Geospatial assessment of effect of urbanization on natural drainage in a medium-sized town of Akure, Nigeria

Abstract

Article highlights Urbanization process has transformed morphological characteristics of drainage systems, and obliterated some streams, thereby impacting the wetland systems in the area. Processed Satellite imageries provides reliable extracts of changes in length of drainage systems in the study area overtime. Erosion processes, exacerbated by encroachment of built-up areas into stream channel corridors responsible for the morphological alterations of the streams. The reduction in the carrying capacity of the streams gave an insight to one of the causes of incessant flooding in some parts of the study area as observed by some authors.

Keywords

• Urbanization
• Akure
• Land use change
• Natural drainage network
• Stream morphology
• Geographical information system