Assessing the Impact of Anthropogenic Stressors on Ecosystem Dynamics in the Niger Delta Coastal Area, Nigeria

Authors

  • Mujidat Titilope Taofeek
    Department of Physics, University of Ilorin, Kwara State Nigeria
  • Leke Sunday Adebiyi

Keywords:

Oil spill investigation, sentinel-2 data set, Geophysical method, Fire Outbreaks, Urbanization, Land Cover Classification, Vegetation Indices

Abstract

Anthropogenic stressors, particularly oil pollution, forest fires, and urbanization, are major drivers of ecosystem degradation in the Niger Delta coastal region of Nigeria. This study assessed their impacts on vegetation health by integrating oil spill records from the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) with Sentinel-2 MSI Level-2A imagery. Vegetation condition and disturbance were evaluated using the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Normalized Burn Ratio (NBR), and Normalized Difference Building Index (NDBI), alongside biophysical variables including Leaf Area Index (LAI), Leaf Chlorophyll Content (LCC), Fraction of Vegetation Cover (FCOVER), and Fraction of Absorbed Photosynthetically Active Radiation (FAPAR). Maximum Likelihood Supervised Classification (MLSC) was applied to map land cover and quantify its spatial distribution. Results revealed that oil spills, predominantly caused by sabotage (85%), substantially reduced vegetation greenness, density, and productivity. Fire outbreaks associated with illegal refining further intensified vegetation loss and landscape degradation. Land cover analysis showed that grasslands occupied 33% of the study area, canopy vegetation 30%, non-vegetated and burned land 21%, built-up areas 12%, and freshwater bodies 5%. The integration of Sentinel-2 imagery, biophysical variables, and oil spill records provided a robust framework for monitoring the cumulative effects of multiple anthropogenic stressors on ecosystem dynamics. The findings underscore the need for strengthened environmental governance, sustainable vegetation management, and improved oil spill prevention strategies to enhance ecosystem resilience and support environmental restoration in the Niger Delta.

Author Biography

Leke Sunday Adebiyi

Department of Physical Sciences

Academics

Dimensions

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Published

2026-06-22

How to Cite

Assessing the Impact of Anthropogenic Stressors on Ecosystem Dynamics in the Niger Delta Coastal Area, Nigeria (M. T. Taofeek & L. S. Adebiyi, Trans.). (2026). Nigerian Journal of Applied Physics, 2(2), 131-143. https://doi.org/10.62292/njap-v2i2-2026-52

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 2 (2026): Nigerian Journal of Applied Physics - Vol. 2 No. 2

Section

Articles
Copyright & Licensing

Copyright (c) 2026 Mujidat Titilope Taofeek, Leke Sunday Adebiyi

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Assessing the Impact of Anthropogenic Stressors on Ecosystem Dynamics in the Niger Delta Coastal Area, Nigeria (M. T. Taofeek & L. S. Adebiyi, Trans.). (2026). Nigerian Journal of Applied Physics, 2(2), 131-143. https://doi.org/10.62292/njap-v2i2-2026-52