Spatial Pattern of Construction Land Distribution in Bays along the Coast of Vietnam

Abstract

Current studies of urban spatial morphology have rarely focused on the particularity of coastal cities, such as sea–land gradient features and bay types. In this paper, we provide a method to analyze the spatial and vertical distribution of construction land in the bay area and discuss the influence of bay type on the distribution characteristics. Landscape indexes and a clustering algorithm were used to identify the spatial pattern of construction land distribution. Strip division was used to analyze the landscape features of construction land in the sea–land direction. We established eight large bays in Vietnam as the study area. According to the formation and geomorphology of the bay, the eight bays were divided into five types: delta bay, lagoon bay, structural bay, bedrock erosion-stacking bay and estuary bay. The construction land data were generated from Landsat images captured in 1988 and 2015 or so. The study effectively identified five spatial patterns of construction land distribution in bays without prior knowledge. Danang Bay (a bedrock erosion-stacking bay) had a typical high intensity-high concentration pattern, and Hai Loc Bay (a delta bay) had a typical high intensity-low concentration pattern. In the sea–land gradient, the proportions of construction land in the 0–2 km zone were greatest. In Danang Bay, the proportion generally decreased in the sea–land direction; while in Hai Loc Bay, the proportion increased.