ENVIRONMENT ASSESSMENT TECHNICAL REPORTS

______________________________________
LAND COVER ASSESSMENT AND MONITORING

Pakistan
Volume 10-A

UNEP/EAP.TR/95-06
DECEMBER 1998

Mountain Environment and Natural Resources’ Information System

International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)

UNEP Environment Assessment Programme forAsia and the

Pacific, Bangkok
LAND COVER ASSESSMENT AND MONITORING

Pakistan

Volume 10-A

Mountain Environment and Natural Resources’ Information System

International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD)

UNEP Environment Assessment Programme for Asia and the

Pacific, Bangkok
Copyright  United Nations Environment Programme 1998

ISBN : 92-807-1489-9

This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part and in any form for educational or
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No use of this publication may be made for resale or for any other commercial purpose
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Disclaimer
The contents of this volume do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of UNEP. The
designations employed and the presentations do not imply the expression of any opinion
whatsoever on the part of UNEP concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city
or area or its authority, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.

FRONT COVER: NOAA AVHRR Mosaic of Pakistan in False Color Composite

 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

As emphasized in Agenda 21, Chapter 40 of the United Nations Conference on

Environment and Development dated 14 June 1992, in a broad sense everyone is a user and
provider of information in pursuing sustainable development. While considerable data already
exist, more and different types of data need to be collected at the local, provincial, national and
international level, indicating the status and trends of the planet's ecosystem, natural resources,
pollution and socio-economic variables. The availability, quality, coherence, standardization and
accessibility of data in the developing countries have been increasing with the improvement in
the capacities and willingness to make informed decisions concerning environment and
development. UNEP's EAP-AP programs are taking a proactive role in improving the
environmental capacities of countries in the Asia Pacific region.

This project is directed in providing information about land cover at a regional scale for
selected countries in the Asian region. The investigation of the NOAA AVHRR satellite data is
directed towards the detection and monitoring of ecologically important vegetation types. This
similar activity also highlights the areas where there is a major change of land cover (i.e. "hot
spots"), both in temporal and spatial aspects.

The NOAA AVHRR data was found very useful for assessment and monitoring of land
cover transformation at a macro scale. The harmonization of land cover categories was adopted
in the interpretation of satellite data towards a more comprehensive regional resource
assessment and information aggregation, an important decision input for the regional and
national context. On a much wider scale, this kind of information could also be useful for global
research and modelling, macro-economic studies, and assessment of the earth's state of
environment. Major land cover types were enumerated as evergreen forest, deciduous forest,
mangrove forest, scrubland, agricultural area, and water bodies. Site specific land categories
like marshlands along the Mekong Delta in Vietnam and variations among agricultural practices
in Bangladesh were separately noted.

As shifting cultivation continues to play a dominant role in forest type conversion, the
typical transformation from one type of vegetation to another is apparent, especially for the
increasing proportion of open woodlands and dry deciduous group from the original evergreen
or semi-evergreen type. Yet, the expansion of originally recognized scrubland that denotes
mostly the presence of crop cultivation is the main feature of land degradation. Such landscape
modifications as discerned in the time series analysis of AVHRR data subsequently lead to
increased attention for a deeper investigation of the area. The use of high resolution satellite
data supplemented by field information are of vital importance. This will serve as an early
warning system towards preventive measures in areas exhibiting major land transformation or
active deforestation. The availability of other thematic data such as elevation, climate and soil
type was also realized in trying to assist in understanding the various interacting factors that
affect land cover dynamics and clarify limitations realized in the error associated with the coarse
spatial resolution data.
 Up to date information on land cover variables and their nature of transformation
offer a valuable guide in formulating appropriate policies and effective implementation of
programs for several facets of resource management. The methodological guidelines and
the country results generated under this study will dispense a worthwhile source of
information in any future related-applications particularly in the Asian region. The
availability of the AVHRR data in the South and Southeast Asian region was also evaluated
to assess their applicability for similar or related efforts in the future. Moreover, a need for
systematic data archiving policy that requires strengthening of the capabilities of a number
of receiving stations in the Asian region has been noted. Likewise, compatible software to
handle myriads of information about the complex ecosystem of the region is required to
enhance data availability and accessibility.

Finally, information and expertise dissemination through training are found essential
in enhancing the sub-regional and national capability in perpetuating this valuable means of
resource assessment and monitoring.

v
 PREFACE

In line with UNEP’s new “management by results” policy, the restructured

Division of Environmental Information and Assessment began to focus more on
identifying the needs and capabilities of its users. One of its major components is
intended to produce overviews of status and trends, assessment of interactions of
international environment and development processes to support informed policy
making at the international level. This involves development of assessment
methodologies, models and appropriate tools to produce global, regional and sectoral
assessment reports, early warnings, and contributing efforts to agreed targets for
sustainability.

In parallel, the development of this Land Cover Assessment and Monitoring

project serves as the actualization of the above concept. This project primarily aims to
determine the present status of land cover types and the nature of the land cover
transformation for selected target countries in the Asian region at the scale of 1: 1
million on a regular basis, a vital information for the regional monitoring of the land
cover dynamics. It also provides an opportunity to identify areas of major land cover
transformation (“hot spots”) which will serve as an early warning system that will
allow for a more detailed analysis, and a sound link of information in order to derive
criteria for any future action plan governed by this valuable knowledge on land cover
variables.

Major land cover resources of Bangladesh, Cambodia, Iran, Lao P.D.R.,

Malaysia, Myanmar, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam
have been investigated under two time frames i.e. 1985-86 and 1992-93. The
recognition of the potential and usefulness of the remotely sensed data, particularly
NOAA AVHRR in assessing and monitoring the land cover dynamics, in conjunction
with ancillary data within a GIS structure have been fully underscored.

The basic principles, methodological background and overall summary behind

this activity can be found in Volume 1-A while each country’s result appear in separate
volumes (Vol. 2-A: Bangladesh, Vol. 3-A: Cambodia, Vol. 4-A: Lao P.D.R., Vol. 5-
A: Myanmar, Vol. 6-A: Nepal, Vol. 7-A: Vietnam, Vol. 8-A: Thailand, Vol. 9-A:
Malaysia, 10-A: Pakistan, 11-A: Mongolia). Specific observations and conclusions
have been presented on a country basis.

Follow-up activities such as repeating the same exercise for the selected Asian
countries in order to arrive at a more comprehensive land cover resource monitoring
has been scheduled for the activities set for 1998 and beyond. Brunei, and Sri Lanka
were added for a wider scope of assessment in the Asian region. They are expected to
perform the same exercise for their respective country/region starting 1998 and later be
part of the overall regional compilation of information. Methodological guidelines are
already documented for future information dissemination such as training among the
target countries.

Pre-processing of the raw NOAA AVHRR data has been carried out by writing
in-house programs. The possibilities of using the programs developed by EROS Data

vi
Center in US and PCI Software Company in Canada is being explored for harmonized
and standard pre-processing opportunities.

In order to come up with more standard and harmonized land cover

classification system for the region in the succeeding years, efforts will be placed to
incorporate the general level land cover classification system recently agreed upon by
the IGBP-DIS group. Cooperation and collaboration established with Land Cover
Working Group of Asian Association of Remote Sensing (LCWG/AARS) and FAO
regional office in Bangkok will definitely be an advantage in this regard.

Our heartfelt thanks to the UNEP EAP.AP staff Dr. Chandra Giri and Mr.
Dolagobinda Pradhan who have put in many hours of dedicated effort into the overall
analysis of this project. Special thanks is also extended to Mr. Pradeep Mool of
ICIMOD who analyzed the Pakistan data and prepared a draft report.

