Detection of biomass changes due to woody encroachment and deforestation in the forest-savanna boundary region of Cameroon using multi-temporal L-band radar backscatter data

摘要

The rainforest-savanna transition region in West Africa is a wide, structurally and floristically diverse, ecosystem. Its woody cover is controlled by a wide variety of factors, including precipitation, soil type, and levels of disturbance. Changes in the intensity and type of human disturbance (which includes grazing, agriculture, timber extraction and burning) have been shown to result in dramatic and rapid changes in the forest cover and woodiness of savannas. A few isolated field studies have previously found limited forest expansion in some areas, and deforestation in others. This forest expansion is hypothesised to be due to a reduction of anthropogenic pressure (especially fire frequency), and possibly an increase in [CO2]. Monitoring and assessing the scale of changes in this region are critical, as they are likely to have significant carbon and biodiversity consequences.