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Abstract
This work focuses on identifying deforestation patterns and relating these to social processes in an extractive reserve of Acre (western Amazonia). Using multitemporal satellite imagery deforestation is observed as a series of distinctive patches against the background of forest cover. The study of patterns emphasizes the important relationships existing between spatial patterns and social and spatially explicit processes. Since human processes are scale-dependant, a series of indexes were used to assess the structure, function, and change of the spatial distribution of patches at two different scale levels: global and regional. The global level analysis is concerned with the identification of patterns of land-use change in the entire reserve. The regional level analysis uncovers patterns by observing that local populations are organized in individual family groups occupying specific land areas here described as landscape units. Conclusions show that certain areas are being more deforested than others due to the synergic combination of different factors. This is leading to an unbalanced shift from an economy based solely on rubber extraction to other types of economy. This study can assist in determining development strategies for the reserves that take into account the different social and spatial patterns observed.
Parent Publication
Citation
Agudelo, Libia Patricia Peralta. 2006. Relating Change Patterns to Anthropogenic Processes to Assess Sustainability: A Case Study in Amazonia. In: Aguirre-Bravo, C.; Pellicane, Patrick J.; Burns, Denver P.; and Draggan, Sidney, Eds. 2006. Monitoring Science and Technology Symposium: Unifying Knowledge for Sustainability in the Western Hemisphere Proceedings RMRS-P-42CD. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 430-438
