Assessing 30-Year Land Use and Land Cover Change and the Driving Forces in Qianjiang, China, Using Multitemporal Remote Sensing Images

Assessing Land Use and Land Cover Change (LULCC) related with aquaculture areas is vital for evaluating the impacts of aquaculture ponds on the environment and developing a sustainable aquaculture production system. Most studies analyze changes in aquaculture land in coastal areas, and little research focuses on the inland area, where the conversions between agriculture and aquaculture land is primarily driven by socioeconomic factors. This study assessed LULCC related to aquaculture areas in Qianjiang City, China, from 1990 to 2022, using multitemporal Landsat images and a combination of decision tree classifier and visual interpretation. The LULCC was analyzed by the transition matrix. Results showed that the main LULC type was farmland, which accounted for more than 70% of the study area from 1990 to 2022. The built-up and aquaculture land showed an increasing trend year by year. In contrast, there was a gradual decline in forest/grass land from 1990 to 2016, and then its area increased slightly from 2016 to 2022 due to the policy of returning farmland to forest. Water areas were mainly composed of rivers and ponds, with subtle changes during the study period. The main driving forces of LULCC in Qianjiang City were economic and policy factors, with rapid GDP growth and government policies being the dominant factors.