Environmental policy requirements for enhanced land use / land use change data products: Perspectives from the SATUM study Robert Backhaus German Aerospace Center (DLR) German Remote Sensing Data Center (DFD) 51147 Cologne, Germany [email protected]

Abstract On behalf of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU), DLR is presently carrying out a study entitled "Requirements Analysis of Utilisation of Satellite-based Earth Observation Systems for Environmental Policy (SATUM)". SATUM encompasses virtually all spatially-related political and administrative issues within the departmental scope of the BMU itself, the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN), the Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS), and the Federal Environmental Agency (UBA), the latter also holding management responsibility for the study project. Preliminary results from a comprehensive review of legally binding tasks of the federal environmental administration reveal major requirements to be focussed on various issues demanding information on land use/land cover changes which can only partially be supplied by CORINE-LC. Scenarios describing an enhanced CORINE-LC basic product as well as additional services will be presented at the workshop. In the context of the SATUM study, these scenarios also serve as reference for an independent efficiency evaluation to be performed by user experts.

1

Introduction

During the past two decades, satellite remote sensing (SRS) has been developed into a powerful monitoring tool to provide spatial information on environmental structures and processes, with emphasis on issues of global change and climate research. Consequently, many SRS utilisation studies have been designed to cover application aspects of environmental research as well as environmental policy. E.g., in 1994 the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) and the German Federal Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF, Federal Ministry for Education, Science, Research and Technology) jointly issued the concept study "Satellite Remote Sensing for Environmental Policy and Research: Status, Analysis, Perspectives" (AGFU study; BMU/BMBF 1994). Meanwhile, further developments in environmental legislation on the European and national level have given rise to extended requirements for spatial survey and monitoring. On the other hand, the technical capabilities of satellite remote sensing have been increased by innovative earth observation missions such as ENVISAT. A promising programmatic framework for operational utilisation of these and other capabilities in the field of spatial observation and information is presently being implemented by way of the European initiative Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES).

196

In view of this situation and in response to a formal parliamentary question addressing the potential of SRS and its utilisation by the German Federal Government, the BMU has inaugurated the study "Requirements Analysis of Utilisation of Satellite-based Earth Observation Systems for Environmental Policy (SATUM)", which is currently being carried out by DLR. SATUM encompasses virtually all spatially-related political and administrative issues within the departmental scope of the BMU itself, the Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN), the Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS), and the Federal Environmental Agency (UBA), the latter also holding management responsibility for the study project within the UFOPLAN programme. Overall objectives of SATUM are −

to analyse the demand of the federal environmental administration for utilisation of SRS data, as appropriate for fulfilling legally binding departmental tasks, − to identify possible improvements in terms of efficiency by use of SRS data, − to outline a federal data policy position towards relevant European programmes such as GMES and INSPIRE. The draft final report of SATUM is due end of January 2004

2

Methodology

The present scope of departmental issues of BMU, BfN, BfS and UBA was reviewed by screening departmental organigrammes, website information and informal in-house papers, followed by questionnaire-based interviews with departmental experts. Issues related to spatially extended environmental structures or processes were described together with their legal foundations, the pertinent fields of observation and observation parameters, the monitoring methods and data sources conventionally used, and any shortcomings of the latter. Draft descriptions were iterated with the departmental experts for approval. For the observation parameters required, optional SRS applications were identified. Based on a comparison of conventional monitoring methods and SRS options, scenarios of possible SRS based solutions including cost assessments were described, which will be subject to a formal evaluation process to be carried out by the departmental experts. A more detailed description of the study methodology will be given in the SATUM final report.

3

Preliminary results

As the work on SATUM is still going on, the following results are necessarily of a preliminary nature, and subject to final approval by the customer. From 16 departmental issues identified as potential fields of SRS application, 11 were distinctly related to monitoring parameters describing features of land use and land cover as well as their change over time. As can be taken from Table 1, in 6 of these issues CORINE-LC is (at least partially) being used as a source of spatial information. An additional possibility of operational use of CORINE-LC data was identified for the environmental radioactivity information system operated by BfS. Only two issues were found to be without specific requirements for improvement of the spatial information basis (i.e. on the federal level), viz. flood risk management and landfill data acquisition. Most requirements for improved land use and land cover information are focussing on enhanced temporal and spatial resolution as well as thematic differentiation of specific land use classes. Apart from CORINE-LC, the information on land use and land cover needed by the federal environmental administration is provided either by other federal departments or by federal state authorities.

