Modelling Tropical Deforestation: A Comparison of Approaches

Jean-François Mas (1) , Martin Paegelow (2) , B. de Jong (3) , O. Masera (4) , G. Guerrero (4) , Marco Follador (2) , M. Olguin (3) , J.R. Diaz (1) , M.A. Castillo (5) , T. Garcia (1)

1 Centro de Investigaciones en Geografía Ambiental - UNAM
2 GEODE - Géographie de l'environnement
3 ECOSUR Unidad Villahermosa
4 UNAM - Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México = National Autonomous University of Mexico
5 ECOSUR Unidad San Cristobal

Tropical deforestation, as an important factor in global change, is a topic that recently has received considerable attention. GIS-based spatially explicit models that intend to predict the location of land use/cover change (LUCC) can help scientists and policy makers to understand, anticipate and possibly prevent the adverse effects of land-use change. There are many approaches and softwares to model LUCC such as CLUE-S, DINAMICA GEOMOD and IDRISI. This study intends to compare these four modelling approaches. First, a review of methods and tools employed by each software to carry out the simulation was done. Then, the four packages were applied to a "virtual" case which involves a map of deforestation, which comprises two types of deforestation (forest to shifting agriculture and forest to pasture lands), along with several explanatory variables (drivers). Deforestation was modelled using the four approaches and the output maps were compared.

Mots clés: Deforestation modelling; GIS; software programs

Domaines: Géographie

Jean-François Mas, Martin Paegelow, B. de Jong, O. Masera, G. Guerrero, et al.. Modelling Tropical Deforestation: A Comparison of Approaches. 32rd symposium on remote sensing of environment, Jun 2007, San José, Costa Rica. 3 p. en CD. ⟨halshs-01063568⟩