HIGHER EDUCATION AND REGIONAL TRANSFORMATION: GEOSPATIAL INSIGHTS INTO URBAN GROWTH AROUND UITM BERTAM
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35631/IJMOE.831122Keywords:
GIS, Higher Education, Land Use Land Cover Change, Urban TransformationAbstract
This study examines land use and land cover (LULC) transformation surrounding Universiti Teknologi MARA Cawangan Pulau Pinang (UiTMCPP) Bertam Campus within the broader regional development of North Seberang Perai, Penang. Using Geographic Information System (GIS) and remote sensing techniques, multi-temporal Landsat images from 1999, 2009 and 2019 were analysed to identify land use and land cover changes within 5 km and 10 km radii surrounding the campus. Results indicate substantial growth in developed land, increasing from 7.25% to 37.60% within the 5 km radius and from 8.15% to 36.71% within the 10 km radius over twenty years. These changes were accompanied by reductions in several agricultural and vegetated land-cover classes. Supplementary visual comparison of Google Earth historical imagery from 2019 and 2026 further showed continued land transformation east and northeast of the campus. The findings indicate that the growth surrounding UiTMCPP Bertam Campus occurred within a broader regional transformation involving educational, residential, commercial, healthcare, and infrastructure development. The findings suggest that higher education institutions may function as one of several development anchors within a rapidly transforming regional environment. However, the observed reduction in agricultural and vegetated land highlights the importance of integrating sustainable land management considerations into future regional planning.
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