This study has been completed in consultation and collaboration with various
national and international agencies in Pakistan and abroad. Data sources such as the
Digital Chart of the World (DCW) have contributed in building the geographical
database for the countries in this study. Most recently a Memorandum of
Understanding has been signed with the Land Cover Working Group of Asian
Association of Remote Sensing (LCWG/AARS) regarding the exchange of data,
outputs and experience.

Surendra Shrestha
Regional Coordinator
UNEP Environment Assessment Programme for Asia and the Pacific
December 1998

vii
 CONTENTS

1.0 INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 General 1
1.2 Pakistan: Study Area 1
1.2.1 Location and Physical Characteristics 1
1.2.2 Present State of Land Cover 2
1.2.3 Areas of Major Land Cover Transformation (Hot Spots) 3
1.2.4 Need for Monitoring 4
1.3 NOAA Satellite Series 4
1.4 NOAA AVHRR 5
1.5 Methods Used 14

2.0 STUDY AREA 15

2.1 Physiography 15
2.2 Climate 19
2.2.1 Temperature 19
2.2.2 Analysis of Temperate Regimes 20
2.2.3 Rainfall 20
2.2.4 Analysis of Precipitation Regimes 23
2.3 Soils 24
2.3.1 Parent Material 24
2.3.2 Soil Classification 24
2.4 Population 28
2.5 Forests and Land Cover 28
2.6 Protected Areas 30
2.7 Agriculture 31
2.7.1 Crop Calendar 32
2.8 National Energy Consumption 34

3.0 RESULTS 35
3.1 Land Cover Assessment: 1992-1993 35
3.1.1 Why NOAA-AVHRR Data? 35
3.2 Spectral Characterization and Land Cover Mapping 35
3.2.1 Classification Scheme 35
3.2.2 Land Use Distribution Assessment 36
3.3 Natural Vegetation: A Comparison 38

4.0 CONCLUSIONS 38

REFERENCES

viii
 LIST OF MAPS

Map 1 Channel 1 6

Map 2 Channel 2 7

Map 3 Channel 3 8

Map 4 Channel 4 9

Map 5 Normalized Difference Vegetation Index 10

Map 6 False Color Composite (R2 : G1 : B1) 11

Map 7 False Color Composite (R1 : G2 : B1) 12

Map 8 Vegetative Cover of Pakistan 13

Map 9 Highlands and the Indus Plains of Pakistan 18

Map 10 Maximum Temperature Regime of Pakistan 21

Map 11 Minimum Temperature Regime of Pakistan 22

Map 12 Precipitation Regime of Pakistan 25

Map 13 Soil Types of Pakistan 26

Map 14 Landuse Categories 33

Map 15 Land Cover 37

ix
 LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. AVHRR spectral ranges, their combinations and applications 14

Table 2. Maximum and Minimum Temperatures (oC) 20

Table 3. Mean Annual Rainfall (mm) 23

Table 4. Soil Types of Pakistan 27

Table 5 Population of Pakistan (millions) 28

Table 6. Forest Areas and Rangelands 30

Table 7. Protected Areas of Pakistan 30

Table 8. Land use Pattern of Pakistan (million ha) 31

Table 9. Land use Categories of Pakistan (000’ ha) 32

Table 10. Area and Production of Winter and Summer Crops 32

Table 11. National Energy Consumption by Source (000’ TOE) 34

Table 12. Landuse Categories of Pakistan (000’ ha) 36

Table 13. Natural Vegetation of Pakistan; a Comparison 38

x
 ABBREVIATIONS

AVHRR Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer

EDC EROS Data Center (USA)
FCC False Color Composite
GDP Gross Domestic Product
GIS Geographic Information Systems
GJ Giga Joules
GRID Global Resource Information Database
GTZ Gesellscaft fuer Technische Zusammenarbeit
(German Agency for Technical Cooperation)
ha hectare
HRPT High Resolution Picture Transmission
ICIMOD International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development
IUCN International Union for the Conservation of Nature
LAC Local Area Coverage
LANDSAT US Earth Resource Satellite
LANDSAT TM LANDSAT Thematic Mapper
LST Local Solar Time
masl meters above sea level
NDVI Normalized Difference Vegetation Index
MENRIS Mountain Environment and Natural Resources Information
Service
NOAA National Oceanographic Atmospheric Administration
NOAA/NESDIS NOAA/National Environmental Satellite Data and Information
Service
NWFP North Western Frontier Province (of Pakistan)
PFI Pakistan Forest Institute (Peshawar)
SPOT Systeme Pour l’Observation de la Terre
(French Earth Resource Satellite)
sq. km square kilometre
TOE Ton of oil equivalents
UNCED United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
UNDP United Nations Development Programme
UNEP/EAP.AP United Nations Environmental Programme, Environment
Assessment Programme for Asia and the Pacific
USAID United States Agency for International Development
WFP World Food Programme

xi
1.0 INTRODUCTION

1.1 General

Pakistan being one of the eight member countries of the International Centre for
Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), is actively engaged in its macro level
land cover assessment in collaboration with UNEP Environment Assessment
Programme for Asia and the Pacific (UNEP/EAP.AP). With the limited resources and
time frame, however, it will not be possible to bring about a detailed micro-level
assessment of the land cover. Still, it has been endeavored to add as many parameters
to the report as possible. Some of the data included in the report is as old as 10 years.
However, this data could be used as a baseline for a comprehensive report to be
prepared in the future. That would greatly facilitate the comparison between the old
and the new data and might be helpful in ascertaining the physical changes occurring
particularly in the land use pattern and look for possible corrective measures if the
situation so warranted.

1.2 Pakistan: Study Area

1.2.1 Location and Physical Characteristics

Pakistan has a great variety of landscapes with a diversified relief. It has all the majestic
high mountain ranges of the sub-Continental north: the Himalayas, the

China

Afghanistan

Iran
Pakistan

India

Arabian Sea

Fig. 1 Location Map of Pakistan

1
Karakorams and the Hindu Kush. The vast and rich irrigated plains of the Indus Basin
covering vast tracts of the Panjab and Sindh, the stark deserts of Cholistan (Punjab!)
and Thar (Sindh!), the inter-montane valleys of NWFP (North West Frontier Province)
and the awe-inspiring rugged plateaus of Balochistan and the meeting point of the
Himalayas, the Hindu Kush, and the Karakorams in the Northern areas are some of the
most varied features of the country’s landscape.

Geographically, Pakistan lies between 24o and 37o N latitude and 61o and 75o E
longitude. It is bordered by China in the north, Arabian Sea in the south, Iran in the
west, Afghanistan in the north-west and India in the east (Fig. 1). It is a federation of
four provinces: NWFP, Panjab, Sindh and Balochistan with its capital at Islamabad.
The land area of Pakistan is about 796,000 sq. km and an estimated population of 134
million (June 1996), having a population density of 168 persons per sq. km.

Of the 79.6 million hectares land area, only about 22 million hectares (23%) are
available for cultivation: 18 million ha irrigated and 4 million ha rain-fed. Forests, both
natural and man-made, cover about 4% of its land area.

1.2.2 Present State of Land Cover

The climate of Pakistan varies with altitude, which in turn affects the type of
vegetation. It has some of the world’s highest cold areas that occur above 5,175 masl
in the Himalayas and the hottest low areas in the Indus Plains with many intermediate
ecological zones.

