Global terrestrial Human Footprint maps for 1993 and 2009

Citations Over TimeTop 1% of 2016 papers

Abstract

Remotely-sensed and bottom-up survey information were compiled on eight variables measuring the direct and indirect human pressures on the environment globally in 1993 and 2009. This represents not only the most current information of its type, but also the first temporally-consistent set of Human Footprint maps. Data on human pressures were acquired or developed for: 1) built environments, 2) population density, 3) electric infrastructure, 4) crop lands, 5) pasture lands, 6) roads, 7) railways, and 8) navigable waterways. Pressures were then overlaid to create the standardized Human Footprint maps for all non-Antarctic land areas. A validation analysis using scored pressures from 3114×1 km(2) random sample plots revealed strong agreement with the Human Footprint maps. We anticipate that the Human Footprint maps will find a range of uses as proxies for human disturbance of natural systems. The updated maps should provide an increased understanding of the human pressures that drive macro-ecological patterns, as well as for tracking environmental change and informing conservation science and application.

Related Papers

• Analysis on the Development Trends and Influence Factors of Ecological Footprint in Lanzhou City(2008)
• Application of Ecological Footprint Method to Studying Circular Economic Quantification——A Case Study of Wenzhou in 2002(2005)
• Jiangxi's Ecological Footprint and Regional Disparities in 2004(2006)
• Dynamic Calculation and Analysis of the Ecological Footprint in China between 1949 and 2008(2011)
• → Evaluation on Ecological Sustainability in Gansu Province Based on a Three-Dimensional Ecological Footprint Model(2022)