- English
Despite Bangladesh being one of the leading countries in aquaculture food production
worldwide, there is a considerable lack of updated scientific information about aquaculture
activities in remote sites, making it difficult to manage sustainably. This study explored the
use of geospatial and field data to monitor spatio-temporal changes in aquaculture production
sites in the Satkhira district from 2017–2019. We used Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission
digital elevation model (SRTM DEM) to locate aquaculture ponds based on the terrain
elevation and slope. Radar backscatter information from the Sentinel-1 satellite, and different
water indices derived from Sentinel-2 were used to assess the spatio-temporal extents
of aquaculture areas. An image segmentation algorithm was applied to detect aquaculture
ponds based on backscattering intensity, size and shape characteristics. Our results show
that the highest number of aquaculture ponds were observed in January, with a size of more
than 30,000 ha. Object-based image classification of Sentinel-1 data showed an overall
accuracy above 80%. The key factors responsible for the variation in aquaculture were
investigated using field surveys. We noticed that despite a significant number of aquaculture
ponds in the study area, shrimp production and export are decreasing because of a lack of
infrastructure, poor governance, and lack of awareness in the local communities. The result
of this study can provide in-depth information about aquaculture areas, which is vital for policymakers
and environmental administrators for successful aquaculture management in
Satkhira, Bangladesh and other countries with similar issues.
- English
