Impacts of Gemstone Mining on Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) and Species Diversity

Gemstone mining involves the removal of vegetation and soil, which disrupts the flow of ecosystem services and leads to inevitable and often permanent conflicts related to land use/land cover (LULC) and species diversity. Addressing these conflicts, this study uses Komu gemstone mining areas as a case study. A Digital Terrain Model (DTM) was created using a pair of images collected by a satellite to generate surface analysis models with the help of ArcGIS 10.3 software. Landsat satellite imagery for the years 1990, 2000, 2010, and 2020, sourced from the United States Geological Survey (USGS), was adopted to examine LULC changes. The species diversity was studied using the quadrats method, which involved constructing wire square frames of size 0.25 m² that were later divided into equal quadrats of size 5 by 5 cm. The DTM indicated that the peak elevation on the sites was 31.5 m, whereas the lowest point was 20.5 m above the reference level. The surface assessment of the investigation site demonstrates that Komu Community is an elevated locality with a gradual-to-level gradient, rising 35 meters above mean sea level. The vegetation covered 616.98 km² in 2000 but was reduced to 571.88 km² in 2020, whereas the built-up zone expanded from 57.04 km² to 94.44 km² in 2000 and 2020, respectively. The area covered by water was 0.06 km² in 1990; however, by 2000, it had increased to 16.24 km², fluctuated to 16.65 km² in 2010, and then expanded to 17.33 km² in 2020. However, the species diversity was evaluated to be 0.08, with a complete sum of 293 classifications existing in all the quadrants. The research concluded that the continuous mining of gemstones in the study area is attributable to the incessant degradation of vegetation, increased built-up areas, and water bodies, which negatively impact species diversity.