"Professional paper presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Environmental Studies, the University of Montana, Missoula, MT, fall 2006." / Title from PDF t.p. (viewed on Feb. 26, 2007). Includes bibliographical references (p. 77-90).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Oregon State University, 2009. / Printout. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 120-129). Also available on the World Wide Web.

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To ensure the highest possible temporal resolution of SAR data, it is necessary to use all the available acquisition orbits and paths of a selected area. This can be a challenge in a mountainous terrain, where the side-looking geometry of space-borne SAR satellites in combination with different slope and aspect angles of terrain can strongly affect the backscatter intensity. These errors/noises caused by terrain need to be eliminated. Although there have been methods described in the literature that address this problem, none of these methods is prepared for operable and easily accessible time series analysis in the mountainous areas. This study deals with a land cover-specific local incidence angle (LIA) correction method for time-series analysis of forests in mountainous areas. The methodology is based on the use of a linear relationship between backscatter and LIA, which is calculated for each image separately. Using the combination of CORINE and Hansen Global Forest databases, a wide range of different LIAs for a specific forest type can be generated for each individual image. The algorithm is prepared and tested in cloud-based platform Google Earth Engine (GEE) using Sentinel-1 open access data, SRTM digital elevation model, and CORINE and Hansen Global Forest databases. The method was tested...

The present study investigates new frontiers of lidar technology knowledge assessessing of tropical forest degradation and restoration. The thesis is structured with an introductory chapter, four technical chapters, which explored technical and scientific aspects of the application of lidar technology to the evaluation of forest degradation in the Amazon and restoration of forests in the Atlantic Forest, and a final chapter with considerations and a summary of the main scientific results obtained in this thesis. The results of chapter 2 provided important insights for the correct modeling of leaf area density (LAD) proflies profiles usind airborne lidar. LAD profile is the decomposition of the leaf area index (LAI) along the vertical canopy profile and can be used to answer many ecological questions. The results of chapter 2 provided important insights for the correct modeling of LAD profiles. Chapter 3, using lidar data on aerial and portable ground platforms, in the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (BDFFP), demonstrated in an unprecedented way the effect of forest fragmentation in the canopy structure (lidar-derived) and their relationships with the change of the tree community. In this chapter, the results showed that the lidar technology has enormous potential to monitor the impact of forest fragmentation in a high precision scale for large areas. Chapter 4, using data from several forest typologies in the Atlantic Forest biome restoration collect by a portable ground lidar system, demonstrated the potential of canopy structural attributes to distinguish different forest typologies and to estimate above ground woody dry biomass. However, the results were not positive for estimating tree community diversity (richness, Shannon index and species composition). Finally, chapter 5 demonstrated the potential of a novel lidar system on a drone platform (also known as UAV - unmanned aerial vehicle) to monitor forest restoration plantations. Lidar is revolutionizing the way we measure forest landscapes and can be an indispensable tool for the success of forest restoration projects, having the potential to support on planning, monitoring and inspection of forest restoration landscapes. In this thesis, we demonstrate several applications of remote sensing to address the context of forest restoration, and we established methodological bases for other studies to expand the use of this technology for decision making in tropical forest conservation, management and restoration. / O presente estudo investiga novas fronteiras do conhecimento da aplicação da tecnologia de sensoriamento remoto lidar à avaliação da degradação e restauração de florestas tropicais. A tese está estruturada na forma de um capítulo de introdução, quatro capítulos técnicos, que exploraram aspectos técnicos e científicos da aplicação da tecnologia lidar à avaliação da degradação de florestas na Amazônia e restauração de florestas na Mata Atlântica, e