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Long-Term Volumetric Change Estimation of Red Ash Quarry Sites in the Afro-Alpine Ecosystem of Bale Mountains National Park in Ethiopia
The Bale Mountains National Park (BMNP) in Ethiopia comprises the largest fraction of the Afro-Alpine ecosystem in Africa, which provides vital mountain ecosystem services at local, regional, and global levels. However, the BMNP has been severely threatened by natural and anthropogenic disturbanc...
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Philipps-Universität Marburg
2024
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | PDF Full Text |
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| Summary: | The Bale Mountains National Park (BMNP) in Ethiopia comprises the largest fraction of
the Afro-Alpine ecosystem in Africa, which provides vital mountain ecosystem services at local,
regional, and global levels. However, the BMNP has been severely threatened by natural and
anthropogenic disturbances in recent decades. In particular, landscape alteration due to human
activities such as red ash quarrying has become a common practice in the BMNP, which poses a
major environmental challenge by severely degrading the Afro-Alpine ecosystem. This study aims to
quantify the long-term volumetric changes of two red ash quarry sites in the BMNP using historical
aerial photographs and in situ data, and to assess their impact on the Afro-Alpine ecosystem. The
Structure-from-Motion multi-view stereo photogrammetry algorithm was used to reconstruct the
three-dimensional landscape for the year 1967 and 1984 while spatial interpolation techniques were
applied to generate the current digital elevation models for 2023. To quantify the volumetric changes
and landscape alteration of the quarry sites, differences in digital elevation models were computed.
The result showed that the volume of resources extracted from the BMNP quarry sites increased
significantly over the study period from 1984 to 2023 compared with the period from 1967 to 1984.
In general, between 1967 and 2023, the total net surface volume of the quarry sites decreased by
503,721 ± 27,970 m3 and 368,523 ± 30,003m3, respectively. The extent of the excavated area increased
by 53,147 m2 and 45,297 m2 for Site 1 and 2, respectively. In terms of habitat loss, major gravel road
construction inside the BMNP resulted in the reduction of Afro-Alpine vegetation by 476,860 m2,
ericaceous vegetation by 403,806 m2 and Afromontane forest by 493,222 m2 with associated decline
in species diversity and density. The excavation and gravel road construction have contributed to
the degradation of the Afro-Alpine ecosystem, especially the endemic Lobelia rhynchopetalum on the
quarry sites and roads. If excavation continues at the same rate as in the last half century, it can
threaten the whole mountain ecosystem of the National Park and beyond, highlighting the importance
of preventing these anthropogenic changes and conserving the remaining Afro-Alpine ecosystem. |
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| Item Description: | Gefördert durch den Open-Access-Publikationsfonds der UB Marburg. |
| DOI: | 10.3390/rs16071226 |