Pakistan has nine major Ecological Zones with the main ecological determinants as
Arid and Semi-Arid conditions. These conditions prevail over most part of the Indus
Plains and the Balochistan Plateau. The Humid conditions exist over the hills and
mountains in the north. In the Arid and Semi-Arid areas, most parts are bare of
vegetation. At riverbanks and deltas, Riverain and Mangrove forests have emerged. On
humid hills and mountains, pines and coniferous forests occur that change with
altitude. The Dry sub-Tropical forests dominate up to an altitude of 1,000 masl, the
Coniferous forests from 1,000 to 4,000 m. Above tree line, Dwarf Alpine forests
followed by the Alpine Pastures occur up to snow line.

Based on the above classification, the following seven forest types are recognized:

1) Alpine Forests
2) Coniferous Forests
3) Sub-Tropical Forests
4) Tropical Thorn Forests
5) Irrigated Plantations (artificial!)
6) Riverain Forests
7) Mangrove/Coastal Forests

The Alpine Forests occur in the northern districts of Chitral, Swat, Dir and Kohistan.
Because of long severe winters, dwarfed and stunted trees of Silver Fir (Abies
webbiana), Juniper (Juniperus spp.) take place.

2
The Coniferous Forests occur from 1,000 to 4,000 m altitudes. Swat, Dir, Malakand,
Mansehra and Abbottabad districts of NWFP, and Rawalpindi districts of the Panjab
are the main areas covered with coniferous forests. Fir (Abies spp.) and Spruce (Picea
smithiana) occupy the highest altitudes, Deodar (Cedrus deodara) and Blue Pine
(Pinus wallichiana), the intermediate heights, and Chir Pine (Pinus roxburghii), the
lower areas. The Coniferous forests also occur in Balochistan hills. Chilghoza Pine
(Pinus gerardiana) and Juniper (Juniperous macropoda) are the two most common
species of Balochistan.

The sub-Tropical Dry Forests are found in the Attock, Rawalpindi, Jhelum and
Gujrat districts of the Panjab, and in the Mansehra, Abbottabad, Mardan, Peshawar
and Kohat districts of NWFP up to a height of 1,000 m. In Balochistan, they are
confined to the Sulaiman mountains and other hilly areas. Dominant tree species are
Phulai (Acacia modesta), Kau (Olea cuspidata) and Donoenia viscosa.

The Tropical Thorn Forests are dominated by Xerophytic Scrubs. They are most
widespread in the Panjab plains. They also occupy small areas in southern Sindh and
western Balochistan. Common species are Acacia spp., Salvadora oleodes, Prosopis
cineraria, Capparis aphylla, etc.

The Irrigated Plantations were first developed in 1866 at Changa Manga (Panjab!).
Today they occupy about 226,000 ha. Shisham (Dalbergia sissoo), Mulberry (Morus
alba), Babul (Acacia nilotica), Eucalyptus and Populus spp. are the common tree
species grown in the Irrigated Plantations.

The Riverain Forests grow in narrow belts along the banks of Indus and its
tributaries. They are more commonly found in Sindh and to some extent in the Panjab.
Babul (Acacia nilotica), Shisham (Dalbergia sissoo) and Tamarax dioica are the
most common species. Prosopis cineraria, Tamarax spp. and Populus euphratica are
some other species found in these Forests.

The Mangrove Forests are located in the Indus delta. However, lack of fresh water
has resulted in their stunted growth. Avecennia officanilis is the main species. Ceriops
and Rhizophoras are the other tree species but are fast disappearing because of human
pressure.

1.2.3 Areas of Major land cover Transformations (Hot Spots)

As a consequence to deforestation and changing land use patterns, the most critically
affected ecosystems of Pakistan are:

Juniper Forests of northern Balochistan, essentially categorized as Protected Forests,

are heavily harvested for timber and fuelwood. The unrestricted grazing has further
hampered the natural regeneration of trees.

Indus River Zone is the other such area where ecological changes have drastically
affected the Riverain Forests as also the Coastal Mangrove Forests. Large tracts of
riverain forests have been cleared for agriculture. The river Indus has been dammed

3
and dyked and thus confined. The resulting drop in river level has left extensive areas
of the riverain forests high and dry.

As a further consequence of the construction of upstream dams (in the northern parts)
and barrages in the plains of the Panjab and Sindh, there has been considerable drop in
the Indus water. This has caused reduction of fresh water flow in the delta (at the
confluence of the Arabian Sea) resulting in increased salinity which in turn has
damaged the mangrove forests and thus eliminated several tree species. The
uncontrolled cutting of trees for firewood and fodder needs has further accelerated the
reduction and degradation of swamp forests.

The Himalayan Temperate Forests are also under severe pressure from logging for
timber and firewood and making clearings for agriculture; for the ever-increasing
population pressure.

1.2.4 Need for Monitoring

Satellite imageries at varying spectral, spatial, and temporal resolutions are useful to
map natural vegetation types and to detect and delineate major changes over time.

To carry out the inventory of the vast and scattered areas at macro scale, coarse spatial
resolution scanners data with high temporal resolution are needed to reduce data
volume and increase the probability of cloud-free data. The source of information used
in this report is the digital data of NOAA AVHRR LAC format node having 1.1
kilometre spatial resolution acquired during ascending node (1330 LST). Pakistan is
covered within one LAC format NOAA AVHRR imagery.

1.3 NOAA Satellite Series

The NOAA satellite series commenced with TIROS-N (Television and InfraRed
Observation Satellite) (launched in October 1978) and continued with NOAA-A
(launched in June 1979 and renamed NOAA-6) to NOAA-J (launched in 30 December
1994 and renamed NOAA-14). At present two satellites, NOAA-12 and NOAA-14,
are operational. NOAA satellite series are polar orbiting sunsynchronoumus satellites
orbiting at a height of 830 - 870 km above the Earth’s surface. The data can be
acquired twice daily, one in ascending mode and the other one in descending mode.
The even numbered satellites have daylight (0730 LST) north-south equatorial
crossing times and the odd-numbered satellites have nighttime (0230 LST) north-south
equatorial crossing times. Alternatively, even numbered satellites have evening (1930
LST) south-north crossing times and odd numbered satellites have afternoon (1330
LST) south-north equatorial crossings. The crossing time of ascending and descending
nodes of NOAA-12 is 1915 LST and 0715 LST respectively, and that of NOAA-14 is
1330 and 0130 LST respectively. The satellite has an orbital period of 102 minutes
covering the Earth’s surface 14.1 times daily. The inclination of the satellite is 112
degree with the scanning angle of 99 degrees. The sensors onboard the NOAA
Satellite series are AVHRR (Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer), TOVS-
SSU (TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder Microwave Sounding Unit), TOVS-MSU
(TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder Stratospheric Sounding Unit), TOVS-HIRS/2
(TIROS Operational Vertical Sounder High resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder / 2),

4
SAR (Search and Rescue), SBUV/2 (Solar Backscatter Ultraviolet Radiometer/2), and
ERB (Earth Radiation Budget Experiment).

