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Detecting the environmental impact of off-road vehicles on Rawdat Al Shams in central Saudi Arabia by remote sensing

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Abstract

Off-road vehicles can have a devastating impact on vegetation and soil. Here, we sought to quantify, through a combination of field vegetation, bulk soil, and image analyses, the impact of off-road vehicles on the vegetation and soils of Rawdat Al Shams, which is located in central Saudi Arabia. Soil compaction density was measured in the field, and 27 soil samples were collected for bulk density analysis in the lab to quantify the impacts of off-road vehicles. High spatial resolution images, such as those obtained by the satellites GeoEye-1 and IKONOS-2, were used for surveying the damage to vegetation cover and soil compaction caused by these vehicles. Vegetation cover was mapped using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) technique based on high-resolution images taken at different times of the year. Vehicle trails were derived from satellite data via visual analysis. All damaged areas were determined from high-resolution image data. In this study, we conducted quantitative analyses of vegetation cover change, the impacts of vehicle trails (hereafter “trail impacts”), and a bulk soil analysis. Image data showed that both vegetation cover and trail impacts increased from 2008 to 2015, with the average percentage of trail impacts nearly equal to that of the percentage of vegetation cover during this period. Forty-six species of plants were found to be present in the study area, consisting of all types of life forms, yet trees were represented by a single species, Acacia gerrardii. Herbs composed the largest share of plant life, with 29 species, followed by perennial herbs (12 species), grasses (5 species), and shrubs (3 species). Analysis of soil bulk density for Rawdat Al Shams showed that off-road driving greatly impacts soil density. Twenty-two plant species were observed on the trails, the majority of which were ephemerals. Notoceras bicorne was the most common, with a frequency rate of 93.33 %, an abundance value of 78.47 %, and a density of 0.1 in transect 1, followed by Plantago ovata.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the National Plan for Science, Technology, and Innovation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, for funding this project (12-ENV2776-08). The authors would like to thank Prof. Abdullatif H. Al-Nafie for his logistics contribution. We would also like to thank the technical team who shared their expertise in this project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geography Department, College of Social Sciences, Al Imam Muhammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, B.O. 5701, Riyadh, 11432, Saudi Arabia

    K. Dewidar

  2. Botany and Microbiology Department, College of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia

    J. Thomas

  3. Information Technology Department, College of Computer and Information Sciences, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia

    S. Bayoumi

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  1. K. Dewidar
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  2. J. Thomas
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Correspondence to K. Dewidar.

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Dewidar, K., Thomas, J. & Bayoumi, S. Detecting the environmental impact of off-road vehicles on Rawdat Al Shams in central Saudi Arabia by remote sensing. Environ Monit Assess 188, 396 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-016-5400-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-016-5400-6

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