Metrics analysis and evaluation of landscape mosaic changes to monitor the identity of forest monastery green space, Northeast Thailand

Abstract

Forest monasteries are significant Buddhist sites that serve as hubs for ecological services and forest habitats. These monasteries are dispersed throughout urban and community landscapes in Thailand, but have been facing a decline in green space due to land-use changes and urban expansion. This study discussed the assessment of the situation and changes in the structure and pattern of forest monastery green spaces through the application of geo-information technology and principles of landscape ecology. The study classified green and non-green areas in 2022, with proportions of 39.40% and 60.06% respectively. Accuracy and Kappa were 80.21% and 0.92, respectively, reflecting near-perfect agreement. The most significant ecological landscape structures of forest monasteries were green spaces with a core area surrounded by edges, supporting habitats and ecological services, accounting for 19.50% and 10.12%, respectively. These forest monasteries were found across all four settlement patterns: nucleated, linear, dispersed, and isolated, distributed in urban, suburban, and natural areas, each facing different landscape mosaic changes. Forest monasteries located within developed landscapes tended to have lower green space retention and persistence compared to those in agricultural, mixed, and natural landscapes, respectively. However, in terms of maintaining contiguous green spaces, analysis of landscape metrics such as patch area, percentage of landscape, core area, and patch context revealed that Wat Pah Nanachat and Wat Pah Nong Pa Pong had the highest values. These metrics most strongly reflected the green space identity of forest monasteries, even though these monasteries are located in areas undergoing urban development, compared to other forest monasteries. The findings of this research can be used to analyze and assess the green space potential of monasteries dispersed throughout the landscape system. This is helped to understand the dynamics of change in forest monastery green spaces, which must be surrounded by forested areas—an essential cultural landscape element vital to social ecology and contributing are to expand the urban green spaces for future environmental sustainability.