1.4 NOAA AVHRR

The AVHRR is a broad-band scanner that consists of four to five bands depending on
the models of the sensor on board NOAA Satellites. AVHRR data are archived in
three formats: HRPT (1.1 km spatial resolution at satellite nadir), LAC (1.1 km spatial
resolution at satellite nadir), and GAC ( 4 km spatial resolution) formats. The AVHRR
sensor provides global, pole to pole, data from all spectral channels. The swath width
is 2399 km with 2048 pixels per scan line. The entire Earth can be covered in just 14.5
days. LAC data are also full resolution satellite images but are recorded on an on-
board digital tape recorded for subsequent transmission. Though the spatial resolution
of the AVHRR HRPT and LAC data is 1.1 km at satellite nadir, the resolution
decreases with the increase in the view angle off-nadir. The maximum off-nadir
resolution along track is 2.4 km and across track is 6.9 km. The advantage of the
NOAA AVHRR LAC data are: synoptic coverage and hence low data volume (swath
width 2700 km), high radiometric resolution (10 bit), relatively low cost (Free!, only
handling cost), twice daily coverage and hence high possibilities of having cloud free
data. The major disadvantages are: coarse spatial resolution (1.1 km at the nadir), pre-
processing is time consuming, the methodology is not well developed, and LAC data
has limited capability to record on-board. Designated originally for meteorological
studies, AVHRR data can be used for various land applications, such as land cover
assessment and monitoring. Due to the coarse spatial resolution (1 km), the pixel might
represent different land cover types on the ground, but the spectral characteristic will
be representation of the predominant cover type within that pixel. One should be aware
that the minimum mapping unit for the NOAA AVHRR data is one square kilometer.
That is, land cover features smaller than one square kilometer is not distinctive.

Maps 1 to 8 have been added to explain AVHRR spectral ranges and their
combinations and applications as listed in Table 1.

5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
 Table 1. AVHRR spectral ranges, their combinations and
applications
Map Channel Wave Spectru Applications
No. Number Length m
Or Channel
( m)
combination
1 1 0.58 - 0.68 Reflected Discriminating clouds, Daytime cloud and surface features mapping.
Visible
2 2 0.72 – 1.10 Visible / Near Mapping land / water discrimination (water has lesser reflectance than other
Infrared land uses), discriminating daytime cloud.
3 3 3.55 - 3.93 Emitted Determining temperature of radiating surface, night cloud mapping
Thermal
Infra- Red /
Reflected
Solar
InfraRed
4 4 10.50 -11.50 Thermal IR / Determining sea surface temperature, day/night cloud mapping
Emmited
Thermal
Infra Red
5 11.50 - 12.50 Thermal Determining sea surface temperature, soil moisture, day/night cloud mapping
InfraRed /
Emmited
Thermal
InfraRed
5 NDVI = NDVI Normalized Vegetation Index is ratio or difference of reflectance value in the visible (Red)
((2-1)/(2+1)) Difference and Near Infra Red region of the spectrum
Vegetation
Index
6 FCC = FCC False Color Generated by compositing three multi-band images with the use of three
R2:G1:B1 Composite primary colours: by assigning blue to Reflected Visible band, green to
Reflected Visible, and red to Visible/Near-Infrared band. Green vegetations
appears in different tones of red color. Snow & ice appears in white.
7 FCC = FCC False Color Generated by compositing three multi-band images with the use of three
R1:G2:B1 Composite primary colours: by assigning blue to Reflected Visible band, green to
Visible/Near-Infrared band., and red to Reflected Visible. Green vegetations
appears in different tones of green color.
To record spatial and spectral detail, however, high-resolution scanners data, such as
SPOT XS and LANDSAT TM, with repeat cycles of about two weeks, are required. This
will be done sometime in future when a detailed micro-level land use assessment will be
carried out.
1.5 Methods Used
Ten sets of the NOAA AVHRR data covering Pakistan were supplied by UNEP to
ICIMOD for processing. The digtial data of NOAA AVHRR in LAC formats of the
following dates were used in the present study: 14 Feb 1993, 20 Feb 1993, 28 Feb 1993,
17 March 1993, 23 Apr 1993, 1 Dec 1992, 14 Oct 1992, 23 Oct 1992, 13 Apr 1993. Pre-
processing was carried out for all the datasets. The NOAA AVHRR data Pre-processing
consists of data extraction and noise removal, radiometric calibration, geometric
correction, and cloud masking procedures. AVHRR imagery of 14 October 1992 was used
as the base image owing to its least cloud coverage. The data set are resampled to one
square kilometer spatial resolution (i.e. one pixel represents one square kilometer on
ground) after geometric correction. The country mask is generated using the country
boundary available in the Digital Chart of the World (DCW) vector map. Spectral
characteristics of the individual bands, NDVI, and color composites were studied for land
cover mapping. Unsupervised digital land cover classification was performed using

14
spectral signature definition by iterative clustering technique and maximum likelihood
classification method. Interactive labeling of this signature information into major land
cover categories requires substantial field information, forest seasonality/ phenology and
ancillary data like topography and climate. Minor decision rules based on GIS overlay
operations were performed for the finalization of the classification generalization.
Accuracy assessment of the classification result is done using other available information.

2.0 STUDY AREA

2.1 Physiography

The physical framework of Pakistan has been built by two major geomorphic processes
that have produced two distinct physiographic entities:

1. The Western Highlands produced by the mountain building movement extended

from the Makran Coast in the south to the Pamir Plateau in the extreme north.

2. The Indus Plains resulting from the deposition of sediments from the Indus river
and its tributaries.

The Western Highlands cover most of Balochistan, NWFP, Northern Areas (Gilgit
Agency) and parts of the Panjab. These can be further divided into five physiographic
entities:

Mountainous North
Koh-e-Safaid and Waziristan Hills
Sulaiman and Kirthar Mountains
Balochistan Plateau
Potowar Plateau and the Salt Ranges

The Mountainous North covers the northern parts of Pakistan and comprises parallel
mountain ranges intervened by narrow and deep river valleys. East of the Indus River, the
mountain ranges in general run from east to west. To its west - from north to south - run
the following important mountain ranges:

The Himalayas
The Karakorams
The Hindu Kush

The western most parts of the Himalayas fall in Pakistan. The sub-Himalayas - the
southern most ranges - do not rise to great heights (600 - 1200 masl). The Lesser
Himalayas lie to the north of the sub-Himalayas and rise to 1,800 - 4,600 masl. The Great
Himalayas are located north of the Lesser Himalayas. They attain snowy heights (of more
than 4,600 m).

15
The Karakoram Ranges in the extreme north rise to an average height of 6,100 m.
Mount Goodwin Austin (K-2) - the second highest peak in the world - is 8,610 m and
located in the Karakorams.

The Hindu Kush Mountains take off the western side of the Pamir Plateau that is located
to the west of the Karakorams. These mountains take a southerly turn and rise to snowy
heights. Some of the peaks rise to great heights like Noshaq (7,369 m), and Tirich Mir
(7,690 m).

The Koh-e-Safaid Ranges have an east-west trend and rise to an average height of 3,600
m. They are commonly covered with snow. Sikeram, the highest peak in Koh-e-Safaid
Ranges rises to 4,760 m. Similarly, the elevation of Waziristan Hills ranges from 1,500
and 3,000 m.

Some rivers flowing in the region have formed passes through which armies, peoples and
cultures have moved. Among them, the Khyber Pass is the most important. It connects
Peshawar in Pakistan to Kabul in Afghanistan.

The Sulaiman-Kirthar Mountain Ranges extending from south of Gomal River, lie
between Balochistan Plateau and the Indus Plains. On reaching the Murre-Bugti Hills, they
turn northward and extend up to Quetta. Further south, they meet the Kirthar Mountains,
which merge in to the Kohistan area of Sindh. The Sulaiman Mountains rise to an average
height of 600 m that decreases southward. Takht-e-Sulaiman (3,487 m) and Takatu (3,470
m) are the highest peaks of the Sulaiman Ranges.

The Balochistan Plateau is located west of the Sulaiman-Kirthar Mountains. Its western
part is dominated by a number of sub-parallel ranges: the Makran Coast Range (600 m),
and the Central Makran Range (900 - 1200 m). The highest peak Ras Koh, attains a height
of 3010 m.

