TreeTops

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TreeTops

• Zachary J. Bortolot
• Randolph H. Wynne

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TreeTops

• Earth Science Application Areas
• Agricultural (Forest) Productivity
• Carbon Management
• Current End-Users
• International Paper
• Landmark (potential purchaser)
• Targeted End-Users
• All organizations with a need for fine-scale
  forest carbon accounting
• NASA scientists (MOD17 validation)

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TreeTops Description

• The Tree Tops system consists of a suite of
  programs for delineating individual trees in
  forest stands using high spatial resolution
  optical data or small footprint LiDAR imagery,
  and uses this information to determine stand
  density or biomass.
• Tree Tops was designed to adapt to the different
  forest and image types that users may encounter.
  It does this by using generic properties of trees
  found in many types of imagery, and parameters
  that control how these generic properties are
  used. The parameters are set for a specific area
  using training data consisting of plots in which
  the number of trees and biomass are known, the
  imagery corresponding to the plot, and an
  optimization algorithm (choice of genetic or
  Nelder-Mead Simplex).
• Informed of TreeTops through our outreach efforts
  with our core constituents and stakeholders, two
  representatives of IP flew to Blacksburg in
  mid-September to discuss use of this approach in
  their inventory systems. (IP owns more than 12
  million acres of timberland.) A 2nd field trial
  is now underway.

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Tree Tops Societal Implications

• Spatially-explicit monitoring of forest biomass
  is critical to the function of emerging carbon
  markets (Chicago Climate Exchange, Carbon Market
  Europe). In addition, continued productivity and
  competitiveness in this important economic sector
  requires more spatially-targeted monitoring and
  management of forest resources. As such, with
  funding from VA-MAGIC, important societal
  benefits in each of these Earth Science
  Application Areas are being realized.

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TreeTops
IGSCR Automation

• Rebecca F. Musy
• Randolph H. Wynne

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IGSCR

• Earth Science Application Areas
• Agricultural (Forest) Productivity
• Carbon Management
• Current End-Users
• USDA Forest Service
• State Departments of Forestry
• Targeted End-Users
• All users that can benefit from an automated,
  accurate, objective, and repeatable
  classification protocol

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IGSCR Description

• The IGSCR algorithm is an operational image
  classification protocol developed expressly for
  USDA Forest Service FIA forest area estimation.
  On a recent test across two USDA Forest Service
  regions, forest area estimates derived using the
  automated IGSCR protocol met or exceeded the USDA
  Forest Service precision requirement of less than
  3 per million acres timberland. The protocol has
  also been used successfully by the Commonwealth
  of Virginia to operationally map the
  Commonwealths timberland such that the resulting
  area estimates met USDA Forest Service precision
  requirements. With the now-automated IGSCR,
  forest area estimation is now simple, accurate,
  and repeatable across users, regions and time.

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IGSCR Societal Implications

• Spatially-explicit monitoring of forest area is
  a USDA Forest Service mandate and is critical to
  the function of emerging carbon markets (Chicago
  Climate Exchange, Carbon Market Europe). In
  addition, continued sustainable productivity and
  competitiveness in this important economic sector
  requires more spatially-targeted monitoring and
  management of forest resources. As such, with
  funding from VA-MAGIC, important societal
  benefits in each of these Earth Science
  Application Areas are being realized via
  implementation of NASA-sponsored technology by
  another federal agency.