Determination of the urbanization and changes in open-green spaces in Nevsehir city through remote sensing

Abstract

The physical texture of cities is comprised of built-up spaces, open-green spaces, and transportation arteries. Urbanization is a dynamic that compose of each of the factors above in a fair proportion to human beings and nature. On the other hand, due to the rapid increase in urban population, urbanization has become a concept that poses serious problems for cities in the last decades and this leads a pressure on open-green spaces in urban areas. Open-green spaces have a great importance in improving urban life conditions and balancing the destroyed relations between humans and environment. For this reason, the sustainability of urban open-green spaces cannot be ignored in the planning studies. In this study, the change in the urban texture in Nevsehir (Turkey) was evaluated in a 10-year period (2004–2014) through the integration of remote sensing (RS) and geographical information systems (GIS). Through the use of satellite images with high ground sample distance—QuickBird (60 cm) (2004) and Worlview-2 (50 cm) (2014)—the direction of urban expansion and changes which occurred in urban open-green spaces and urban development areas were examined in detail at the whole city and district scales. Analyses consist of satellite image classification, plant index production, and GIS-based analyses methods. According to the results, it was determined that from 2004 to 2014, the 23.28% decrease in urban open-green spaces was detected in Nevsehir city. It was observed that the city expands towards the north-east, south-west, and west. It was indicated that there is a serious increase in built-up areas especially at the north-east part of the city (107.11%). Thus, a significant decrease has happened in the amount of urban open-green spaces in this area.