197

Tab. 1:

Departmental issues and land use/land cover related observation requirements in the federal environmental administration

Environmental issue

Federal environmental authority

Present state source (provision) of data

Monitoring parameters

Major requirements w.r.t. present statemethod

Climate protection (carbon sinks) Air pollution (effects on sensitive ecosystems) Water management (realisation of EU Water Framework Directive)

BMU, UBA

Forest area (ARD)

Spatial allocation, data comparability

UBA

Federal Forest Inventory (BMVEL, BFH) CORINE-LC

UBA

CORINE-LC

Water management (Monitoring of water protection areas) Water management (flood risk management) Nature protection and biodiversity

UBA

Topical publications (federal state authorities)

BMU

(Federal state authorities)

BfN

CORINE-LC; biotope and land use type mapping (federal state authorities) CORINE-LC

Spatial environmental and landscape planning Landfill data acquisition

BfN, UBA BMU, UBA

Forest, grassland, heath/bogs, peat, open waters Urban areas, cropland

Enhanced thematic, spatial (5 ha) and temporal (5 y) resolution Enhanced thematic differentiation (degree of surface sealing, crops (maize, hop)); enhanced spatial (5 ha) and temporal (1 y) resolution for crops Forest area (ARD), Standardised spatial data agricultural base, spatial resolution land use, surface 5-10 m, temporal resolusealing tion 5 y Urban areas, agri- Not specified on federal cultural land use level Living space types, biotope and land use types

Enhanced spatial coverage and repetition (living space types: 6 y)

Urban areas, traffic ways

Enhanced spatial resolution

(federal state State of filling, authorities, landfill landfill surface site management) area, recultivated area CORINE-LC, Urban areas, ATKIS agricultural land use, soil cover

Soil protection

UBA

Environmental radioactivity (disaster management and situation assessment) Environmental observation and Federal Environmental Specimen Bank

BfS

Radio-ecological model ECOSYS, (STABU, DWD)

UBA

CORINE-LC, Landsat-TM

198

none

Enhanced thematic differentiation (crops, degree of surface sealing), enhanced temporal and spatial resolution Enhanced temporal resolution (annual crop rotation, harvest date), enhanced spatial representativeness

Land use, agricultural area, grassland, crops, phonological status, leaf area index Land use/land Enhanced spatial and cover, land use temporal resolution change, phenology (maximum of vegetation development)

Departmental issues

no scenario description

SRSrelevant requirements

no

yes

"Basic product" scenarios

"Additional products" Scenarios

no

Basic product sufficient

yes

Change detection Spatial masking (e.g. protection areas)

Spatial differentiation

Temporal differentiation Thematic masking (e.g. agricultural areas)

Thematic differentiation GIS-application

Scenario description

Evaluation and efficiency analysis Fig. 1:

Derivation of product / service scenario 199

Potential SRS based solutions for the requirements as identified above were outlined by way of normative scenarios, each of them describing a product or service assumed to be operationally feasible at present or in the near future. In order to cope with the differences in requirement specificity, scenarios were written for basic as well as specific products or services. A diagram outlining this principle of deriving scenarios from departmental requirements is given in Figure 1. The scenarios contain a description of the product/service proposed and an estimated cost frame. Examples will be presented at the workshop. In order to achieve an independent efficiency assessment, the complete set of scenarios will, together with the draft final report, be distributed to the departmental experts for evaluation. Following a proposition of UBA, the evaluation will be carried out according to the Economic Analysis schedule (Wirtschaftlichkeitsbetrachtung) as recommended by the Federal Government Coordination and Consulting Office for Information Technology in the Federal Administration in the Federal Ministry of the Interior (Koordinierungs- und Beratungsstelle der Bundesregierung für Informationstechnologie in der Bundesverwaltung im Bundesministerium des Inneren, KBSt). Major evaluation criteria of the schedule are, in relation to the operational costs, the urgency of departmental tasks to be supported by the product or service and its estimated quality in terms of internal and external effects.

4

Outlook

In view of the requirements profile shown in Table 1 it is clear that, in the outcome of SATUM, an improved CORINE-LC product will constitute an outstanding basic scenario (see also Golla, 2000). Additional service scenarios will comprise, among others, change detection–based products to support monitoring activities, e.g. in the field of nature protection and biodiversity, and a service proposal to support the information system of BfS. Service scenarios will also integrate information on products currently being developed within the ongoing GMES projects GSE-SAGE and GSE-FM (see the respective contributions to this workshop) Subject to the final results of the efficiency assessment process envisaged for the SATUM scenarios it can already be stated that major recommendations of the study will be −

to ensure that an enhanced basic product on land cover (CORINE-LC+) will be part of the operational core services to be offered within GMES,

−

to strengthen the efforts for harmonisation of LC related monitoring activities of the federal states,

−

to develop sustainable funding mechanisms for a basic LC monitoring service, reflecting the multiple utilisation potential of such a service on the European, national and subnational level, and, in this way,

−

to contribute to a coherent and cost efficient LC data base in support of the legal obligations of the federal environmental administration.

200

References BMU – Bundesministerium für Umwelt, Naturschutz und Reaktorsicherheit / BMBF – Bundesministerium für Bildung, Wissenschaft, Forschung und Technologie (1994): Satellitenfernerkundung für Umweltpolitik und Forschung: Bestandsaufnahme – Analyse – Perspektiven. Schriftenreihe des BMU. GOLLA, B. (2000): Y2K Update for CORINE Land Cover – oder wie viele Bodennutzungsdaten braucht das Land? Landschaftsplanung.NET 01/2000, 1/11 – 11/11

201