Remote Sensing for Shifting Cultivation Land Evaluation: An Idea of Maintaining Local Wisdom in West Papua

Abstract

Abstract This research emerged from an idea concern for the activities shifting cultivation (SC) of local communities in West Papua and was enriched by a review of articles. SC is currently experiencing rapid change due to population growth, climate anomalies, focus on market-oriented and industrial agriculture, and plantation land development. SC remains an important component for ethnic minority groups in the tropics. The research methods used were Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)-based photogrammetry methods and spatial analysis using GIS. The research stages include (1) Aerial Photography of SC Land, beginning with a site survey. The preparation phase includes selecting flight locations, planning flight paths, configuring flight altitude and image overlap, conducting aerial photography, and processing drone imagery. (2) Spatial Analysis of SC Land, which involves visual image interpretation, ground checking for validation, digitization, and calculating the land area of each SC field. The research results were obtained: 1). The average annual rainfall during the period 1992 to 2022 was 2804.4 mm; 2) During the period 2005 to 2019, the average area of dryland rice harvest was 251.7 hectares, production was 597.4 tons and productivity was 2.3 tons/ha, which continued to decrease from 2016; 3) An identification of the SC distribution in 2023, the smallest SC area opened was 0.01 hectares and the largest was 4.9 hectares. The average SC area of the locals was 0.6 hectares. In 2024, the smallest area of SC opened was 0.01 hectares and the largest was 11.2 hectares. The average SC area of the locals was 0.7 hectares. SC was found with a short fallow period and extended from fairly flat areas to hills and sloping areas. Land evaluation can be done by identifying sites, evaluation soil characteristics and determining land suitability for food production in SC using remote sensing technology. This activity is expected to maintain SC land sustainably.

Access to Document

Other files and links

• Link to publication in Scopus
• Open Access Version Available

Fingerprint