الملخص الإنجليزي
This study dealt with monitoring changes in vegetation area in Wilayat
Nizwa, Sultanate of Oman, using vegetation spectral indices, during the
period from 2001 to 2018. Wilayat Nizwa was selected for its location in
a distinctive ecosystem, which made it vulnerable to changes and
influenced by natural and human factors. The study objective was to
investigate and assess the causes of those changes in Wilayat Nizwa. The
significance of the study is to provide spatial data and thematic maps for
the vegetation cover in Wilayat Nizwa, which will help planning
institutions in the Sultanate of Oman in general and the state of Nizwa in
particular, in identifying and monitoring the affected areas and identifying
appropriate methods for managing the vegetation cover. The study also
provided proposals for dealing with vegetation cover and maintaining it
and setting plans for its development and ensuring its sustainability. The
significance of the study also lies in using modern technologies in an
integrated manner in managing the vegetation cover in particular and
natural resources in general, saving time and effort, and conveying the
realistic image to decision makers in order to take appropriate solutions to
the problems that are exposed. This study is based on image processing
methodology using Erdas Imagine software for processing of Landsat
imageries. And the application of vegetation spectral indices to determine
the areas of vegetation, its locations and the use of geographic information
systems (GIS) in the analysis of related data in order to reach an
appropriate method to detect and assess the changes that occur in the
vegetation cover in the study area.
In addition, the use of the cartographic methods in producing change
maps. The study acquired numerous results that determined the location
of vegetation distribution in Wilayat Nizwa, as well as an increase in the
area of vegetation cover during the study period. These results were
supported by studying the change in the area of agricultural lands and
analyzing the amount of rain for climatic stations of Wilayat Nizwa, which
it turned out to increase during the study period. The study
recommendations called for an effective use of spectral vegetation indices
in studying the vegetation cover and monitoring its changes and the need
to maintain and develop the vegetation cove as well as enforcement of
laws and legislations that preserve natural resources.
