Land Use Change and Intensification in Papua New Guinea 1975–1996

Land use intensity mapping of Papua New Guinea (circa 1975) has been updated to 1996 and analysed with respect to changes in area, population distribution and preferred environments for land use. Although the rural population has increased approximately 50 per cent over that time, the area of village land use has expanded only 11 per cent. Those environments that were most preferred for village agriculture in 1975 have tended to experience proportionately greater population increase over the period 1975–96 than elsewhere.