Abstract
Climate can affect and be affected by changes in land cover (the physical features that cover the land such as trees or pavement) and land use (human management and activities on land, such as mining or recreation). A forest, for instance, would likely include tree cover but could also include areas of recent tree removals currently covered by open grass areas. Land cover and use are inherently coupled: changes in land-use practices can change land cover, and land cover enables specific land uses. Understanding how land cover, use, condition, and management vary in space and time is challenging.
Citation
Sleeter, B.M.; Loveland, T.; Domke, G.; Herold, N.; Wickham, J.; Wood, N. 2018. Land Cover and Land-Use Change. In: Reidmiller, D.R.; Avery, C.W.; Easterling, D.R.; Kunkel, K.E.; Lewis, K.L.M.; Maycock, T.K.; Stewart, B.C., eds. 2018. Impacts, Risks, and Adaptation in the United States: Fourth National Climate Assessment, Volume II. Washington, DC: U.S. Global Change Research Program. pp. 202–231. http://doi.org/10.7930/NCA4.2018.CH5.