The Potwar Plateau and the Salt Range region are located to the south of the
mountainous north and lie between the Indus river on the west and the Jhelum river on the
east. Its northern boundary is formed by the Kala Chitta Ranges and the Margalla Hills
and the southern boundary by the Salt Ranges. The Kala Chitta Range rises to an average
height of 450 - 900 m and extends for about 72 km. The main Potwar Plateau extends
north of the Salt Range. It is an undulating area 300 - 600 m high.

The Salt Ranges have a steep face towards the south and slope gently in to the Potwar
Plateau in the north. They extend from Jhelum River up to Kalabagh where they cross the
Indus river and enter the Bannu district and rise to an average height of 750 - 900 m.
Sakesar Peak (1,527 m) is the highest point of the Salt Ranges.

The Indus Plains have been formed by the alluvium laid down from the river Indus and its
tributaries. The Indus is a mighty stream about 2,900 km long with catchment areas of
about 963,500 sq. km. From its source it flows from east to west between the Karakorams
and the Himalayas. It receives a number of tributaries from the west: Kabul river, Kurram,
Tochi and the Gomal river. The left side tributaries are Jhelum, Ravi and Sutlej. They

16
combine at Panjnad. The swelling of Indus and its tributaries during summer causes floods.
Sometimes the rivers change their courses and spread fertile silts in some areas and coarse
sands in others. All these processes have built the Indus plains and have made them
agriculturally very important. The Indus Plains slope down from north to south. In the
north, they rise to about 300 m and drop to about 75 m near Panjnad in the Panjab. From
there, they slope gently and cascade in to the Arabian Sea.
The Indus Plains can be divided into the following physiographic entities:
Piedmont Plains
Alluvial Terraces
Active Flood Plains
Deltaic Plains
Rolling Sand Plains and Dunes

Extensive Piedmont Plains have developed between the Indus river and the Sulaiman-
Kirthar mountains. They have been built by the alluvial fans along the Indus flowing
eastward down the mountains. Most of the rivers rolling down the mountains become
active only when rainfall takes place. They flow down the slopes swiftly. On reaching the
foothills, they loose speed and drop part of their load within the streams, which split into a
number of narrow channels. These channels become so overburdened (with sediment load)
that they die before they reach the Indus towards which they flow. The gravel, sand and
silt thus deposited, form the alluvial fans. The Piedmont plains, dominated by the alluvial
fans, provide good soils and suitable topography for agriculture.

Alluvial Terraces are depositional and are separated from the adjoining flood plains by
the river-cut bluffs ranging in height from 5 to 15 m. The sediments of the terraces are
called old alluvium and are composed of compact calcareous silty clays.

Active Flood Plains are narrow strips of land along the Indus and its tributaries varying
from 24 to 40 km in width. They are inundated almost every year, covered with rich
alluvium and are suitable for agriculture. Old flood plains cover extensive areas between
the active flood plains and the desert areas in the lower Indus Valley.

The Deltaic Plains have in fact been built by the Indus as a large delta at its mouth. The
apex of the delta is to the south of Thatta. The area bounded by the Kalri and Pinyari, the
two distributaries of the Indus, is taken as the Indus Delta. The delta is scarred with old
and present channels of the Indus. At the coast, barrier bars have developed. There are
extensive mud flats sliced by the tidal channels. The inland limit of the mud flats is marked
by a cliff.

An extensive area in the south-west of Pakistan is covered with Rolling Sand Plains and
Dunes. It is separated from the Indus valley by the dry channels of Ghaggar River. This
extensive desert is called Cholistan in the Panjab and Thar in Sindh. It is not drained by any
perennial stream. Therefore wind action is dominant in the formation of its topography. A
vast expanse of sand plains with dunes dominates the scene. Agriculturally, it is a poor
area. Map 9 presents the highlands of Pakistan and the Indus Plains.

17
18
2.2 Climate

Depending on the topography, there is an extreme variation in the temperature of Pakistan.

The country is essentially arid except for the southern slopes of the Himalayas and the sub-
mountainous tract where the annual rainfall varies between 760 and 1270 mm. This area
has humid sub-Tropical climate. In the extreme north - because of great heights - Highland
climate prevails. The controlling factors of the climate are:

1. The sub-Tropical location of Pakistan that tends to keep the temperature high,
particularly in summer.

2. The oceanic influence of the Arabian Sea that keeps down the temperature contrast
between summer and winter at the coast.

3. Higher altitudes in the west and north that keep the temperature down throughout
the year.

4. The Monsoon winds that bring rainfall in summer.

5. The Western Depression originating from the Mediterranean region and entering
Pakistan from the west that brings rainfall in winter. These cyclones make a long
land journey and are thus robbed of most of the moisture by the time they reach
Pakistan.

6. A temperature inversion layer at a low elevation of about 1,500 m in the south

during the summer, that does not allow the moisture-laden air to rise and
condensation to take place.

2.2.1 Temperature

Pakistan can be divided into four broad temperature regions:

1. Hot summer and mild winter: 32o C or more in summer and 10 to 21o C in winter.

2. Warm summer and mild winter: 21 - 32oC in summer and 10 to 21oC in winter.

3. Warm summer and cool winter: 21 - 32oC in summer and 0 - 10oC in winter.

4. Mild summer and cool/cold winter: Summer temperature between 10 and 21oC and
winter temperature between 0 and 10oC.

19
Considering 10-year data (1974 - 1983), Table 2 contains the mean maximum and mean
minimum temperatures at some selected meteorological centres:
Table 2. Maximum and Minimum Temperatures (oC)
Station Mean Maximum Mean Minimum
1. Quetta 24.3 7.4
2. Zhob 25.6 12.1
3. Khuzdar 28.1 14.2
4. Panjgoor 29.5 15.0
5. Dalbandin 31.0 13.5
6. Rawalpindi 28.4 14.1
7. Peshawar 29.7 15.8
8. Jhelum 31.2 13.4
9. Lahore 30.7 18.0
10. Sargodha 31.9 16.6
11. Faisalabad 30.8 16.2
12. D.I. Khan 31.3 16.8
13. Multan 33.0 18.1
14. 32.6 18.0
Bahawalpur
15. Jacobabad 33.6 20.1
16. Nawab 35.0 18.1
Shah
17. Hyderabad 34.4 21.3
18. Karachi 31.7 20.4
2.2.2 Analysis of Temperature Regimes

Proper analysis for the calculation of temperature regimes could not be carried out because
of the lack of data and the proper methodology: application of linear equation, the
interpolation of the data on to the area by using raster GIS Module and a Digital Elevation
Model (DEM). This is then followed by the removal of the influence of altitude on the data
through the 0 masl altitude-equivalent temperature at each station.

Based on the maximum and minimum temperatures, the Longitude and Latitude, Maps 10
and 11 have been created using Surfer and then transferring the image to ARC/INFO.
Surfer is a grid-based contouring, 3-D surface plotting programme. It interpolates the
irregularly-shaped XYZ data on to a regularly spaced grid and places it in a grid used to
produce contour maps and surface plots.

2.2.3 Rainfall

The major part of Pakistan experiences dry climate. Humid conditions prevail but over a
small area in the north. The whole of Sindh, most of Balochistan, the major part of the
Panjab and central parts of Northern Areas receive less than 250 mm of rainfall in a year.
Northern Sindh, southern Panjab, north-western Balochistan and the central parts of
Northern Areas receive less than 125 mm of rainfall. True humid conditions appear after
the rainfall increases to 750 mm in plains and 625 mm in highlands.

20
21
22
There are two sources of rainfall in Pakistan: the Monsoon and the Western Depression.
The former takes place from July to September and the latter, December to March.

