Vegetation Stress Study in Chon-Alai Area Using NDVI, Kyrgyzstan

Agriculture and livestock are the main sectors of Kyrgyzstan"s economy. This makes sustainable pasture and land management critical for human well-being, economic stability, social welfare and ecosystem resilience. Both human-induced and natural factors play a key role in the sustainability issues of rural mountainous communities in Kyrgyzstan that rely heavily on land resources. This study focuses predominantly on finding a linear relationship between NDVI and climatic variables such as air temperature, land surface temperature and precipitation. This helps to understand the seasonal and inter-annual behavior and dynamics of the vegetative characteristics. The secondary goal of this research is to prepare land cover classification for the Doorot-Korgon area in Chon-Alai District. Overall, the implications of this study are directed towards the general understanding of interaction between terrestrial ecosystems and climate change. The study encompassed two time periods (1993-1996 and 2000-2003). A linear relation and positive correlation coefficient was found only in two years (1994 and 2003) which is not sufficient for establishing a significant annual trend between NDVI and climatic variables. However, a seasonal trend was found. As a rule, the lowest NDVI values are observed in May, reaching its peak at the end of July and/or the beginning of August and decreasing in the middle or end of September. In addition, a trend was found in NDVI values over the last five years in the Daroot Korgon area, there is an inter-annual even distribution of values without any sharp fluctuations and variations. Acknowledgement: Financial support for this research project comes from PEER NAS USAID.