Asian Review of Environmental and Earth Sciences

Land change dynamics was studied and analyzed across the plains of Metropolitan Ilorin between 1986 and 2010. A statistical sampling design, Landsat satellite data and Geographical Information System tools were used to efficiently identify patterns of land conversion. Variability of change ranged from approximately 2 percent to greater than 50 percent, and progressed at an uneven pace. Indicative of the changes is a sequence of agricultural expansion before 1986 followed by widespread conversion to built up area by 2000 and beyond. Pattern and magnitude of conversions influenced by contextual conditions of land quality, population increase, plus economic and policy drivers. The sporadic expansion of settlements, especially the built up areas in and around the study area, resulted in rapid diminishing and conversion of other land cover types to more built up environment and thus aaccentuating urban agglomeration of Ilorin. It is recommended that various Government regulatory authorities embark on careful urban planning by strickly allocating land for various designated purposes and ensure continous monitoring of physical developments so as to safeguard distortions to the urban environment of Ilorin.