Abstract: On the basis of remotely sensed land use data in 1980,1995 and 2000, we quantitatively analyzed the characteristics of the spatio-temporal distribution of land use/cover changes (LUCC) in the Jialingjiang River Basin by using GIS technical platform and establishing index model. Furthermore, we analyzed the driving forces of the LUCC in detail. Results show that farmland, forest and grassland were major land covers in the studied area, and the conversion among the three was the major pattern of land use change. During the period from 1980 to 2000, farmland and forest decreased initially and increased afterwards; grassland increased initially and then decreased; land for construction showed an ever-increasing trend; other land use types were in small change. The analysis showed that natural factor, economy, population, macro-policy and large-scale projects were the main driving forces of LUCC in the studied area. All the factors restricted each other and then affected the land use patterns.

Key words: Jialingjiang River Basin, land use/cover change, index model, driving force