Based on the average rainfall (in mm) between 1974 and 1983, Table 3 attempts to give a
picture of the quantity of precipitation received in Pakistan.

Table 3. Mean Annual Rainfall (mm)

Station Mean Annual Rainfall

1. Quetta 378
2. Sibi 217
3. Kalat 274
4. Chaghi 148
5. Zhob 297
6. Khuzdar 272
7. Panjgoor 128
8. Dalbandin 125
9. Rawalpindi 1364
10. Peshawar 441
11. Kohat 593
12. Bannu 416
13. D.I. Khan 327
14. Jhelum 960
15. Sialkot 1186
16. Sahiwal 109
17. Lahore 729
18. Sargodha 526
19. Faisalabad 485
20. Multan 225
21. Bahawalpur 266
22. Jacobabad 135
23. Nawab Shah 162
24. Rohri 174
25. Hyderabad 193
26. Karachi 265

2.2.4 Analysis of Precipitation Regimes

Rainfall pattern and moisture regimes are subject to limitations: there is no clear altitudinal
trend of precipitation. As an example, the Dry Temperate Zone in the north of Pakistan
and to the west of Balochistan (bordering Afghanistan) are highlands and mountainous
regions but do not receive even a fraction of the precipitation of what the Moist
Temperate Zone or even the sub-Tropical areas receive. Further, a relationship needs to be
built between the altitude, temperature, and the potential evaporation: the higher the
altitude, the lower the temperature and hence the evaporation.

23
A simple methodology was therefore, applied by using the Mean Annual Rainfall data of
the above stations and their geographic location. The software used was Surfer and later,
ARC/INFO (Map 12).

2.3 Soils

Aridity prevailing over major part of Pakistan is the main climatic characteristic that affects
its soils. This has resulted in limiting the soil moisture and scantiness of vegetative cover.
Soils in Pakistan are rich in Basic but poor in Nitrogenous matter.

2.3.1 Parent Material

The soils of Pakistan are derived from two types of parent materials:

1. Alluvium, Loess and wind reworked sands. They are of mixed mineralogy.

2. Residual material obtained from weathering of underlying rocks. Most of the rocks
are Calcareous . In some areas, Granites have produced non-calcareous soil
material. Very small quantities of salts are released from most of the rocks. The
soils are therefore, essentially non-saline.

2.3.2 Soil Classification

The soils of Pakistan have acquired distinct characteristics from the parent material and by
their mode of formation. The river-laid sediments have developed into Alluvial Soils. The
desert sands have turned into distinct soils. The hills, mountains and the plateaus have
produced Residual Soils with patches of Alluvial, Loess and other soils. Accordingly, the
soils of Pakistan can be classified into the following six types:

Alluvial Soils of the Flood Plains

Alluvial Soils of the Bar Uplands
Soils of the Piedmont Plains
Desert Soils
Soils of Potwar Plateau
Soils of Western Hills

Based on these broad classes, Table 4 presents areas under different soil types in
Pakistan. Map 13 presents the 26 broad Soil Types of Pakistan.

24
25
26
 Table 4. Soil Types of Pakistan

Soil Type Area %tage

(000’ ha)
1. Loamy and sandy stratified soils 1.0 0.1
2. Loamy and clayey non-calcareous soils 4.6 0.6
3. MOUNTAINS: Loamy shallow soils
VALLEYS : Loamy non-calcareous soils 18.6 2.3
4. Loamy sandy stratified soils 1.5 0.2
5. Loamy clayey non-calcareous soils 7.7 1.0
6. Loamy non-calcareous soils of alluvial/loess plains 18.2 2.3
7. MOUNTAINS: Loamy and shallow soils
VALLEYS : Laomy soils 10.2 1.3
8. MOUNTAINS: Rock out-crops loamy and shallow soils
VALLEYS : Loamy soils 17.0 2.1
9. Loamy partly gravelly soils 0.7 0.1
10. MOUNTAINS: Loamy shallow soils and rock out-crop
VALLEYS : Loamy soils 2.7 0.3
11. MOUNTAINS: Rock out-crop and loamy very shallow soils
VALLEYS : Loamy soils 41.7 5.2
12. MOUNTAINS:Rock outcrop, some loamy very shallow
soilsVALLEYS : Mainly loamy soils 22.7 2.9
13. Laomy sandy stratified soils 18.8 2.4
14. Loamy clayey soils 90.4 11.4
15. Loamy soils of old river terraces 21.9 2.8
16. Laomy clayey mainly dense saline sodic soils 2.0 0.3
17. Loamy and clayey partly slaine sodic soils 52.7 6.6
18. Mainly loamy saline soils 15.3 1.9
19. Silty and calyey saline soils 5.6 0.7
20. Rolling to hilly sandy soils 116.9 14.7
21. Mainly loamy partly gravelly soils 46.6 5.8
22. Mainly loamy partly gravelly soils 16.7 2.1
23. MOUNTAIND: Rocky out-crop with patchy soils
VALLEYS : Mainly loamy partly gravelly soils 244.5 30.6
24. Clayey and loamy severly slaine sodic soils 2.7 0.3
25. Glaciers and snow caps 3.4 0.4
26. Rivers 13.0 1.6
TOTAL: 796.1 100.0

27
2.4 Population

The population of Pakistan is growing at a very rapid rate. From 16.6 million in 1901, it
increased to 84.3 million in 1981 (the last official census year): a five-fold increase in 80
years (Table 5).

Table 5 reveals that the population of Pakistan was doubled from 1901 - 1951. It
doubled again but during 1951 to 1972 thus resulting doubling time from 50 years to
. Between 1972 and 1981, it increased by another 28.3%. With the officially
projected growth rate of 3.1% per year (1981 onwards), the population of Pakistan
will be more than 150 million by the turn of the century.

Table 5 Population of Pakistan (millions)

Year Population Inter-Censal Annual Growth
Growth Rate Rate
1901 16.58 - -
1911 19.38 16.9 1.57
1921 21.10 8.9 0.85
1931 23.54 11.6 1.11
1941 28.28 20.1 1.85
1947* 31.44 11.1 1.78
1951 33.74 7.3 1.78
1961 42.88 27.1 2.43
1972 65.31 52.3 3.90
1981 84.25 28.3 2.87
1996 133.18 58.1 3.10
2000 150.48 13.0 3.10

* Projected

The alarming increase in the population from 1961 onwards can be attributed due mainly
to the improved health conditions causing reduction in the infant mortality rate.

2.5 Forests and Land Cover

Forests have been central in human history in that they provide critical ecosystem services
for climate, range and forage, wildlife habitat, biotic diversity, watershed protection, soil
erosion control, etc.

Humans have left an impressive mark on the world over the past several centuries. With
the dramatic growth in population - from around 1 billion in 1800 to 5 billion today-
pressure on the land has greatly increased. The need for greater food production has led to
a massive increase in cropland. By early 1990’s, almost 40 percent of earth’s land surface
had been converted to croplands and permanent pastures. This conversion has occurred
largely at the expense of forests.

28
Of the four forest cover percentage groups (> 70%, 40-69%, 10-39%, 0-9%), Pakistan
lies in the last category: 0-9%. Between 1981 and 1990, there had been a 4.3% decrease in
forest areas of the Tropical Asia and Oceania, which Pakistan is a part of. During the same
period, a 0.6% deforestation had been occurring each year. This is an alarming situation
and needs to be stalled and then reversed, if possible.

