Fractal analysis of spatio-temporal changes of forest cover in Istanbul, Turkey
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Published:2022-06-21
Issue:1
Volume:62
Page:7-20
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ISSN:1581-8314
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Container-title:Acta geographica Slovenica
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language:
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Short-container-title:AGS
Abstract
In this study, the spatio-temporal changes in forest cover in Istanbul, one of the provinces with the most changes in forest areas in Turkey due to the pressure of urbanization and industrialization, were investigated using fractal analysis. The areal changes and changes in spatial patterns were determined to assess the spatio-temporal changes in the period 2000–2017. Fragmentation/compactness and heterogeneity/homogeneity of forest cover were determined by fractal dimension and lacunarity index, respectively. The results show that the forest areas have significantly decreased and become more fragmented and heterogeneous. In conclusion, this study reveals that fractal analysis can provide considerable information in the examination and interpretation of spatial changes in forest areas.
Publisher
The Research Center of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (ZRC SAZU)
Subject
General Earth and Planetary Sciences,Geography, Planning and Development