TITLE:
Spatiotemporal Assessment of Landslide-Induced Vegetation Dynamics Using Landsat Satellite Imagery (NDVI), Mount Rinjani, Indonesia (2018-2026)
AUTHORS:
Bubacarr Jawla, Faye Jerreh Manneh, Yesenia Zabrina Maharani Yaffa Hardianto
KEYWORDS:
NDVI, Landslide, Vegetation Recovery, Landsat, Remote Sensing, Earthquake Disturbance
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Environmental Protection,
Vol.17 No.5,
May
21,
2026
ABSTRACT: Landslides are major natural hazards in mountainous regions, frequently triggered by earthquakes and causing significant vegetation loss and long-term ecological degradation. This study evaluates the impact of the 2018 earthquake-triggered landslides on vegetation dynamics in Mount Rinjani National Park (MRNP), Indonesia, using multi-temporal Landsat 8 and 9 Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) data from April 2018 to February 2026. NDVI values were extracted from two landslide-affected sites, the Central Rinjani site and the East Rinjani site, to analyze vegetation degradation and recovery across growing and non-growing seasons. A total of 341 statistically significant correlations were identified before multiple-comparison correction, with 281 retained after Benjamini-Hochberg false discovery rate adjustment (q -1 growing season; +0.0036 NDVI·yr-1 non-growing season), while the East Rinjani site showed higher growing-season NDVI (mean = 0.592 vs. 0.540), likely due to more favourable local moisture conditions. Pre-disturbance NDVI was positively associated with recovery trajectories, indicating its value as a predictor of post-disturbance regeneration. However, NDVI values remained below pre-disturbance levels by February 2026, suggesting incomplete ecological recovery. These findings highlight the effectiveness of Landsat NDVI for monitoring post-landslide vegetation dynamics and underscore the need for continued long-term observation.