SERIESOF LAND USE-LAND COVER MAPS OF IRAQ SCALE OF 1:250000SINGAR QUADRANGLE SHEET NJ-37-16

Abstract

The map area is located in the northwesternpart of Iraq, near the Iraqi-Syrianborder.The map areaisgenerally characterizedby flat terrain dissected bynumerous valleys in addition to main outstanding feature of SinjarMountain, which includesJabalGoulat and JabalJeribe.This report describes a study that was carried out to perform Land Use-Land CoverMap (LULCM) of Sinjar Quadrangles Sheet No. NJ-37-16, at scaleof 1:250 000 by implemented two methods:(1) indices and supervised classification using Landsat 8 OLI satellite image 23/09/2015 and (2) classification procedure; that was developed by USGS and modified by Remote Sensing Division team of GEOSURV-IRAQ. The LULCM of the map area has produced depending on the classification of each pixel of Landsat 8 OLI image to be assigned to one of the six main LULC classes, in addition to image indices. Some classes were modified and interpolated after supervised classification using GIS software, because of the interference between these classes in some places on the map area, or as a result of occurrence of scattered pixels for any of these classes with other classes. LULCMwasproducedaccording tothe maximum Likelihood classifications (ML) of Landsat 8 OLI images and the indices using ENVI V. 5.1 and ERDAS imaging V. 2014. These images classified intofiveclasses.The LULC raster image is converted to vector structure, using ArcGIS V.10 program in order toproduce a digital LULCM. Fivetypes of LULChaverecognized in the map area, these are:Urban and built up area Class, vegetated landclass,agricultural- non vegetatedlandagricultural- non vegetated land,which is further subdivided into:cultivated land and harvested subclass.Barrenland class,which is further subdivided into:bare exposed rocks,which subdivided to sedimentary rocks (carbonate and other clasitcsrocks), mixed barren land, bare soil and gypcrete.. Finally, Burned Land class was recognized in the map area.