Large scale land use changes leading to deforestation has attracted attention since the mid-19^th century as the process is associated with issues related to global warming, consequent climate changes, alteration of biogeochemical cycles, alterations in the regional hydrological cycles, loss of endemic biodiversity apart from impacting the livelihood of the native population. Field research was undertaken in conjunction with the use of multi-resolution remote sensing data to assess the changes in the land use with the implementation of a thermal power project. This paper focuses on a land use land cover changes that have occurred due to the establishment of a 1200 MW power plant at Padubidri in the coastal district of Udupi, Karnataka. The results indicate that the vegetation has decreased from 8.1 (2003) to 4.24% (2011) while the area under built-up has increased from 5.26 to 8.1%.

Keywords: land use dynamics, thermal power plant, greenhouse gas (GHG)