de um capítulo final com considerações gerais e uma síntese dos principais resultados científicos obtidos nesta tese. O capítulo 2, utilizando dados lidar aeroembarcados em avião, analisou uma questão técnica, sobre a influência da densidade de pulsos da nuvem lidar e da resolução de amostragem para a modelagem do perfil de densidade de áerea foliar em florestas tropicais (DAF). O perfil de DAF é a decomposição do índice de área foliar (IAF) ao longo do perfil vertical do dossel e pode ser utilizado para responder diversas questões ecológicas. Os resultados da capítulo 2 trouxeram importantes insights para a correta modelagem dos perfis de DAF. O capítulo 3, utilizando dados lidar em plataformas aeroembarcados e terrestre portátil, no Projeto Dinâmica Biologica de Fragmentos Florestais (PDBFF), demonstrou de maneira inédita o efeito da fragmentação florestal sobre a alteração da estrutura do dossel (derivados de dados lidar) e suas relações com a mudança da comunidade arbórea. Neste capítulo os resultados demonstraram que a tecnologia lidar tem enorme potencial para monitorar o impacto da fragmentação florestal para grandes áreas e em fina escala. O capítulo 4, utilizando dados de diversas tipologias florestais em restauração no bioma Mata Atlântica, a partir de um sistema lidar terrestre portátil, demonstrou a capacidade dos atributos estruturais do dossel em distinguir diferentes tipologias florestais, estimar diversidade e biomassa de madeira acima do solo. Contudo, os resultados não foram muito positivos para estimativa da diversidade da comunidade arbórea (riqueza, indice de Shannon e composição de espécies). Finalmente, o capitulo 5 demonstrou a capacidade de um sistema inovador lidar aeroembarcado em uma plataforma drone (também conhecida como VANT - veículo aéreo não tripulado) para monitorar plantios de restauração florestal. O lidar está revolucionando a maneira de mensurarmos as paisagens florestais, podendo ser uma ferramenta imprecindível para o sucesso dos projetos de restauração florestal em larga escala, tendo o potencial de auxiliar desde o planejamento ao monitoramento e fiscalização dos projetos florestais. Nesta tese, demonstramos diversas aplicações do sensoriamento remoto lidar ao contexto da restauração florestal, e estabelecemos bases metodológicas para que outros estudos expandam o uso desta tecnologia para tomada de decisão na conservação, manejo e restauração de florestas tropicias.

The present study investigates new frontiers of lidar technology knowledge assessessing of tropical forest degradation and restoration. The thesis is structured with an introductory chapter, four technical chapters, which explored technical and scientific aspects of the application of lidar technology to the evaluation of forest degradation in the Amazon and restoration of forests in the Atlantic Forest, and a final chapter with considerations and a summary of the main scientific results obtained in this thesis. The results of chapter 2 provided important insights for the correct modeling of leaf area density (LAD) proflies profiles usind airborne lidar. LAD profile is the decomposition of the leaf area index (LAI) along the vertical canopy profile and can be used to answer many ecological questions. The results of chapter 2 provided important insights for the correct modeling of LAD profiles. Chapter 3, using lidar data on aerial and portable ground platforms, in the Biological Dynamics of Forest Fragments Project (BDFFP), demonstrated in an unprecedented way the effect of forest fragmentation in the canopy structure (lidar-derived) and their relationships with the change of the tree community. In this chapter, the results showed that the lidar technology has enormous potential to monitor the impact of forest fragmentation in a high precision scale for large areas. Chapter 4, using data from several forest typologies in the Atlantic Forest biome restoration collect by a portable ground lidar system, demonstrated the potential of canopy structural attributes to distinguish different forest typologies and to estimate above ground woody dry biomass. However, the results were not positive for estimating tree community diversity (richness, Shannon index and species composition). Finally, chapter 5 demonstrated the potential of a novel lidar system on a drone platform (also known as UAV - unmanned aerial vehicle) to monitor forest restoration plantations. Lidar is revolutionizing the way we measure forest landscapes and can be an indispensable tool for the success of forest restoration projects, having the potential to support on planning, monitoring and inspection of forest restoration landscapes. In this thesis, we demonstrate several applications of remote sensing to address the context of forest