Student Razia Taus assessed and analyzed the spatial distribution of greenery in Paramaribo

14 September 2020

We proudly present Razia Taus,

Who successfully completed her master's research in:

"Assessing and Analyzing the Spatial Distribution of Green Spaces in Paramaribo using GIS and Remote Sensing "

Hi, I am Razia Taus and I graduated in September 2020 with an MSc in Sustainable Management of Natural Resources from Anton de Kom University of Suriname. During my graduation research for my MSc thesis, in collaboration with Tropenbos Suriname and the University of Twente, I conducted research into the size and distribution of green areas within large Paramaribo (Paramaribo, Wanica and part of Commewijne).

A classification of urban greenery in Paramaribo has been made using satellite images, a GIS program and field verification. In this case, 8 classes have been distinguished including: Water, built-up area, trees (forest fragments), mangroves, mixed lower vegetation, infrastructure, grass and bare ground. The figure below shows the locations within large Paramaribo where the green areas still exist.

The results indicate that 76.11% of large Paramaribo is covered with greenery (trees, grass, mangrove and mixed vegetation). However, if we look at forest fragments, we see that only 1% of Paramaribo is covered with trees. This is also clearly visible in the figure. At the resort level, this contrast is even more visible. The figure below shows the Weg naar Zee district and the Centrum district, which clearly shows how little greenery is left in the Center of Paramaribo.

We also looked at how the coverage of green areas changed between 2000 and 2019. The results show that 47% of all changes have taken place within 250m of roads. Which is an indicator that roads play an important role when it comes to deforestation and change in vegetation.

The results of this study can be used in the spatial planning of large Paramaribo.

Read more about all student research within this project​