An evaluation of the resources of the Mosquitia Region of Honduras by means of Remote Sensing and GIS

1997The Mosquitia Region of Honduras is part of the largest wilderness area in Central\ud America. In terms of biodiversity the area is rich in ecosystems including pine savannas,\ud tropical rain forests, and wetlands. These ecosystems are rich in millions of species\ud including rare and endangered. Honduras faces an economic, social, and political crisis\ud without precedent in its history. A lot of the crisis has to do with resource allocation and\ud land tenure. Most of the land well suited for agriculture is concentrated in a few hands.\ud The Mosquitia Region is seen as the last frontier by thousands of landless farmers\ud coming from the poor and eroded lands of southern Honduras. This study evaluates the\ud impact of deforestation due to subsistence and extensive agriculture in the areas around\ud and inside the Mosquitia Region by means of remote sensing and GIS. A change\ud detection analysis is carried out for the years of 1965, 1986-89, and 1995 using land use\ud maps, topographic maps, and LANDSAT TM data. In addition the study examines the\ud relationship between proximity to rivers and deforestation. The study concludes that\ud significant and accelerated change is taking place in the study region, and that there is a\ud linear relationship between proximity to rivers and deforestation