GIS, Remote Sensing and Ecosystem Service Modelling … · Dr Katie Medcalf CEnv Environment Director: Environment Systems GIS, Remote Sensing and Ecosystem Service Modelling –

Dr Katie Medcalf CEnv

Environment Director: Environment Systems

www.envsys.co.uk

GIS, Remote Sensing and

Ecosystem Service Modelling –useful tools for the ecologist.

CIEEM Welsh Section Meeting Aberystwyth University

24th February 2014

Leading edge environmental & geographic information consultancy & services

The Issue

More need for complete habitat / land cover data than ever before

Wales

Environment

White Paper

Biodiversity 20/20 Targets

NEA Ecosystem Approach

More pressure on our land


Knowledge of our habitats and how they function

Making EO work for UK biodiversity

http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/page-5563


Ecosystems approach?

$Economic

SocietyEnvironment

The ecosystem approach

© CoPE

Pro

vis

ion

ing

Cu

ltu

ral

Reg

ula

tin

g

Supporting


• Place based approach to ecosystem service mapping and opportunities analysis

looking at the contribution of each individual area of land.

SENCE: Our ApproachSpatial Evidence for Natural Capital Evaluation

• Use expert knowledge and local knowledge to weight data layers, which

combined characterise a service. (Rule base)

http://jncc.defra.gov.uk/page-6241


Regulation of Water Runoff and Flow


Using satellite imagery and air

photography to map habitats

• Remote sensing and

habitat mapping can

be traditional – using

aerial photographs

maps.google.co.uk

• But there is much

more information in

satellite images


How does Remote Sensing work

- Electromagnetic radiation from the Sun is reflected off the

surface, straight to the sensor

1000 w/m2

267 w/m2

Surface Reflectance = 1000 / 267

= 0.267 %

- Measured radiance at sensor = percentage of

reflectance by surface material


Productivity is related to NIR light and leaf

properties

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

400 500 600 700 800 900%

Re

fle

cta

nc

e

Wavelength (nm)

Health

y Leaf

Leaf

With

Rust

Soil


Seeing the world differently

Ref: Lillesand and Kiefer, 2004

Satellite resolution images slide

SPOT NIR/SWIR/Green (10m resolution)Landsat NIR/SWIR/Green (30m resolution)

World View RGB 1.84 m resolution bands

Data used

Anguilla classification

Urban maskHabitat

Main Habitats

Sub-Types

Fuzzy Gradations

Subdivide bySoil Type

Imagery

BeachHigh NIRHigh RedMed NDVI

IronshoreMed-High NIRHigh RedMed-Low NDVI

PondLow NIRLow SWIRLow NDVI

MangroveMed-Low SWIRMed-Low RedNDVI range

Limestone ScrubMed SWIR

Limestone ThicketHigh SWIR

Dry ForestMed-High ShadeNDVI differenceHigh SWIR/NIR

Scrub w. CactiHigh SWIRMed NDVIMed NIR

Scattered ScrubHigh StDev Red

Limestone PmentLow ShadeMid-High RedLow SWIR/NIR

Dune ScrubProximity to Beach

Dune ThicketProximity to Beach

Scrub with Thicket CharacteristicsFuzzy

Thicket with Dry Forest CharacteristicsRelaxed thresholds

Dune Scrub with Thicket CharacteristicsFuzzy

Agriculture &Bare Ground

AgricultureMed-High RedMed NDVILow SWIR/NIR

Bare GroundHigh RedHigh NIRMed NDVI

AnthropogenicVery High RedLow NDVI

Overlap with thematic layer: mineral soils

Coast

Habitat Map


Habitat mapping in Wales: Gwylio Project

Wales mapping• Wales wide coverage

• Uses an image stack of satellite imagery

• CIR aerial photography

• Existing habitat data to update the Phase 1 habitat map (137 classes)

