Monitoring and assessment of vegetation covers of different biogeographical zones in Jordan using remote sensing and mathematical modelling

Abstract

Plant systems act as reservoirs for storing carbon in biomass and soil. The main objective of this study is to assess the current and future changes in the carbon pools of ecosystems in Jordan's under-predicted climate impacts. The impacts of the land and the vegetation in the whole regional ecosystem on the carbon balance were assessed in the atmosphere-soil system using remote sensing techniques and mathematical modeling of the global carbon cycles. The assessment of Jordan's vegetation covers of different biogeographical zones of the country was carried out using satellite imagery of 30 m spatial resolution, from which the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was computed. The results of modelling have shown several numbers of patterns taking place in the ecosystems under the influence of СО₂ emissions and other anthropogenic impacts. Combining the NDVI values with the Spatial Model of the Global Carbon Cycles in the Atmosphere - Plants – Soil System (APS) it was possible to assess the dependence of the humus and biomass of vegetation on the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. NDVI analysis in the period 2000–2018 has shown an increase in the value of the index. The simulation results of the carbon in both humus and biomass for the period 2000–2060 have shown an exponentially increasing trend, which implies that the carbon sequestration capacity is improving with time.