Lemenkova_Almaty_Abishev2016.pdf (586.94 kB)
Urban-Rural Environmental Gradient in a Developing City: Testing ENVI GIS Functionality
The research performs urban
ecosystem analysis supported by ENVI GIS by integrated studies on land
cover types and geospatial modeling of Taipei city. The paper deals with
the role of anthropogenic pressure on the structure of the landscape
and change of land cover types. Methods included assessment of the
impact from anthropogenic activities on the natural ecosystems,
evaluation of the rate and scale of landscape dynamics using remote
sensing data and GIS. The research aims to assist environmentalists and
city planners to evaluate strategies for specific objectives of urban
development in Taiwan, China. The study aims at the assessment of the
landscape development and environmental analysis of the Taipei city
based on GIS and remote sensing methods. Methodology includes analysis
of the environmental settings of the Taiwan region (land cover
characteristics, climatic and topographic settings) and anthropogenic
factors of the social landscapes. Research objectives included GIS based
geo-visualization, spatial analysis of the raster data, i.e. satellite
images and. Different factors involved in the landscape formation were
studied and analyzed, both individually and in combination. The paper
studies urban processes in Taipei in general and how GIS and remote
sensing data can be used for the spatial analysis. The research deals
with classification and analysis of the selected landscapes in Taiwanese
ecosystems, and suggest development of the effective methods for
wetlands assessment using a multi-metric approach. The research included
analysis of the degree of landscapes disturbance according to the
calculated metrics index values for specific land-use categories within
the landscapes. As far as conservation problems are concerned, two
scientific works place particular emphasis on the urban ecosystems on
Taipei [9]. These are «Pattern and divergence of tree communities in
Taipei's main urban green spaces» and «Diversity and distribution of
landscape trees in the compact Asian city of Taipei», issued recently.
The papers deal with the analysis of the landscape biogeographic
characteristics of the urban forests: species diversity, composition and
richness, spatial variability. The interplay between both parts of the
ecosystem, i.e. the anthropogenic impacts of the global city on the one
side, and ecological patterns and processes on the other, is aimed to
achieve balanced mutual coexistence within the global ecosystems.
Modified land use types affect hydrological components in the
surrounding watersheds and results in changes of the land use patterns,
namely, landscape composition, configuration, connectivity, variety and
abundance of patch types within a landscape, which are the primary
descriptors of the landscape pattern. The complex functioning, structure
and interrelationships of the landscape components in urban ecosystem
are largely influenced by the anthropogenic activities, inasmuch as the
population concentrate in the metropolises and large cities. The
location of Taipei in the southern subtropical humid climatic zone
largely influences its environmental settings. Various disasters and
hazards associated with specific climate settings such as torrential
rains, occasional floods, rainstorms, seasonal typhoons have serious
impacts and environmental consequences on the city functioning. Frequent
and intense typhoons together with stormy rains and floods are natural
disasters specific for Taiwan. Consequences of hazards include
significant property damage, destroyed farmlands, crashed roads,
partially or completely destroyed houses, human injures, diseases and
lives losses. Urban landscapes of Taipei are being formed during long
historical process, as a result of the ongoing entangled interactions
between natural forces and anthropogenic social factors.