Measuring and Predicting Urban Expansion in the Angkor Region of Cambodia

Urban expansion around the Angkor World Heritage Site in Cambodia, driven by rapid tourism growth and unchecked development, poses significant threats to its integrity. Between 2004 and 2017, Siem Reap's urban area surged by 160%, with 72% of the increase occurring in the buffer zone, leading to the transformation of arable land, forests, and grasslands into residential areas. Using remote sensing and GIS, researchers applied the CA-Markov model to predict that the built-up area will reach 135.09 km² by 2025 and 159.14 km² by 2030, potentially affecting 17 monuments by 2030—up from 9 in 2017. The study highlights the urgent need for intervention to mitigate urban pressure on this globally significant site.

Liu, J., Ren, H., Wang, X., Shirazi, Z., & Quan, B. (2019). Measuring and Predicting Urban Expansion in the Angkor Region of Cambodia. Remote Sensing, 11(17), 2064. https://doi.org/10.3390/rs11172064