Landscape spatial changes associated with rapid urbanization in Shenzhen, China

Rapid urbanization and a building boom in Chinese cities, together with the increase in human disturbances in ecosystems, have resulted in a range of ecological and land-use problems. The formulation of policies relating to urban land use requires adequate understanding of the landscape dynamics. The objective of the study was to describe spatial patterns and dynamic changes of the regional landscape of Shenzhen in the past 20 years. Based on MSS & TM images from 1978, 1986, 1990, 1995 and 1999, a landscape classification map of Shenzhen was constructed. Three kinds of spatial pattern indices, including landscape diversity, spatial configuration and characteristics of patches, as well as a human disturbance index, were examined using models and GIS. In the past two decades, the regional landscape in Shenzhen has changed dramatically, from a typical agricultural landscape to a rapidly urbanizing landscape. The gradual reduction in the cultivated land area and the dramatic increase in the built-up areas illustrate this progress clearly. Indices for the landscape spatial pattern have changed substantially. Some of the changes, reflecting the reasonable control of urban planning on the regional landscape, are the consequence of careful planning, but many of them are the result of disordered human disturbances that have occurred during the rapid urbanization process. These findings are helpful to future landscape development and land-use planning.