APPLICATION OF GEOSPATIAL TECHNOLOGY IN ASSESSING URBAN EXPANSION IN BENIN AND ITS ENVIRONS – IMPLICATION ON CLIMATE CHANGE

Effective monitoring of urban expansion hits serious difficulties and equally raises great questions for the future. The depletion of the natural vegetation leading to the altering of the ecology of Benin City and its Environs is of serious concern. To ascertain the extent of the aforementioned, this study applied the use of geospatial technology in assessing urban expansion in Benin and its environs. The result revealed that in 1987, forest occupied 56045.37 hectares, disturbed forest 83314.01 hectares, cultivated land 63419.92 hectares and urban land 35446.21 hectares, while in 2024 forest cover declined to 27917.74 hectares, disturbed forest 46956.81 hectares, cultivated land 76852.94 hectares and urban land 86498.02 hectares. On the overall, between 1987 and 2024 forest and disturbed forest were lost by 34.6% and 23.6% respectively, while cultivated land gained 8.7% and urban land 33.1%. This study revealed that urban expansion has severely impacted negatively on natural environment as a result of the spatial spread of urban land use over vegetation contributing to Global Warming and Climate Change. Based on the findings, there is need for conservation and management of existing land fragments in the study area. Alternative source of livelihood for the vulnerable groups should be provided by government as well.