Impact of Climate Change on Vegetation Cover at South Port Sudan Area

• Main Authors: Pei Sun Loh, Hussien Ibrahim Mohammed Alnoor, Shuangyan He
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-10-01
• Series: Climate
• Subjects: temperature; precipitation; vegetation abundance; Sudan; arid environment
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2225-1154/8/10/114

Arid regions worldwide, for example, Sudan, are affected by climate change and susceptible to environmental deterioration. In this study, temperature and rainfall data from 1985 to 2015 obtained from the Sudan Meteorological Authority were compared with satellite images of vegetation coverage in southern Port Sudan. The objective of this study was to determine the impact of climate change on the vegetation cover in this area. Results showed significant increases in the annual maximum, minimum and average temperatures with time, and precipitation showed a slight but not significant decrease from 1985 to 2015. The rates of increase for the annual maximum, minimum and average temperatures were 0.08 °C/year, 0.03 °C/year and 0.06 °C/year, respectively, and precipitation decreased at a rate of 0.12 mm/year. Higher shrub abundance and greater water area in 2013, 1995 and 1990 were probably due to high rainfall in the years preceding these years. Decreased shrub abundance in the year 2000 could be due to the significantly higher temperatures after 1998. There was no decreasing trend in shrub coverage from 1985 to 2015, but the overall increase in temperature and decrease in precipitation from 1985 to 2015 indicate a potential threat to vegetation in this area in the future.