Evaluating the Effect of Prosopis juliflora, an Alien Invasive Species, on Land Cover Change Using Remote Sensing Approach

Invasive plant species (IPS) affect people's livelihoods and well-being by providing both benefits and costs in different contexts. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact ofProsopis juliflorainvasion on land cover change using ground survey and satellite sensor data derived from Landsat ETM+. The study was conducted at Sweimeh, Jordan Valley, between 1999 and 2017. The overall classification accuracy of remotely sensed data was 86% for 1999 and 80% for 2017. Accordingly, a remote sensing approach has the potential to assess land change/cover and aid in monitoring the IPS, specificallyProsopisinvasion. Change detection analysis of Landsat classes (i.e., 1999 and 2017) showed that bare soil, urban, and water surface areas decreased by 6%, 11%, and 3%, respectively. Conversely, the vegetation class (i.e., IPS and native plants) increased by 20%. Ground surveys in 1999 and 2017 showed that the average vegetation area in Sweimeh invaded byProsopiswas approximately 60% in 1999 and 70% in 2017. Accordingly, the total estimated area invaded byP. julifloraat Sweimeh (2106 ha) in 1999 was approximately 92 ha, whileProsopiscoverage in the same region was approximately 413 ha in 2017. The high emergence rate, the adaptation to high temperatures and low precipitation as well as governmental regulations which restrict the removal of trees, including IPS, were the main factors that prompted the extremeP. juliflorainvasion in the Jordan Valley. The high invasion rate has led to a reduction in native species, includingTamarixspp., and dried up five natural water springs in the area. Overall, a monitoring plan should be applied to control the invasion problem byProsopisin the valley. In addition, the conservation regulations that deal with IPS should be revised to mitigate the IPS risk.