Spatiotemporal Vegetation Dynamics, Forest Loss, and Recovery: Multidecadal Analysis of the U.S. Triple Crown National Scenic Trail Network
The U.S. National Scenic Trail system, encompassing over 12,000 km of hiking trails along the Appalachian Trail (AT), Continental Divide Trail (CDT), and Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), provides critical vegetation corridors that protect diverse forest, savannah, and grassland ecosystems. These ecosystem...
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MDPI AG
2025-03-01
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| author | Amber R. Ignatius Ashley N. Annis Casey A. Helton Alec W. Reeb Dylan F. Ricke |
| author_facet | Amber R. Ignatius Ashley N. Annis Casey A. Helton Alec W. Reeb Dylan F. Ricke |
| author_sort | Amber R. Ignatius |
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| description | The U.S. National Scenic Trail system, encompassing over 12,000 km of hiking trails along the Appalachian Trail (AT), Continental Divide Trail (CDT), and Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), provides critical vegetation corridors that protect diverse forest, savannah, and grassland ecosystems. These ecosystems represent essential habitats facing increasing environmental pressures. This study offers a landscape-scale analysis of the vegetation dynamics across a 2 km wide conservation corridor (20,556 km<sup>2</sup>), utilizing multidecadal Landsat and MODIS satellite data via Google Earth Engine API to assess the vegetation health, forest disturbance recovery, and phenological shifts. The results reveal that forest loss, primarily driven by wildfire, impacted 1248 km<sup>2</sup> of land (9.5% in the AT, 39% in the CDT, and 51% in the PCT) from 2001 to 2023. Moderate and severe wildfires in the PCT (713 km<sup>2</sup> burn area) and CDT (350 km<sup>2</sup> burn area) corridors exacerbated the vegetation stress and facilitated the transition from forest to grassland. LandTrendr analysis at 15 sample sites revealed slow, multi-year vegetation recovery in the CDT and PCT corridors based on the temporal segmentation and vegetation spectral indices (NBR, NDVI, NDWI, Tasseled Cap). The post-disturbance NBR values remained significantly reduced, averaging 0.31 at five years post-event compared to 0.6 prior to the disturbance. Variations in the vegetation phenology were documented, with no significant trends in the seasonal advancement or delay. This study establishes a robust baseline for vegetation change across the trail system, highlighting the need for further research to explore localized trends. Given the accelerating impacts of climate change and wildfire frequency, the findings underscore the necessity of adaptive conservation strategies to guide vegetation management and ensure the long-term stability and sustainability of vegetation cover in these vital conservation areas. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e2124a3fea614a46b7fc6e92a06d64a5 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2072-4292 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Remote Sensing |
| spelling | doaj-art-e2124a3fea614a46b7fc6e92a06d64a52025-08-20T03:08:56ZengMDPI AGRemote Sensing2072-42922025-03-01177114210.3390/rs17071142Spatiotemporal Vegetation Dynamics, Forest Loss, and Recovery: Multidecadal Analysis of the U.S. Triple Crown National Scenic Trail NetworkAmber R. Ignatius0Ashley N. Annis1Casey A. Helton2Alec W. Reeb3Dylan F. Ricke4Institute for Environmental & Spatial Analysis, University of North Georgia, 4018 Mundy Mill Rd., Oakwood, GA 30566, USAInstitute for Environmental & Spatial Analysis, University of North Georgia, 4018 Mundy Mill Rd., Oakwood, GA 30566, USAInstitute for Environmental & Spatial Analysis, University of North Georgia, 4018 Mundy Mill Rd., Oakwood, GA 30566, USAInstitute for Environmental & Spatial Analysis, University of North Georgia, 4018 Mundy Mill Rd., Oakwood, GA 30566, USAJacobs Engineering, 1041 East Butler Rd., Greenville, SC 29607, USAThe U.S. National Scenic Trail system, encompassing over 12,000 km of hiking trails along the Appalachian Trail (AT), Continental Divide Trail (CDT), and Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), provides critical vegetation corridors that protect diverse forest, savannah, and grassland ecosystems. These ecosystems represent essential habitats facing increasing environmental pressures. This study offers a landscape-scale analysis of the vegetation dynamics across a 2 km wide conservation corridor (20,556 km<sup>2</sup>), utilizing multidecadal Landsat and MODIS satellite data via Google Earth Engine API to assess the vegetation health, forest disturbance recovery, and phenological shifts. The results reveal that forest loss, primarily driven by wildfire, impacted 1248 km<sup>2</sup> of land (9.5% in the AT, 39% in the CDT, and 51% in the PCT) from 2001 to 2023. Moderate and severe wildfires in the PCT (713 km<sup>2</sup> burn area) and CDT (350 km<sup>2</sup> burn area) corridors exacerbated the vegetation stress and facilitated the transition from forest to grassland. LandTrendr analysis at 15 sample sites revealed slow, multi-year vegetation recovery in the CDT and PCT corridors based on the temporal segmentation and vegetation spectral indices (NBR, NDVI, NDWI, Tasseled Cap). The post-disturbance NBR values remained significantly reduced, averaging 0.31 at five years post-event compared to 0.6 prior to the disturbance. Variations in the vegetation phenology were documented, with no significant trends in the seasonal advancement or delay. This study establishes a robust baseline for vegetation change across the trail system, highlighting the need for further research to explore localized trends. Given the accelerating impacts of climate change and wildfire frequency, the findings underscore the necessity of adaptive conservation strategies to guide vegetation management and ensure the long-term stability and sustainability of vegetation cover in these vital conservation areas.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/7/1142vegetationMODISLandsatwildfireLandTrendrphenology |
| spellingShingle | Amber R. Ignatius Ashley N. Annis Casey A. Helton Alec W. Reeb Dylan F. Ricke Spatiotemporal Vegetation Dynamics, Forest Loss, and Recovery: Multidecadal Analysis of the U.S. Triple Crown National Scenic Trail Network Remote Sensing vegetation MODIS Landsat wildfire LandTrendr phenology |
| title | Spatiotemporal Vegetation Dynamics, Forest Loss, and Recovery: Multidecadal Analysis of the U.S. Triple Crown National Scenic Trail Network |
| title_full | Spatiotemporal Vegetation Dynamics, Forest Loss, and Recovery: Multidecadal Analysis of the U.S. Triple Crown National Scenic Trail Network |
| title_fullStr | Spatiotemporal Vegetation Dynamics, Forest Loss, and Recovery: Multidecadal Analysis of the U.S. Triple Crown National Scenic Trail Network |
| title_full_unstemmed | Spatiotemporal Vegetation Dynamics, Forest Loss, and Recovery: Multidecadal Analysis of the U.S. Triple Crown National Scenic Trail Network |
| title_short | Spatiotemporal Vegetation Dynamics, Forest Loss, and Recovery: Multidecadal Analysis of the U.S. Triple Crown National Scenic Trail Network |
| title_sort | spatiotemporal vegetation dynamics forest loss and recovery multidecadal analysis of the u s triple crown national scenic trail network |
| topic | vegetation MODIS Landsat wildfire LandTrendr phenology |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-4292/17/7/1142 |
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