Environmental Impacts of Urban Land-Use Changes in Kolfe Keranyio Sub-City, Kebele 04 Selti Area, Addis Ababa Using Remote Sensing and Gis Techniques
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Date
2009-01
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Addis Ababa Universty
Abstract
This study attempted to analyze the process of land use change through informal land
transactions and subdivisions in Kolfe Keraniyo sub-city of kebele 04, Selti Area which is
locally known as Selti sefer. The study also explores the major impacts of informal urban
expansion on the social and physical environments of the city in general and in the study
area in particular. I have used both primary and secondary data for the purpose of this
study. Aerial photographs of the study area of 1994 and 2002 at scale of 1:8000 and
1:2000 respectively, IKONOS image of the area (2007) and Google Earth image (2007)
were used. Both qualitative and quantitative data were used and systematically analyzed
using GIS and Remote Sensing techniques as analytical tools. In addition to these, the
participatory mapping technique was used for the change of the area for the last seven
decade in the study area. The analytical tools found out to be efficient to analyze land use
change, pattern analysis and the extent of informal land conversion from agricultural use
to urban land. The empirical finding revealed that the built up of the area between 1994
and 2002 was increased by 122.3 hectare which was 135.1 per cent. Similarly, the road
(gravel and footpath) of the area increased by 4.7 km which was 20.4 per cent. On the
contrary, agriculture land and forest were decreased from 159.8 and 12.2 hectare in 1994
to 27.3 and 11.3 hectare in 2002 which was 82.9 and 7.9 per cent respectively. According
to this finding informal settlement in the area is a phenomenon seen after 1994 due to
socio-economic and political reasons. The chronic shortages of housing, lack of access to
urban land through the formal channel, poor and inefficient land management, lack of
institutional capacity and administrative instability found out to be the major cause for
rapid informal land subdivisions. My empirical observation revealed that the informal
settlements in the selti area lack the basic urban social and environmental services. The
area gets some of these services at best informally or uses its own mechanisms to cope
with the problem. As a result, the area is facing serious environmental problems due to
lack of water, road, and sanitation services.
Key words: - Land use/cover, Informal settlements, Environment
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Keywords
Land use/cover, Informal settlements, Environment