Spatio-temporal analysis of vegetation cover in the Pánuco River Basin, Mexico

The effects of climate change have caused vegetation cover alterations that negatively impact the health of ecosystems. Studying vegetation cover in hydrological basins helps detect risk areas and promote reforestation programmes to mitigate the impact on ecosystems. This paper analyses the dynamics and trends of vegetation cover in the Pánuco River Basin in eastern Mexico using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) satellite images from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). For the analysis, data from the product MOD13Q1 were used. Between 2000 and 2015, the NDVI showed a significant positive trend, while in 2016–2024, a significant negative trend was observed. At the regional level, in April, the vegetation cover showed improvements in almost the entire study area, while in September, the vegetation cover remained unchanged. Regions with negative trends were identified in the north and east of the Sierra Madre Oriental.