Characterization of the coastal geomorphology and its associated vegetation cover, through remote sensors, in the Bay of Buenaventura, Valle del Cauca

Abstract

This research was made between La Bocana and Punta Limones in the municipality of Buenaventura (Valle del Cauca) and describes the geomorphology and vegetation coverage along 95.61 km of the Pacific coast of Colombia using airborne remote sensing Light Detection and Ranging – LiDAR and satellite imagery and the products derived from it. Geomorphologically the territory is divided almost equally between coastal plains and hills and ridges, being slightly above the coastal plains with 53.06 % of the total studied area (5637.56 ha), which in turn it constitutes: flat plains with halophyte vegetation, floodplains, non-vegetated intertidal platforms, and in lesser proportion coastal lagoons and beaches; on the first two geoforms predominates the mangrove forests and on the last one predominates the herbaceous. The hills and ridges (46.93 %) are also present in the dense forests of high land and not flooded ferns. In general, the most abundant vegetation cover is dense forest land with over a 44.94 % (3690.47 ha) of coverture, followed by mangrove 37.65 % (3092.54 ha). The idea of linking geomorphology with the vegetation cover surges