restoration, and we established methodological bases for other studies to expand the use of this technology for decision making in tropical forest conservation, management and restoration. / O presente estudo investiga novas fronteiras do conhecimento da aplicação da tecnologia de sensoriamento remoto lidar à avaliação da degradação e restauração de florestas tropicais. A tese está estruturada na forma de um capítulo de introdução, quatro capítulos técnicos, que exploraram aspectos técnicos e científicos da aplicação da tecnologia lidar à avaliação da degradação de florestas na Amazônia e restauração de florestas na Mata Atlântica, e de um capítulo final com considerações gerais e uma síntese dos principais resultados científicos obtidos nesta tese. O capítulo 2, utilizando dados lidar aeroembarcados em avião, analisou uma questão técnica, sobre a influência da densidade de pulsos da nuvem lidar e da resolução de amostragem para a modelagem do perfil de densidade de áerea foliar em florestas tropicais (DAF). O perfil de DAF é a decomposição do índice de área foliar (IAF) ao longo do perfil vertical do dossel e pode ser utilizado para responder diversas questões ecológicas. Os resultados da capítulo 2 trouxeram importantes insights para a correta modelagem dos perfis de DAF. O capítulo 3, utilizando dados lidar em plataformas aeroembarcados e terrestre portátil, no Projeto Dinâmica Biologica de Fragmentos Florestais (PDBFF), demonstrou de maneira inédita o efeito da fragmentação florestal sobre a alteração da estrutura do dossel (derivados de dados lidar) e suas relações com a mudança da comunidade arbórea. Neste capítulo os resultados demonstraram que a tecnologia lidar tem enorme potencial para monitorar o impacto da fragmentação florestal para grandes áreas e em fina escala. O capítulo 4, utilizando dados de diversas tipologias florestais em restauração no bioma Mata Atlântica, a partir de um sistema lidar terrestre portátil, demonstrou a capacidade dos atributos estruturais do dossel em distinguir diferentes tipologias florestais, estimar diversidade e biomassa de madeira acima do solo. Contudo, os resultados não foram muito positivos para estimativa da diversidade da comunidade arbórea (riqueza, indice de Shannon e composição de espécies). Finalmente, o capitulo 5 demonstrou a capacidade de um sistema inovador lidar aeroembarcado em uma plataforma drone (também conhecida como VANT - veículo aéreo não tripulado) para monitorar plantios de restauração florestal. O lidar está revolucionando a maneira de mensurarmos as paisagens florestais, podendo ser uma ferramenta imprecindível para o sucesso dos projetos de restauração florestal em larga escala, tendo o potencial de auxiliar desde o planejamento ao monitoramento e fiscalização dos projetos florestais. Nesta tese, demonstramos diversas aplicações do sensoriamento remoto lidar ao contexto da restauração florestal, e estabelecemos bases metodológicas para que outros estudos expandam o uso desta tecnologia para tomada de decisão na conservação, manejo e restauração de florestas tropicias.

Background: This research explores the integration of satellite imagery and imageprocessing techniques to innovate forest monitoring methods. Traditional approachesoften fall short in scale and efficiency, necessitating enhanced techniques for accurateforest structure analysis. Objectives: The main goal is to develop a software prototype capable of automat-ing the measurement of tree row spacing and detecting clearing areas within forests,thereby facilitating more informed and efficient forest management and conservationefforts. Methods: The study employed computer vision techniques and image processingalgorithms using OpenCV to process high-resolution satellite images. The develop-ment and testing of the prototype involved iterative enhancements to refine accuracyand functionality. Results: The findings demonstrate that the prototype successfully identifies andmeasures forest structural features with high accuracy, confirming the effectivenessof integrating computational techniques with ecological monitoring practices. Conclusions: The successful application of satellite imagery and image processingsignificantly enhances forest monitoring capabilities, promoting sustainable forestmanagement. This research underscores the potential of technology to transformenvironmental conservation efforts by providing detailed, reliable data that supportsproactive management strategies. / Bakgrund: Denna forskning utforskar integrationen av satellitbilder och avanceradebildbehandlingstekniker för att innovera metoder för skogsövervakning. Traditionellatillvägagångssätt är ofta bristfälliga i skala och effektivitet, vilket kräver förbättradetekniker för noggrann analys av skogsstrukturer. Syften: