A three decade assessment of forest cover changes in Nijhum dwip national park using remote sensing and GIS

Over three decades, the Nijhum Dwip National Park (NDNP), part of the Sundarbans mangrove forest, experienced significant forest cover loss, with more than 42% (1781 ha) deforested between 1990 and 2011. Specifically, nearly 1235 ha and over 856 ha disappeared from an initial 4217.5 ha in 1990 to 2982.5 ha in 2001 and 2126.16 ha in 2011. However, a slight recovery of 310 ha was recorded between 2011 and 2020. The study used Landsat images (1990, 2001, 2011, 2020) with maximum likelihood classification to assess changes, finding that NDVI outperformed SAVI in detecting forest cover shifts. This research highlights the need for continuous monitoring and informed decision-making to protect this critical mangrove ecosystem.

Islam, Md. R., Khan, Md. N. I., Khan, Md. Z., & Roy, B. (2021). A three decade assessment of forest cover changes in Nijhum dwip national park using remote sensing and GIS. Environmental Challenges, 4, 100162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envc.2021.100162