As recognition of the multiple values of forests has grown, so have concerns for their
disappearance. In Pakistan, subtropical, temperate, riverain and mangrove forests are being
lost because of questionable land use practices and the ever-increasing demand for timber
and firewood. As a result, more responsible management approaches are being demanded
that can accommodate complex economic and ecological needs. Designation of selected
forestlands as national parks, area for agro-forestry practices and the development of
plantations and afforestation practices are needs of the hour.

Total Forest Area under the control of the Forest Departments (including Azad Kashmir
and the Northern Areas) is 4.26 million hectares. The per capita forest area is only 0.037
ha compared to the world average of ONE ha. Main reason for this is that more than 70%
land area of Pakistan is Arid and semi-Arid with annual rainfall of 250-500 mm: too low
and erratic to sustain natural vegetation and to plan afforestation/regeneration
programmes.

Due to diverse ecological conditions, a variety of forest types exist in the country. There
are natural forests growing in the moist-and-dry temperate zones and on the foothills. On
the other extreme are the mangrove forests in the Indus Delta and the Arabian Sea.
Irrigated plantations and to some extent, riverain forests are man-made.

Of 4.26 million hectares (of forest area), only 1.12 million hectares (26.3%) produce
timber and firewood: the rest are meant to protect the watershed areas and the erodable
lands.

Besides forests, the forest departments also control 6.4 million hectares of Rangelands. In
fact, there are about 51.3 million hectares of Rangelands in Pakistan. These ranges provide
sustenance to livestock population of about 98.6 millions. Being under incessant grazing
pressure, these lands are producing hardly 10-15% of their actual potential. Over-grazing
has intensified the problems of desertification resulting in accelerated soil erosion and
degradation of plant communities.

Table 6 presents the Forest Area by Types and Rangelands in Pakistan (including Azad
Kashmir and the Northern Areas).

29
 Table 6. Forest Areas and Rangelands (in ha.)

Forest Type NWFP Panjab Sindh Balochistan Northern Azad Total

Areas Kashmir
Coniferous 1105 29 - 131 285 361 1911
Irr. Plantations - 142 82 - 2 - 226
Riverain Forests - 51 241 5 - - 297
Scrub Forests 115 340 10 163 658 1 1287
Coastal Forests - - 345 - - - 345
Mazri Lands 24 - - - - - 24
Linear Pltns. 2 4 - - - - 6
Private Pltns. 159 - - - - - 159
Range Lands 150 2683 490 787 2104 195 6409
TOTAL: 1555 3249 1168 1086 3049 557 10664

2.6 Protected Areas

There are three types of areas that have been declared as Protected.

National Parks
Wildlife Sanctuaries
Game Reserves

The National Parks are only meant for recreational purposes where no other activity can
take place.

In Wildlife Sanctuaries, no hunting is allowed as they have the endangered wildlife

species.

As for the Game Reserves, hunting is allowed but only in certain months in a year and
after a hunting permit has been obtained from the Wildlife Department.

In Pakistan, there are 10 National Parks, 82 Wildlife Sanctuaries and 83 Game Reserves.
They occupy a hefty 9% land area of Pakistan (Table 7).

Table 7. Protected Areas of Pakistan

Category No. Area (ha) % of Land Area

1. National Parks 10 954,246 1.2

2. Wildlife Sanctuaries 82 2,749,054 3.4
3. Game Reserves 83 3,535,284 4.4
TOTAL: 7,238,584 9.0

30
2.7 Agriculture

Agriculture in Pakistan dates back to Neolithic times. It formed the base of the well-
known Indus Valley Civilization. Of late, its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product
(GDP) has decreased from 52% in 1950-51 to just 24% in 1993-94. This is primarily
because of higher growth rates registered by other sectors, particularly, the Manufacturing
and Mining.

Pakistan is a land of subsistence agriculture. The main emphasis is on the production of

food crops that account for about 70% of the cropped area. Some cash crops (cotton,
sugarcane, tobacco, etc.) are grown to meet other needs. About 23% of the total land area
is cultivated. Still, the cropped area has increased from 14.6 million hectares in 1947-48 to
about 22.15 million hectares in 1993-94: a hefty increase of about 52%.

For the purpose of this study, the land area of Pakistan has been divided into FIVE major
categories: Reported Area; Forest Area; Cropped Area, Cultivable Waste; Unreported
Area. The data has a time interval of 46 years: sufficient to determine the changed landuse
pattern, if any (Table 8).

Table 8. Land use Pattern of Pakistan (million ha)

Category 1947-48 1993-94 % Change

Geographical Area 79.61 79.61 0.00

Reported Area 47.43 58.12 + 7.79
Forest Area 2.84 3.44 + 21.13
Cropped Area 14.60 22.15 + 22.92
Cultivable Waste 11.50 8.84 - 16.84
Unreported Area 32.18 21.49 - 16.35

There has been an appreciable increase in Forest-and Cropped Areas. A lot of wasteland
has been converted to productive uses. The un-Reported Area has consequently reduced.

According to a map prepared by the Soil Survey of Pakistan (published in 1988), nine
major land use classes have been identified. Table 9.

31
 Table 9. Land use Categories of Pakistan (000’ ha)

Landuse Type Area %age

1. Agriculture 21,733 27.3
2. Rangelands 25,475 32.0
3. Coniferous Forests 1,353 1.7
4. Irrigated Plantations 80 0.1
5. Scrub Forests 796 1.0
6. Riverain Forests 239 0.3
7. Wastelands including areas under Ice and Snow 28,501 35.8
8. Water Bodies (rivers only) 1,274 1.6
9. Others 159 0.2
TOTAL: 79,610 100.0

Map 14 presents the Land use Categories for the four provinces of Pakistan.

Compared to the data provided by the Forest and Agriculture Departments, the data of
Soil Survey Department (Table 9) differs in almost all the landuse categories. This
warrants a serious re-classification of the present landuse status.

2.7.1 Crop Calendar

Pakistan has two basic crop seasons: Winter Season and Summer Season. The Winter
Season crops include Cotton, Rice, Sugarcane, Maize, Sugar Beet and Gram. The Summer
crops include Wheat, Millet, Sorgham, Barley, Tobacco, and various Pulses. Table 10
presents the areas (in 000 ha) under different crops and their production (in 000’ tonnes)
in 1993-94.

Table 10. Area and Production of Winter and Summer Crops

Winter Crops Summer Crops

CROPS Area Production Area (ha.) Production
(tonnes)
Cotton 2,805 1,440 - -
Rice 2,187 3,995 - -
Sugarcane 963 44,427 - -
Sugar Beet 7 243 - -
Maize 878 1,213 - -
Gram 1,045 411 - -
Pulses 432 202 - -
Wheat - - 8,034 15,213
Millet - - 303 137
Sorgham - - 365 212
Tobacco - - 57 100
Barley - - 151 212

32
33
2.8 National Energy Consumption

Like many other developing countries, Pakistan has not yet fully harnessed its energy
potential. As a consequence, its national energy consumption is very low. With an annual
growth rate of 3.9%, the energy consumption increased from 19.5 million TOE in 1980-81
to 32.2 million TOE in 1993-94: a gross increase of about 65% and a yearly increase of
more than 3.9% (Table 11). The per capita consumption - during the same period - went
up from 10.47 GJ to 11.10 GJ.