Huvudmålet är att utveckla en programvaruprototyp som kan automatiseramätningen av trädradsavstånd och upptäcka kalhyggen inom skogar, vilket underlät-tar mer informerad och effektiv skogsförvaltning och bevarandeinsatser.Metoder: Studien använde datorsynstekniker och bildbehandlingsalgoritmer medOpenCV för att bearbeta högupplösta satellitbilder. Utvecklingen och testningen avprototypen involverade iterativa förbättringar för att förfina noggrannhet och funktionalitet. Resultat: Resultaten visar att prototypen framgångsrikt identifierar och mäterskogsstrukturella egenskaper med hög noggrannhet, vilket bekräftar effektivitetenav att integrera avancerade datatekniker med ekologiska övervakningsmetoder. Slutsatser: Den framgångsrika tillämpningen av satellitbilder och bildbehandlingförbättrar avsevärt möjligheterna till skogsövervakning och främjar hållbar skogsför-valtning. Denna forskning understryker teknikens potential att transformera miljöbe-varande insatser genom att tillhandahålla detaljerade, tillförlitliga data som stöderproaktiva förvaltningsstrategie

Dramatische ökologische, ökonomische und soziale Veränderungen bedrohen die Stabilität von Ökosystemen weltweit und stellen zusammen mit neuen Ansprüchen an die vielfältigen Ökosystemdienstleistungen von Wäldern neue Herausforderungen für das forstliche Management und Monitoring dar. Neue Risiken und Gefahren, wie zum Beispiel eingebürgerte invasive Arten (Neobiota), werfen grundsätzliche Fragen hinsichtlich etablierter forstlicher Managementstrategien auf, da diese Strategien auf der Annahme stabiler Ökosysteme basieren. Anpassungsfähige Management- und Monitoringstrategien sind deshalb notwendig, um diese neuen Bedrohungen und Veränderungen frühzeitig zu erkennen. Dies erfordert jedoch ein großflächiges und umfassendes Monitoring, was unter Maßgabe begrenzter Ressourcen nur bedingt möglich ist. Angesichts dieser Herausforderungen haben Forstpraktiker und Wissenschaftler begonnen auch auf die Unterstützung von Freiwilligen in Form sogenannter „Citizen Science“-Projekte (Bürgerwissenschaft) zurückzugreifen, um zusätzliche Informationen zu sammeln und flexibel auf spezifische Fragestellungen reagieren zu können. Mit der allgemeinen Verfügbarkeit des Internets und mobiler Geräte ist in Form sogenannter sozialer Medien zudem eine neue digitale Informationsquelle entstanden. Mittels dieser Technologien übernehmen Nutzer prinzipiell die Funktion von Umweltsensoren und erzeugen indirekt ein ungeheures Volumen allgemein zugänglicher Umgebungs- und Umweltinformationen. Die automatische Analyse von sozialen Medien wie Facebook, Twitter, Wikis oder Blogs, leistet inzwischen wichtige Beiträge zu Bereichen wie dem Monitoring von Infektionskrankheiten, Katastrophenschutz oder der Erkennung von Erdbeben. Anwendungen mit einem ökologischen Bezug existieren jedoch nur vereinzelt, und eine methodische Bearbeitung dieses Anwendungsbereichs fand bisher nicht statt. Unter Anwendung des Mikroblogging-Dienstes Twitter und des Beispiels eingebürgerter invasiver Arten in Waldökosystemen, verfolgt die vorliegende Arbeit eine solche methodische Bearbeitung und Bewertung sozialer Medien im Monitoring von Wäldern. Die automatische Analyse sozialer Medien wird dabei als opportunistisches „Citizen Science“-Modell betrachtet und die verfügbaren Daten, Aktivitäten und Teilnehmer einer vergleichenden Analyse mit existierenden bewusst geplanten „Citizen Science“-Projekten im Umweltmonitoring unterzogen. Die vorliegenden Ergebnisse zeigen, dass Twitter eine wertvolle Informationsquelle über invasive Arten darstellt und dass soziale Medien im Allgemeinen traditionelle Umweltinformationen ergänzen könnten. Twitter ist eine reichhaltige Quelle von primären Biodiversitätsbeobachtungen, einschließlich solcher zu eingebürgerten invasiven Arten. Zusätzlich kann gezeigt werden, dass die analysierten Twitterinhalte für die untersuchten Arten markante Themen- und Informationsprofile aufweisen, die wichtige Beiträge im Management invasiver Arten leisten können. Allgemein zeigt die Studie, dass einerseits das Potential von „Citizen Science“ im forstlichen Monitoring derzeit nicht ausgeschöpft wird, aber andererseits mit denjenigen Nutzern, die Biodiversitätsbeobachtungen auf Twitter teilen, eine große Zahl von Individuen mit einem Interesse an Umweltbeobachtungen zur Verfügung steht, die auf der Basis ihres dokumentierten Interesses unter Umständen für bewusst geplante „Citizen Science“-Projekte mobilisiert werden könnten. Zusammenfassend dokumentiert diese Studie, dass soziale Medien eine wertvolle Quelle für Umweltinformationen allgemein sind und eine verstärkte Untersuchung verdienen, letztlich mit dem Ziel, operative Systeme zur Unterstützung von Risikobewertungen in Echtzeit zu entwickeln.

