Diachronic Analysis of Land Use/Land Cover Impacts on Carbon Storage in Agadir City (Morocco)

The present study aims to evaluate and monitor the impact of urban expansion occurring between 1984 and 2019 in Agadir city—Morocco, on soil carbon storage. Landsat images acquired in 1984 and 2019 were processed and used to map and assess land use/land cover (LULC) change in the study area. In addition, the Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Tradeoffs (InVEST) model was used to map and quantify the soil carbon storage change during the same period. The results show a strong relationship between urban expansion and the carbon storage rate. Furthermore, a noticeable decrease in carbon stored from 1984 to 2019 was identified due to the conversion pattern from vegetation cover (e.g., grasslands and woodlands) to urban lands. Consequently, preserving and increasing green spaces within the study area are necessary to improve soil productivity and mitigate the negative impacts of LULC change on the local climate.