Societal Benefit Area Or Transverse Area

GEO 2007 Work Plan MASTER Data Management Task DA-07-02 Task Number Global Land Cover DA-07-02 Provide a suite of global land cover datasets, initially based on improved and Area validated moderate resolution land cover maps and eventually including land- Data Management cover change at high resolution. Relevant Committee UIC

Description of the Work to be Performed This task is an evolution of Task AG-06-03. Main objective is to initiate regular analysis and reporting on land cover change and promulgate the use of these products, especially in developing countries. 1. Advocate existing internationally-agreed approaches to systematic land cover characterization (LCCS) and validation (CEOS protocols): a. Develop a formal mechanism for LCCS feedback and improvements such as a steering committee, and solicit input from a broad spectrum of users b. Foster LCCS documentation and implementation activities (capacity building, translations etc.) c. Advocate the use of CEOS Validation protocol for global land cover maps d. Specify validation protocols for high resolution change and vegetation continuous fields (VCF) 2. Utilize and validate moderate resolution time series data and land cover data sets (i.e. GLOBCOVER, MODIS products) and earlier 1-km resolution maps (i.e. GLC2000, IGBP-DIS) a. Develop and maintain a reference database of sample sites for baseline global validation b. Compile a “best available” multi-source land cover dataset as indicated by the validation dataset: i. Comparative validation and harmonization (more accurate is better) ii. Most suitable estimate for different user communities (more detail is better) iii. Focus on data 2000-present (more recent is better) iv. Integrate new products (GLOBCOVER, MODIS 500) v. Integrate national and regional datasets where appropriate vi. Make available at native and standard resolutions to support a broad set of SBAs c. Preserve and make available historic time series data 3. Formulate specifications and implement production of a global high-resolution land cover and land change data set and report a. Complete a global high resolution land cover map at a minimum of every 5 years, beginning with mid decade (2005) and moving forward and backward in time as the archive of historical satellite imagery permits: i. Define baseline legends using LCCS classifiers 1. User requirements from SBAs ii. Collect and make freely available high resolution input data: 1. Global Landsat 1990, 2000 (existing) + new 1995, 2005, 2010 2. Make available archived ~1995 data 3. Develop a high resolution dataset for mid-decade (circa 2005) building on Geocover dataset GEO 2007 Work Plan MASTER Data Management Task DA-07-02 4. Coordinate 2010 dataset with contributions from available international assets 5. Ensure ongoing collection of suitable observations to support future efforts iii. Develop and implement a validation program iv. Ensure coordination among major existing and evolving programs (GMES, GEO, GLCN, other national cases etc.) b. Complete a global high resolution land cover change map, initially every five years and eventually on an annual basis i. Define legends and product specifications ii. Define validation protocols for land cover change iii. Implement a validation program 4. Set up web-based access to land cover data and associated input data a. Support GEO-NETCAST b. Advocate existing data links to land cover information (GLCF, BU, JRC, EEA etc.) 5. Identify opportunities for applying land cover data in areas related to key societal benefits. a. Linking societal benefits, user needs with observation requirements (IGOL etc.) b. Explore and communicate some early success stories (i.e. UNFCCC-REDD, FRA2010 etc.) 6. Strengthen national level capacities to produce and use these products especially in developing countries a. GOFC-GOLD regional network activities, Global Land Cover Network, bilateral networks etc.: i. Participation in product specification, production and validation ii. Training on accessibility and utilization Output & Deliverables Improved, validated and up-to-date global moderate resolution land cover datasets available for different SBAs Survey of existing land cover datasets and web site data base including technical specifications and access conditions Global land cover maps at high resolution repeated on a five year cycle Definition of community standards for validation of land cover change products Global land cover change maps at high resolution repeated initially on a five year cyle and eventually on an annual basis Living database of land cover validation test sites Specifications and implementation plan for production of high-resolution land-cover and land cover change data products Successful capacity building workshops Calendar (incl. milestones) Date Start Date Milestone Date End

Financial Contributions (from GEO Operations Budget) Complete GEO 2007 Work Plan MASTER Data Management Task DA-07-02 Current Status Oct 06: First draft version of this Task Sheet compiled by the GEO Secretariat. Sep 06: Initial coordination on workshop to be held in December 2006 Apr 07: Workshop of DA-07-02 working group adjacent to NASA LCLUC science team meeting Coordination with other tasks of committees Complete

GEO Member Potential Contributions Portugal INOV: Information systems analysis and algorithms and tools evaluation, development of new tools. IM, through the LSA SAF project and GEOLAND, will commit itself with satellite processing outside EUMETSAT and outside the agencies space connected with meteorology, particularly of ESA. On preparing products in operational phase, IM needs as much updated land-cover as possible. Since land-cover has impact on the processed biophysical magnitudes, an analysis of their time evolution may contribute to identify changed areas.

FAO FAO will collaborate on a number of activities related to this task. FAO through the activities of the Global Forest Resources Assessment Programme will collaborate on the forestry-related aspects of this task to ensure a link with Task AG-06-04. The existing network of national correspondent to the global forest resources assessment will be a useful vehicle for interpreting and validating data and for promoting the use of these products in developing countries. FAO is a partner of GLOBCOVER and, ín collaboration with the other partners, can contribute to aspects of this task achievable through the planned GLOBCOVER outcomes for 2006 (GLOBCOVER partners are UNEP, ESA, JRC/EU). The Global Land Cover Network of FAO (GLCN) can contribute to land cover and training aspects of this tasks due to its existing role in producing land cover products and conducting training sessions on the use of such products in developing countries. Additional resources will be required to achieve all outcomes of the task and will not be completed within 2006.

Germany Coverage of European MODIS data by DFD

Japan AIST: Promote the maintenance of the landcover map derived from satellite images of METI development, by a GeoGRID system NARO: Provision of a system to virtually integrate distributed weather database that synchronously works with GeoGRID. Provision of a sensor network technology that synchronously works with GeoGRID NIAES: Development of data sets and maps of agricultural land use in East Asia using MODIS data JAXA to consider use of ALOS data. European Commision GEO 2007 Work Plan MASTER Data Management Task DA-07-02 DG-RTD I-4, CARBOEUROPE-IP, Max Planck Gesellschaft zur Foerderung der Wissenschaften E.V. Muenchen – Germany, Prof. Ernst-Detlef Schulze, [email protected]) DG-ENTR – GEOLAND, Infoterra GmbH, [email protected]; DG-RTD I-1, NATURNET-REDIME, Czech Centre for Science and Society Karel Charvat CZ. DG-RTD I-1, SENSOR, Dr.sc.agr. Katharina Helming, Leibniz-Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), email: [email protected], email SENSOR: [email protected]; DG-RTD I-4, Dr. Martin K. van Ittersum, Plant Production Systems, Wageningen University, email: [email protected], email SEAMLESS: [email protected] DG-ENTR, GMES - Fast Track Service Land Monitoring, [email protected]