Impacts of Anthropogenic Activities on Changes in the Land Use Patterns over a Span of Three Decades (1979 to 2010): Case of Dassa-Zoume and Glazoue in Benin

Abstract

To assess the real impact of farming activities on the environment over three decades and test the hypothesis if the various units of land use are in extension or regression or stable, the present study was carried out in Municipalities of Dassa-Zoumé and Glazoué. The method consisted of matrix analysis of the various units of land use through the vegetation maps from 1979, 1992, 2002 and 2010. The investigations were conducted with the analysis of the thematic maps and ground observations. The results of the analysis of environmental impacts of the cultural systems in Municipalities of Dassa-Zoumé and Glazoué indicated that the natural formations disappear with time. The natural formations and the farming areas gave up place to establishment of agglomerations which continued extending. The farming areas thus increased with the growth of the population. There was a strong correlation between 0.5 and 0.8 for the gallery formations and between 0.8 and 1 for the clear forests and the woody savannas, the tree and shrub savannas. The projections estimated for 2025 revealed that if the pressure on the natural formations is maintained, gallery forests, clear forests and woody savannas, as long as tree and shrub savannas will seriously decrease. Consequently our results suggest the degradation of the soils and decrease in biodiversity.