New Delhi: Satellite-based environmental monitoring has revealed signs of Uttarakhand Vegetation Decline, highlighting climate sensitivity, seasonal resilience, and growing ecological concern across Himalayan mountain ecosystems.
Mountain ecosystems are particularly sensitive to climate change, which exacerbates global risks and disasters.
Climate change significantly affects global average surface temperatures, alters precipitation patterns, and influences vegetation dynamics, underscoring the importance of localised monitoring at various spatial and temporal scales.
Google Earth Engine (GEE), a global platform that processes vast amounts of satellite data, is widely used for environmental monitoring and Earth observation, including studies of land degradation, soil and dust dynamics, urban growth, temperature changes, and health. It simplifies large-scale analysis by reducing data preprocessing and storage needs.
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Researchers from the Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES), Nainital – an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) – along with collaborators from India and abroad, used GEE to track Uttarakhand’s vegetation between 2001 and 2022, alongside pollution and climate responses.
The team used the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) to analyse vegetation changes over time.
Uttarakhand Vegetation Decline Observed Through Satellite Monitoring
The research team led by Dr Umesh Dumka from ARIES, along with international collaborators, published their findings in Environmental Monitoring and Assessment (a Springer Nature publication).
The results revealed patterns of climate sensitivity, seasonal resilience, and emerging ecological stress.
Lower NDVI values correspond to barren areas such as rock, sand, water, exposed soils, or snow, while higher NDVI values indicate dense green vegetation, including forests, croplands, and wetlands.
The Uttarakhand vegetation decline study also analysed the Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), which is similar to NDVI but offers improved sensitivity in high-biomass regions, along with climate variables and their relationships across Uttarakhand in northern India.
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Uttarakhand Vegetation Decline: Spatial and Time-Series Plots Generated using GEE
Spatial and time-series plots generated using GEE were employed to analyse trends across the region, while Pearson’s correlation method assessed the influence of climate variables on NDVI and EVI.
The results showed that NDVI and EVI values are highest after the monsoon season and lowest before it, with clear monthly, seasonal, and yearly variations. However, over the last two decades, these natural vegetation cycles have begun to shift.
Researchers observed declining vegetation trends linked to deforestation, agricultural expansion, illegal logging, and increasing pollution from urban and industrial sources.
Uttarakhand Vegetation Decline: Climate-Related Stress
The findings suggest pollution affects vegetation unevenly, intensifying climate-related stress in certain locations.
These environmental changes threaten biodiversity, water resources, and the ecological balance that millions of downstream populations depend on.
The study highlights how modern satellite science can function as an early-warning system, helping policymakers and communities identify areas where intervention is most urgently required.
Publication link: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10661-025-14804-x
https://scienmag.com/google-earth-engine-insights-on-uttarakhands-vegetation-dynamics/
