Abstract:
Ghana's oil discovery is surrounded by very poor local communities whose primary sources of income are farming and fishing. Evidence from other countries shows that massive land alterations and degradation occurs after the discovery and exploration of oil and gas, which undermine traditional means of livelihood. The purpose of the study was to assess the impact of oil and gas production on land use land cover in the Ellembelle district. Landsat images for the years 2000, 2010 and 2021 were acquired to model the land use land cover changes before and after the production of oil and gas using spatial analystic tools in GIS software. For effective data collection, different but complementary instruments, which included household questionnaires, in-dept interview guide and observation check list were adopted for the study. The findings of the study revealed that the rate of LULC change was intense in the second time interval (2010-2021), indicating that land transformations in Ellembelle district were becoming increasingly intensive since the production of oil and gas in the district. Oil and gas activities, population growth, urbanisation, and farming activities were identified as the major drivers of LULCC in the district. The locals see the oil and gas industry as having affected their livelihood both positively and negatively. The assessment of some basic infrastructures shows that road networks, communication sector, Education and banking institutions as well as electricity and water supply have seen a facelift in the district. However same cannot be said about the health and cultural institutions. The study recommended that there is the need to undertake an integrated urban planning framework for Ellembelle district.
