PAPER TITLE :ASSESSMENT OF THE IMPLICATIONS OF BIODIVERSITY CHANGE IN THE COASTAL AREAS OF ONDO STATE, NIGERIA

JOURNAL Of SUSTAINABLE TECHNOLOGY | VOLUME 10 NUMBER 1 2019

Paper Details

  • Author(s) : POPOOLA, O.O.*; OLAJUYIGBE, A.E. and ROWLAND, O.E.
  • Abstract:

Globally, natural habitats and biodiversity-rich zones have greatly declined due to human activities leading to break down of the ecosystem’s ability to function. Hence, the need to profile the rate of biodiversity change/loss in coastal areas to ensure sustainability. This study employs Geographic Information System (GIS) for monitoring biodiversity change in the coastal areas of Nigeria using Ilaje as a case study. The primary data for this study include the socioeconomic profile and drivers of change’ data (direct and indirect) obtained through the use of questionnaires and interview guides. The secondary data were the species’ richness data and Landsat imageries obtained for years 2008, 2013 and 2018. Change detection analysis with supervised classification was used to reveal depletion over time on the imageries which was overlaid on species richness data to estimate species loss. Findings revealed that, there has been a combined loss of 5.94% in species of fish, decapods crustaceans and vascular plants in the study area. The rate of depletion of biodiversity-rich zones (BRZs) per year is 0.254%. The principal direct drivers of the changes in aquatic and terrestrial habitats were sea incursion and pollution respectively, while economic and market factors were the principal indirect drivers of change. The losses both in BRZs and in species richness due to human activities have severely impacted the means of livelihoods of the residents. The study recommends the adoption of biodiversity restoration activities, development of species sanctuaries/protected areas and assessment of the impacts of proposed development on biodiversity. Keywords: Biodiversity, Biodiversity-rich zones, Ecosystems, Drivers of biodiversity change, GIS