Abstract:

To comprehensively understand the spatiotemporal characteristics and dynamic mechanisms of land-use change and to provide decision-making references for the sustainable management of land resources, this study employed the land-use chain spectrum analysis method integrated with the Geodimeter model on the Google Earth Engine platform to investigate land-use change and its driving mechanisms in Qatar, a gulf country in arid regions. The key conclusions are as follows: From 1995 to 2020, land-use change in Qatar exhibited a reduction in sandy land, continuous expansion of cultivated land and impervious surfaces, and a notable increase in the proportion of sparse vegetation and shrubland. Doha, the capital of Qatar, functioned as a “super expansion center” for impervious surfaces, with its development pattern transitioning from infill expansion to outward expansion, while other port cities demonstrated an alternating expansion mode of infill and outward expansion. Irrigated cultivated land constituted the primary type of cultivated land expansion, forming a dual-axis expansion pattern centered on the northeastern coast and extending toward the northwest and southwest. The expansion of ecological land was dominated by sparse vegetation and shrubland, with 1995—2000 and 2015—2020 serving as the key expansion periods. Spatially, a greening circular structure dominated by sparse vegetation, with the coastal zone as the core, was formed. Shrubland was distributed in clumps owing to resource constraints, with a more prominent agglomeration effect along the eastern coast. Land use change in Qatar exhibited a “dual-track mechanism” characterized by oil- and gas-economy-driven growth coupled with water resource constraints. Specifically, during 1995—2005, population density served as the core driving force; however, after 2005, the driving model shifted to an economic expansion pattern dominated by GDP and the nighttime light index, superimposed with the constraining effect of groundwater resources. For future development, it is essential to strengthen the coordinated development mechanism of “water resource constraint-economic transformation-ecological restoration” and to adopt water-saving technologies as the foundation for achieving a dynamic balance between urban expansion and ecological protection.

Key words: land use, chain-spectrum collaboration, geographical detector, Qatar