Measuring the Semi-Century Ecosystem-Service Value Variation in Mekelle City Region, Northern Ethiopia
Shishay Kiros Weldegebriel, Kumelachew Yeshitela
Abstract
The Mekelle city region is facing severe ecosystem degradation. The study area has experienced unprecedented land-use dynamics over the past 47 years, but the effect of these dynamics on ecosystem-service values remains unknown. Estimating the various ecosystem services from a city region perspective has not been attempted so far. The rationale of this study was to estimate the spatial–temporal ecosystem-service value variations. The methodology employed was land-use/land-cover (LULC) datasets of remotely sensed datasets of the years 1972, 1984, 2001, 2012, and 2019, and ecosystem service value coefficient, expert focus group discussion, and document review were used. The digital satellite images were processed, classified, and analyzed using Earth Resource Development Assessment System (ERDAS) Imagine. Computations of changes in the land-use categories were made using Arc GIS 10.5.1, Eviews for time series data analysis, and XLSTAT analytical tools were used. Over the whole study period from 1972 to 2019, a loss of USD 128.6 million was observed, which is a reduction of 501.9%. The study shows that due to land-use changes, the total ecosystem service value is decreasing annually, suggesting that much more severe ecosystem degradation is due to occur. The results are relevant to policy development and indicate that ecological restoration is the best option in the study area.