Changing trends in mangrove the forest cover of the Sontecomapan Lagoon System, Veracruz, with Landsat® satellite images

Résumé 0

The mangrove forest area in lagoons tends to be disturbed by different factors and this leads to ecosystem deterioration. This work analyzes and quantifies the changing trends in mangrove forest cover of the Sontecomapan Lagoon, Mexico, through Landsat® satellite imagery of 1979, 1986 and 2000. In Landsat® images with different RGB compositions, a polygon delineation of the different surfaces was depicted. The segments were transformed into polygons and several classes were identified: Water from the Lagoon System, Mangle, Urban Zone, Agricultural Zone, Other Vegetation Type, Other Type of Coverage or Land Use and Sea Water of the Gulf of Mexico. Maps of persistence, and tables of gains and losses between classes were generated. The results indicated a reduction of Mangrove and Other Vegetation Type, with gain in the Agricultural Zone. An annual loss of mangrove forest area of 422 ha was observed between the extreme dates 1979-2000 (at a rate of approximately 1.64 % per year). Due to its commercial value, economic loss was approx. $ 4,194,000 USD ha-1 a year-1. The mangrove forest cover’s dynamics, tendency and explanation, provide signs about elements that require attention in its management.