Original Phase 1 data set from field work in the 1990’s

New Phase 1 data set from satellite imagery


Updating the Phase 1 habitat Map

Merging the new data and the old to get the

best possible project

Understanding

The context of the habitats,

their plant assemblages and

characteristic appearance in

remote sensing terms

Object Based Image Analysis (OBIA) Productivity,

heterogeneity, seasonal change, position in landscape,

characteristic reflectance values


CHECKS AND ADJUSTMENTS

Checking conifer v broadleaved woodland

Checking scarce habitats

Producing thematic layer

Separating of map and boundary layers

Review by CCW staff

Simplifying and streamlining output

Adopting old lowland grassland boundaries

Comparing habitat distribution with Phase 1

MAP PREPARATION

Satellite Map

Cleaning up hedges

Checking steep north-facing slopes

Checking cloud shadows

Checking project edges

Stitching 49 projects into 15 blocks

DELIVERABLES

GIS Data

Sample stack

Web Mapping

Posters

Cu

sto

me

rs

& P

art

ners

Map

Data Fusion

Iteration 1

Map

Data Fusion

Iteration 2

Map

Data Fusion

Iteration 3

Minimising habitat mosaic labels

Manual edits

Contracted out


TRADITIONAL SURVEY METHOD SATELLITE - SURVEY METHOD

Image Stack

March 2014

July 2014

April 2015

Planning field visit

Field survey

Digitising map


Field survey

Digitising map


Field survey

Digitising map


Field survey

Digitising map

Expert checking (entire map)

Mosaicing sheets from different surveyors

Publication

Customers

& Partners

Satellite Image Analysis

Map data fusion

Updating GIS / web

Customers

& Partners

Feedback / Citizen science

Map Evidence Base

Image – Image

Change detection

Field survey

LANDSAT 8 (NASA),

Sentinel (ESA)

+ other sensors

Expert checking (field)

Possibly contracted out

FR

EE


MA

P (

PO

INT,V

EC

TO

R)

DA

TA

IMA

GE

(R

AS

TE

R)

DA

TA

Map Evidence Base

Customers

& Partners

Map data fusion

Updating GIS / web

NRW expert quality control

Image – Image

Change detection

Image Analysis

Optical Imagery

March 2014

July 2014

April 2015

EnMAP

Hyperspectral

Air Photos

2006

2008

2014

UAV Imagery

NEXTmap

Height Data

Radar Imagery

March 2014

July 2014

April 2015

Habitat

Field Survey

Habitat

Monitoring

OS Mastermap,

Soils, Geology

Landmap

Monitoring

Open Access

Updates

Glastir

Monitoring

Airborne

Hyperspectral

Airborne

LIDAR

FR

EE

sate

llit

e d

ata

FE

ED

BA

CK

via

we

b m

ap

pin

g t

oo

ls /

ap

ps

FR

EE

fro

m w

ale

s P

SM

A

NFI Forest

Inventory

Harvesting and

Planting data


Conclusions

EO is a useful part of the environmental analysis tool box.

But:

It is not magic and we should not be treated as a total solution

• Habitat maps from remote sensing cannot be produced without field work

• Habitats maps from remote sensing cannot be produced without ecologist / a great understanding of ecological and habitat processes

• We need to build a knowledgeable user base rather than over promise

• RS products are not direct equivalent of field work products – they need to be understood and used well

Gwylio data Making EO Work for UK

Biodiversity Phase 3

Opportunities

• EO is already a useful tool, as future data

availability increases (e.g. the Sentinel

satellites) potential for its use is going to

grow

• We as field ecologist need to accept the

challenge of these methods and use them

to increase efficiency – the ecosystem

approach calls for more and better data in

order to help preserve the environment,

our culture and our economy

• Remote Sensing is a Useful tool which

will help us map, monitor and model our

habitats into the future


Thank You

[email protected]

Documents

GIS, Remote Sensing and Ecosystem Service Modelling … · Dr Katie Medcalf CEnv Environment Director: Environment Systems GIS, Remote Sensing and Ecosystem Service Modelling –