Monitoring Wetland Changes both Outside and Inside Reclamation Areas for Coastal Management of the Northern Liaodong Bay, China

Seaward reclamation and landward reclamation are the main driving forces for significant changes of landscape patterns in coastal zones. Using Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information System (GIS), this study took the northern area of Liaodong Bay as a case study to reveal shoreline changes to wetlands and to delineate coastal wetland loss and landscape succession both outside and inside reclamation areas. Results showed that: 1) Shoreline change fell into three stages: slow accretion (1977–1985), fast erosion (1985–1993) and rapid advancement (1993–2002, 2002–2014). 2) Reclamation has converted 85% of natural coastal wetlands into artificial coastal wetlands and non-wetland, causing significant wetland fragmentation. 3) The traditional landscape succession over nearly four decades went from natural coastal wetlands to inland halophytes/reed swamps to aquaculture ponds/cultivated lands and then to built-up areas. Due to advanced reclamation technologies, the successional process was simplified and the time was shortened. The accelerated industrialization and urbanization following economic reforms and population growth have greatly affected landscape succession through the increase of artificial coastlines and built-up areas. It is our anticipation that this work can provide valuable information for the management and conservation of the coastal zone in the future.