LANDSCAPE CHANGES INDUCED BY SOCIO-ECONOMIC DYNAMICS: MAPPING CASE STUDY IN A NORTHERN TOLIMA WATERSHED (1955 to 2010)

摘要

The cartographic analysis of an area allows identification of the landscape changes and the anthropic dynamics in a territory; they reflect social processes generated by human-nature interaction. A historical and cartographic review of the landscape changes was carried out in an area of the Municipality of Líbano (Tolima). This work was developed within the framework of the research project "Agroecosystems and culture in farms of the coffee ecoregion of Tolima: revolution and conflict" financed by the Central Research Office at Universidad del Tolima. The aim of the study was to document changes in land use in the territory of La Tigrera watershed, especially the evolution of coffee agroecosystems and their influence on the transformation of thelandscape.Secondary information was reviewed including thematic maps, specialized literature and institutional information of the Tolima Coffee GrowersCommittee and Cortolima.On the other hand, aerial photographs (approximate scale 1: 60,000) for the years 1955, 1965, 1988 and 2010 were analyzed and processed using analogue photo interpretation to quantify areas of occupation of land use present in the study area. A GIS environment was used to create thematic mapping of land use, using specialized programs like AutoCAD 2010, Global Mapper, gvSIG 1.10 and ArcGIS 1.10 with which raster images were processed from digitization of aerial photos. The results suggest changes in the landscape and patterns of land use as a result of the decisions of actors involved in socio-economic and biophysical systems, characterized by a complex network of relationships that evolve over time. The reduction of forest areas to give way to coffee first and then to pasture is notorious. It is concluded that the spatial relationships and land use in the Tolima coffee eco-region are a particular expression of the socio-economic relations caused by the coffee industry, marking a traditional area in the decisions made within the family but influenced by macroeconomic forces.