaka has been experiencing rapid urban growth leading to the quick loss of rural and arable
lands. Urban encroachment is rapid on other covers resulting rampant sprawling and
environmental deterioration. Urban built-up areas increased significantly is mainly attributed
to the fast increase of population due to large rural–urban migration. Consequently, water
bodies, cultivated lands, vegetation, and wetland/lowlands are reducing apace. It was found
that much of the city’s rapid growth in population has been accommodated in informal
settlements with little attempt being made to limit the risk of environmental impairments. To
alleviate the adverse environmental impacts of urban expansion, planning regulations need to
be enforced and effective coordination should be ensured to save the fast declining natural
resource base for sustainable development. Urban expansion should be restrained on
wetlands, vegetation and expensive floodplains or cultivated lands. This would save
productive fertile soils from urbanization and also contribute to the ecological equilibrium. It
is increasingly imperative to take a holistic approach to the management of urban area and its
environment. Furthermore, regional and local land use management policy need to be
revised, and integrated multi-disciplinary research should be initiated so that sustainable
urban development strategy can be formulated.

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No accuracy assessment was performed due to lack of ground reference data and it may be
drawback. The study took the advantage of GIS and remote sensing techniques to quantify
the land cover change in Dhaka Metropolitan in 2008 from 1960. Due to the deficiency of
land use/ cover maps of the study area and restricted access to aerial photographs/ geospatial
database, satellite data can be operationally used to generate land use/cover dynamics, and
are useful for Dhaka and elsewhere for sustainable land management and policy makings.

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