DefinePK

Abstract

The present study is focused on District Orakzai; it is located on the north western part of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The main objective of this research is to analyze the impact of population growth on forest cover in District Orakzai. Satellite images are downloaded from the USGS Earth Explorer. The images were classified using supervised classification methods. The Population data is collected from census reports. Due to unavailability, the 1985 population data is projected based on 1981 data. Similarly, the 2010 population data is projected based on 1998 data, which was also used to estimate the 2000 population. The 2017 population data is estimated based on 2020 data, as the actual data for 2017 is not available. The classification is divided into three periods: 1985 to 2000, 2000 to 2010, and 2010 to 2020. The overall images are classified into five different classes, showing the various land use and land cover in the region. In the first period, 1985, there was a rapid decrease in forest cover. The land use and land cover classification of 1985 showed barren land covering 55.30% of the region, built-up areas at 1%, agricultural land at 6.82%, forest cover at 8.56%, and water bodies covering 28.72%. Moving on to the year 2000, barren land comprised 11.2% of the area, agricultural land at 3.34%, built-up areas at 4%, forest cover at 11.27%, and water bodies covering 4.1%. The classified image from 2000 showed a significant loss of forest cover due to population growth. In the third period, 2010, the forest cover began to increase compared to the other periods. The total area covered by forest was 45.8%, built-up areas at 10.25%, barren land at 16.32%, agricultural land at 16.32%, and water bodies at 3.37%. During this time, people from District Orakzai migrated to other districts due to military operations by Pakistan. Some tribes living in the area were also displaced, leading to the slow cutting of forests. However, in the last period, 2020, the population continued to migrate to District Orakzai. The forest cover decreased with barren land occupying 4.71% of the area, agricultural land at 5.8%, built-up areas at 76%, forest cover at 3.32%, and water bodies covering 11%.
It is concluded that the results above clearly demonstrate a decrease in forest cover over time, as well as an increase in population in the region. The majority of people are using firewood, which is not only being used but also transported to different areas. However, agricultural land expanded, highlighting the complex interplay between demographic, economic, and environmental factors shaping the district's landscape.