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EcoMonitor: Northern Ecosystem Climate Change Monitoring From Space
About GRIP Thematic Areas Lead Departments Events Contact
April, 2009
Climate change is real, and it is affecting the environment and health of Canadians. It also has important consequences for the forest sector and the over 300 Canadian communities whose livelihoods are closely tied to forests. That is why the Government of Canada (GoC) is taking action at home and abroad.
One of the over 300 forest dependent communities
By observing the Earth from space, satellites provide essential information on the environment. Earth Observation (EO) satellites help us monitor and protect our environment, manage our resources, and ensure the safety and security of Canadians. With over 30% of the Earth's total land area covered in forests, it is a notable accomplishment to assess and monitor forest resources. EO from space is the most efficient method for synoptic coverage of forested areas and parameters.
Natural Resource Canada's (NRCAN) Canadian Forest Service (CFS), in close partnership with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) Government Related Initiatives Program (GRIP), has begun a northern ecosystem climate change monitoring (EcoMonitor) project focused upon developing and prototyping EO tools and monitoring protocols to provide the capacity to assess, monitor, and report on the forest areas and plains in northern ecosystems.
The EcoMonitor project: highly detailed Earth observation data on forests and land cover
To enable collection of highly detailed data on forest land cover, surveys were based in the past largely on the interpretation of aerial photography. The use of EO data from space provides precise information over remote and northern areas, with consistency and at a lower cost.
Implementation of this project by CFS through CSA'S GRIP will provide policy makers with information for planning and decision making, and improves the ability to determine status and trends to northern ecosystems. Improved information, based on EO data, content will empower forest and northern community development through improved information for planning and for mitigation of the impacts of climate change. A key outcome will be an enhanced ability for Canada to produce reports characterizing national conditions across all sectors, including the North. The research and development undertaken will result in new information and monitoring abilities for Federal, Provincial, and Territorial agencies.
Forest boundaries and classification maps derived from Earth Observation data
This NRCAN/CFS and CSA/GRIP initiative support multiple GoC strategies and plans, among them: the Northern Strategy, the Northern Resources Development Program, the Science and Technology Strategy and the Vision for Canada's Forests (2008-2018).
Contacts:
About GRIP
CSA's Government Related Initiatives Program (GRIP) fosters the use of Canada's EO space supported missions by the GoC. For more information, please visit the GRIP web site: www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/programs/grip/default.asp.
