ABSTRACT

This chapter presents the results and discussion of the analyses of the improved and traditional landscape metrics on the various study sites. Results of the amount of forest cleared as a function of the distance of a study area from a major urban center are shown in. The relationship shows a near linear negative correlation between distance and clearing with each 5-km interval. This chapter shows that even though the landscape becomes more clumped and less fragmented, the pixel adjacency problem causes Contagion values to decline in an unexpected manner. The effects of varying spatial resolution on the values of Contagion and PPU are explanation appears straightforward. PPU shows a predictable response with each aggregation. Farmers settle closer to major urban centers to allow easier access for the transport of goods and services to and from markets in the urban center.