An Assessment of Mining Activities Impact on Vegetation in Bukuru Jos Plateau State Nigeria Using Normalized Differential Vegetation Index (NDVI)

Abstract

The study area has a pathetic and deplorable condition of landuse/ landcover. The vegetal cover in the area has to be removed from the activities of tin mining which consequently resulted into adverse environmental effect such as erosion. Different forms of human induced stress such as tin mining and heavy rainfall have severely degraded soils on the Jos Plateau. Such degradation problems are also caused by deforestation, inappropriate farming system, bush burning and over-grazing which are hostile to the environment. The impact of tin mining has greatly affected the natural ecology of the study area Bukuru. Micro and macro organisms and plants have been stripped off their natural habitat due to tin mining activities. This paper therefore, assesses the mining activities impact on the vegetation in Bukuru area of Jos plateau in Nigeria. Normalized Differential Vegetation Index (NDVI) techniques was adopted to Maps effect of tin mining on the vegetation for the period between 1975 and 2007 using LandSat satellite data. The result of the differential vegetation index analysis reveals a decline in vegetated surfaces in 1986 ranging from 0.04 to 0.58 indicating 0.05 and continuous loss in vegetation over the study area in 2007 (vegetated surface decrease by 0.08 between 1986 and 2007). The decrease in vegetated surface is due to intensive mining and cultivation.