Table 11. National Energy Consumption by Source (000’ TOE)

Source 1980-81 Percent 1993-94 Percent

Commercial: 10,868 55.6 20,355 63.2

Oil 4,267 21.8 9,667 30.0

Gas 3,200 16.4 6,082 18.9
Coal 691 3.5 1,562 4.8
Electricity 2,710 13.9 3,044 9.5
non-Commercial 8,660 44.4 11,840 36.8

Wood 4,939 25.3 6,506 20.2

Agric. Residue 3,721 19.1 5,334 16.6
TOTAL: 19,528 100.0 32,205 100.0

34
3.0 RESULTS

3.1 Land Cover Assessment: 1992-93

3.1.1 Why NOAA-AVHRR Data?

A problem common in development planning is the inadequacy of information on the

current landcover and available resource base. Without accurate information, policy
makers often fail to make correct decisions. The frequent inadequacy of landcover
information may be due to lack of trained personnel, equipment, or funds to collect
information. Rapid changes in the resource base such as high rates of deforestation caused
by increased population pressure may be one of the other reasons of deficient database.

One tool in providing current reliable land cover data is Remote Sensing: the acquisition
of information without direct contact.

Although many types of remotely-sensed data of earth’s surface have been collected,
NOAA AVHRR data have been used most frequently for the macro scale land cover
assessments. This is because of its spectral bands that are well suited especially for
the detection of important vegetative attributes. The contrast between the first two
channels can be conveniently calculated to a measure of vegetation. Vegetation
Index is one such ratio that has been shown to be highly correlated with vegetation
parameters (plant species, leaf area, soil background reflectance and shadow) and
hence, is of considerable value for vegetation discrimination.

3.2. Spectral Characterization and Land Cover Mapping

3.2.1 Classification Scheme

After interpreting the NOAA AVHRR data covering Pakistan, the following SIX major .
Land cover categories were identified:

1. Snow and Ice

2. Forests: Coniferous, Scrub, Mangrove, Riverain, Irrigated
Plantations, Mazi lasnds
3. Agricultural Lands
4. Grazing/Rangelands (including degraded rangelands)
5. Water Bodies
6. Waste Lands (including deserts)

Snow and Ice areas are mostly confined to northern NWFP (Himalayas, Hindu Kush,
Karakoram mountains), extreme southern NWFP (Waziristan hills), to some extent, north-
eastern Panjab, and the north-western hills of Balochistan (Koh-e-Sulaiman).

Forest areas include dry/moist temperate forests, sub-tropical forests, foothill and plateau
scrub forests, tropical thorn forests, irrigated plantations, riverain forests and the coastal

35
forests. Rangelands in fact, start from the alpine pastures in the extreme north (> 4,000 m)
down to the Indus Plains (< 100 m) and Balochistan Plateaus.

An extensive area in the south-east and south of Pakistan is covered with Rolling Sand
Planes and Dunes. This desert is called Cholistan in the Panjab and becomes Thar(parkar)
in Sindh.

There was not much difficulty in separating most of the landcover features except for the
Riverain Forests in the Panjab and Sindh, Mangrove Forests in Sindh and some degraded
range/brushlands in north-western Balochistan (near the Pak-Afghan border). All these
three categories of vegetation were giving the same reflectance values. Since there is an
obvious degradation and reduction in the Riverain forests and Mangroves, it becomes all
the more important to have a reasonably good estimate of the present state of affairs in
these areas.

3.2.2 Land Use Distribution Assessment

Six major biomass types encompassing a variety of eco-systems (alpine to tropical) may be
recognized (from the NOAA Imagery) for Pakistan including Northern Areas. Broadly
speaking, they are lands under agriculture, rangelands (perennial and seasonal), coniferous-
scrub-and other forest areas, riverain forests and finally, the mangrove forests). A variety
of forests featuring varying degrees of disturbances, imbalances and degradations dominate
most of the forest areas. Subsistence agriculture, fuelwood collection and grazing practices
seem to be the dominant features of degradation (of natural vegetation) both quantitatively
and qualitatively. Land area under snow and ice, water bodies and wastelands are some
other features as derived from the NOAA imagery. Table 12.

Table 12. Landuse Categories of Pakistan (000’ ha)

Land use Category Area % age

1. Snow and Ice 8,563 10.4
2. Agriculture 25,184 30.7
3. Rangelands 8,867 10.8
4. Rangelands; degraded 7,843 9.6
5. Coniferous, Scrub & other Forests 2,730 3.3
6. Riverain Forests including nfv* 1,801 2.2
7. Coastal Mangrove Forests 556 0.7
8. Water Bodies 93 0.1
9. Wastelands including Deserts 26,394 32.2
TOTAL: 82,031 100.0
* non-forest vegetation

Map 15 presents all the nine major land cover categories of Pakistan.

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37
3.3 Natural Vegetation: a Comparison

Like many other countries, different figures are available in Pakistan for different land
cover types occurring in the country. The following table (Table 12) has been added to
show how the data obtained from the different sources in Pakistan differ from the NOAA
classification.

Table 13. Natural Vegetation of Pakistan; A Comparison

Vegetation Type Agriculture Forest Soil NOAA

Department Department Depepartment AVHRR
(ha.) (ha.) (ha.). (ha.)
1. Forest areas 3,400 3,722 2,468 5,087
2. Rangelands 51,300 51,300 25,475 16,710

There is considerable difference in the areas under natural vegetation as reported by

various agencies in the country and the areas derived from the NOAA imagery. This means
that a massive reclassification needs to be carried out. This is particularly true for forest
areas that are almost 37% less than what the satellite imagery reports. There is also a
possibility that the imagery data is too much on the higher side. This might be another
good reason for reclassification: both at departmental as also at the imagery level.

4.0 CONCLUSIONS

At the national scale, the study revealed the usefulness of NOAA AVHRR data in the
assessment of landcover information. This information when compared to historic
landcover data, became useful to detect changes in landuse pattern, such as increase in the
extent of agricultural lands or decrease in forest areas. It can thus be used as a baseline
data for future monitoring. As for the future monitoring of landcover, one would find
cloud free NOAA AVHRR LAC data as far back as say, 1984-85 when NOAA-9 was
launched. Latest data pertaining to say, 1996 would give access not only to the up-to-date
landcover status, it will also help in ascertaining a trend of the changing landcover scenario
over a fairly large period of time.

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REFERENCES
The report is heavily based on the following reports.
1. Anon. 1993-94. Agricultural Statistics of Pakistan.

2. Anon. 1984. Pakistan Statistical Year Book. Federal Bureau of Statistics, Karachi,
Pakistan.

3. Anon. 1990. Pakistan Demographic Survey. Federal Bureau of Statistics, Karachi,

Pakistan.

4. Anon. 1993. Crops Area Production (by Districts); 1989-90 to 1991-92. Printing
Corporation of Pakistan Press, Islamabad, Pakistan.

5. Anon. 1996. Economic Survey: 1995-96. Printing Corporation of Pakistan Press,

Islamabad, Pakistan.

6. Anon. 1996. Banking on Biodiversity.ICIMOD - Nepal.

7. Anon. 1995. Statistical Yearbook for Asia and the Pacific. United Nations
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8. Anon. 1995. Land Cover Assessment and Monitoring. Volume 1-A. UNEP
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10. Haack, Barry; Richard English. 1996. National Landcover Mapping by Remote
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11. Khan F. Karim. 1991. A Geography of Pakistan. Oxford University Press, Karachi,
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12. McKendry et all. 1992. Exploration in GIS Technology. Vol. 2. UNITAR European
Office, Geneva, Switzerland.

13. Shaw Isobel. 1996. Odyssey Illustrated Guide to PAKISTAN.

14. Siddiqui, K.M. 1996. Wood Energy in the National Energy Perspective. In
Proceedings of the National Training Workshop on Fuelwood Trade in Pakistan.
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15. Sthapit, K.M. and R. Bhattarai. 1989. Agro-climatic Classification System for Nepal.
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16. Trapp Hubert. 1995. Application of GIS for Planning Agricultural Development in
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