Land capability classification using geographical information system in shinfa watershed, highlands of Ethiopia

 

Gizachew Tiruneh

Research Paper I Published August,2015

 

Journal of Physical Science and Environmental Studies Vol. 1 (2), pp. 17-20

ABSTRACT

The main objective of this study was to spatially classify lands of Shinfa watershed in Ethiopia based on their capability for sustainable agricultural use by United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) criteria. Land use and land cover was determined from LANDSAT satellite image accessed in 2014 by applying the supervised classification method in ENVI 5.0 software. Digital Elevation Model (DEM) data of 30 m resolution was used to derive slope. “Spatial Analyst Tool Extract by Mask” in GIS environment was used to obtain soil depth and soil texture map of the watershed from Amhara regional digital soil map. Intersect overlay analysis method was applied to obtain the spatial and attribute information of all the input parameters using Geographical Information System (GIS) 10.1 software. The study demonstrates that GIS software provides advantage to analyze multi-layer of data spatially and classify land based on its capability. The study revealed that 1,540 ha (61.6%), 442.25 ha (17.69%) and 518 ha (20.52%) of the watershed was categorized in the range of land classes I to IV, V to VII and VIII, respectively. It was observed that present land use was not as per the capability of the land.

Key words: capability, GIS, Shinfa watershed, highlands, Ethiopia.

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