The forest industry is a fundamental cornerstone of the Swedish economy employing over 70 000 workers on a national scale. In recent years, the industry has seen increased efforts to digitalize operations and management of forestry to reap economical rewards, improve efficiency and gain competitive advantages. Due to living nature of trees, forest-management is a critical activity within the industry; trees and forests maintained properly will reward the owner with not only greater quality and greater quantity of wood, but also a shorter realization of cash flow. Fully realized, data from UPM Skog suggests that proper forest management has the potential to increase forest returns with up to 50 percent. This thesis studies forest management in the context of digitalization with the aim of making forest monitoring more digital and intelligent. In particular, it studies unsupervised monitoring in detail, a subset of remote sensing. Applications and effects of unsupervised monitoring include but are not limited to; enable real-time management of forest inventory, improved planning, time logging to market-fluctuations and enhanced biodiversity. There are a multitude of technologies that could be utilized and applied to achieve unsupervised monitoring and the startingpoint for discussion are the technologies Internet of Things and Enterprise Blockchain. The research is carried out as a case-study utilizing qualitative semi-structured interviews as primary data collection tool combined with a rigorous literature study in the relevant technological areas. The findings of this thesis portray a trade-off between infrastructure, maintainability, precision and latency on the choice of communication technology. Further, it discusses various ways to work around the different drawbacks of specific technology choices and in what contexts they be more or less suitable. Blockchain technology can act as an enabler for multiple novel industrial applications due to is properties of immutability, transparency and trust; however, not critical for unsupervised monitoring applications in the short run. This research serves as a first step in exploring the area of Internet of Things and Blockchain applied to unsupervised monitoring of forestry. In doing so, the thesis addresses infrastructural considerations, economic feasibility as well as key implications in terms of change management. / Skogsindustrin är en hörnsten för svensk ekonomi och sysselsätter fler än 70 000 arbetare på en nationell skala. De senaste åren har industrin sett ökade satsningar mot att digitalisera förvaltning och operation av skog med syftet att nå ekonomisk avkastning, ökad effektivitet och förbättrad konkurrenskraft. Till följd av trädens levandenatur är skogsförvaltning en kritisk aktivitet inom industrin; trä och skog som underhålls på rätt sätt belönar ägaren med både höjd kvalitet på virke och högre kvantitet av virke samt snabbare realisering av kassaflöden. Data från UPM Skog uppskattar att god skogsförvaltning har potential att medföra upp till 50 procent högre avkastning från skogen. Denna uppsats studerar skogsförvaltning inom kontextet av digitalisering med syftet att göra förvaltningen mer digital och mer intelligent. Mer specifikt studeras tillsynslös övervakning (TÖ) i detalj, ett område som kan tolkas som ett subområde till fjärranalys. Tillämpningar och effekter av TÖ inkluderar men är inte begränsat till: möjliggöra real-tids förvaltning av skogsinnehav, förbättrad planering, optimerad avverkning efter marknadens fluktuationer samt också ökad biodiversitet. Det finns flertalet teknologier som kan användas och appliceras för att åstadkomma TÖ och startpunkten i denna uppsats är teknologierna Internet of Things och Enterprise Blockchain. Forskningen är utförd som en fallstudie och nyttjar kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer som primärdata samt en rigorös litteraturanalys inom relevanta teknologiområden. Undersökningsresultaten av denna fallstudie påvisar en avvägning mellan infrastruktur, underhållbarhet, precision och latens på den valda kommunikationsteknologin. Vidare undersöks olika sätt att arbeta runt olika nackdelar med de specifika teknologivalen samt utreder i vilka kontext som teknologierna är mer eller mindre lämpliga. Blockchain kan möjliggöra flertal nya industriella applikationer med hjälp av sina egenskaper som oföränderlighet, transparens och tillförlitlighet; men kan inte bedömas vara kritisk för TÖ utifrån ett kort tidsperspektiv. Denna forskning är ett första steg i att utforska området Internet of Things och Blockchain applicerat mot TÖ i skog. I detta adresseras allt från infrastrukturella frågeställningar, ekonomisk genomförbarhet samt implikationer inom förändringsledning.