Assessment of Spatial Patterns of Backyard Shacks Using Landscape Metrics

Urban informality in developing economies like South Africa takes two forms: freestanding shacks are built in informal settlements, and backyard shacks are built in the yard of a formal house. The latter is evident in established townships around South African cities. In contrast to freestanding shacks, the number of backyard shacks has increased significantly in recent years. The study assessed the spatial patterns of backyard shacks in a formal settlement containing low-cost government houses (LCHs) using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) products and landscape metrics. The backyard shacks were mapped using Object-Based Image Analysis (OBIA), which uses height information, vegetation index, and radiometric values. We assessed the effectiveness of rule-based and Random Forest (RF) OBIA techniques in detecting formal and informal structures. Informal structures were further classified as backyard shacks using spatial analysis. The spatial patterns of backyard shacks were assessed using eight shapes, aggregation, and landscape metrics. The analysis of the shape metrics shows that the backyard shacks are primarily square, as confirmed by a higher shape index value and a lower fractional dimension index value. The contiguity index of backyard shack patches is 0.6. The values of the shape metrics of backyard shacks were almost the same as those of formal and informal dwelling structures. The values of the assessed aggregation metrics of backyard shacks were more distinct from formal and informal structures compared with the shape metrics. The aggregation metrics show that the backyard shacks are less connected, less dense, and more isolated from each other compared with formal and freestanding shacks. The Shannon’s Diversity Index and Simpson’s Evenness Index values of informal settlements and formal areas with backyard shacks are almost the same. The results achieved in this study can be used to understand and manage informality in formal settlements.