Land use/cover change and perceived watershed status in Eastern Uganda

Abstract

This study assessed the current status of Awoja in Ngora district of Eastern Uganda. Remote sensing, household survey, In Pac S methodology and focus group discussions were used to acquire data from April to July, 2015. Landsat satellite imageries from 2007 and 2013 were acquired by USGS Earth Explorer to quantify land use/cover changes. Five land use/cover types were identified namely; (1) open water (2) wetland (3) tree cover (4) agriculture and (5) built up area. The findings indicate a fivefold increase in built up area by 154.27Km² and open water changed by 8.7 Km² and a reduction in wetland area by -1.0Km² tree cover by -48.07Km² and agriculture area by -11.4.0Km². The survey results indicated deforestation, wetland encroachment, poor attitude and over population as the main reasons for degradation. In Pac S methodology findings showed convergence in the perceived indicator of degraded watershed in terms of water and soil quality; vegetation type and species diversity among the lay people and technocrats. The focus group discussion findings indicated a negative trend in land use/cover change. There is need for a concerted effort to design an appropriate restoration strategy for Awoja.

Keywords: Land use/cover, remote sensing, GIS and other methods