Mapping Land Use Land Cover Changes (LULC) in Eastern Slopes of Mount Kenya; Case of Tharaka Nithi County

Mapping and quantifying the status of Land Use Land Cover (LULC) changes and their drivers are essential for identifying strategic areas for designing and implementing interventions to promote sustainable landscape management. Through a combination of Remote Sensing and Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and interviews with Key Informants, the study analyzed the status of LULC changes and drivers in Tharaka Nithi County, Eastern Slopes of Mount Kenya for the last 22 years. Using Landsat images of 2001,2014, and 2023, four major LULC categories: forest/tree cover, agricultural lands, built-up areas, and water bodies were identified. Results indicate forest/tree cover experienced the most dynamic changes, with tree and forest cover increasing by +38% between 2001 and 2014 and declining by -25.74% between 2014 and 2023. Built-up areas increased by +139.18% over the same period, while agricultural and water bodies remained stable. The main drivers of LULC change include: expansion of built-up areas/settlement areas, expansion of agricultural land, and harvesting of trees for timber, fuelwood, etc, which are driven by population growth. Therefore, to address the causes of LULC change, there is a need to design and implement policies to promote sustainable management and utilization of resources within the study area.