The function of remote sensing in support of environmental policy

Limited awareness of environmental remote sensing’s potential ability to support environmental policy development constrains the technology’s utilization. This paper reviews the potential of earth observation from the perspective of environmental policy. A literature review of “remote sensing and policy” revealed that while the number of publications in this field increased almost twice as rapidly as that of remote sensing literature as a whole (15.3 versus 8.8% yr−1), there is apparently little academic interest in the societal contribution of environmental remote sensing. This is because none of the more than 300 peer reviewed papers described actual policy support. This paper describes and discusses the potential, actual support, and limitations of earth observation with respect to supporting the various stages of environmental policy development. Examples are given of the use of remote sensing in problem identification and policy formulation, policy implementation, and policy control and evaluation. While initially, remote sensing contributed primarily to the identification of environmental problems and policy implementation, more recently, interest expanded to applications in policy control and evaluation. The paper concludes that the potential of earth observation to control and evaluate, and thus assess the efficiency and effectiveness of policy, offers the possibility of strengthening governance

Use of remote sensing to support forest and wetlands policies in the USA

The use of remote sensing for environmental policy development is now quite common and well-documented, as images from remote sensing platforms are often used to focus attention on emerging environmental issues and spur debate on potential policy solutions. However, its use in policy implementation and evaluation has not been examined in much detail. Here we examine the use of remote sensing to support the implementation and enforcement of policies regarding the conservation of forests and wetlands in the USA. Specifically, we focus on the “Roadless Rule” and “Travel Management Rules” as enforced by the US Department of Agriculture Forest Service on national forests, and the “No Net Loss” policy and Clean Water Act for wetlands on public and private lands, as enforced by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Army Corps of Engineers. We discuss several national and regional examples of how remote sensing for forest and wetland conservation has been effectively integrated with policy decisions, along with barriers to further integration. Some of these barriers are financial and technical (such as the lack of data at scales appropriate to policy enforcement), while others are political

Long-term assessment of the effectiveness of coastal protection regulations in conserving natural habitats in Spain

Spain has undergone rapid socioeconomic development in the past three decades. This has been linked to massive residential and infrastructural development based on a short-term, profitable and resource-intensive consuming model. As a result, large amounts of agricultural, natural and semi-natural soils have been lost to artificial areas, especially around main cities and on the coast. In this study, we assessed the effectiveness of the Spanish Shores Act at preventing land development in two biogeographical regions and three administrative scales between 1988 and 2020 using a BACI design and remote sensing data. We also analysed the combined effect of other regulations to prevent land development on the coast. The Shores Act was effective in reducing land development although moderate to substantial land development occurred in the zones affected by the Law, especially in the Mediterranean region. Adding other sectoral regulations to the Shores Act notably and consistently reduced land development across regions. Among them, cumulative protected area (PA) regulations were most effective in reducing coastal land development. The use of satellite images, especially Sentinel 2A MSI data within a BACI design, proved a useful method for assessing the effectiveness of fine-scale objectives of environmental policies such as the Shores Act.Funding for open access charge: Universidad de Málaga / CBU

Analyzing links between spatio-temporal metrics of built-up areas and socio-economic indicators on a semi-global scale

[EN] Manifold socio-economic processes shape the built and natural elements in urban areas. They thus influence both the living environment of urban dwellers and sustainability in many dimensions. Monitoring the development of the urban fabric and its relationships with socio-economic and environmental processes will help to elucidate their linkages and, thus, aid in the development of new strategies for more sustainable development. In this study, we identified empirical and significant relationships between income, inequality, GDP, air pollution and employment indicators and their change over time with the spatial organization of the built and natural elements in functional urban areas. We were able to demonstrate this in 32 countries using spatio-temporal metrics, using geoinformation from databases available worldwide. We employed random forest regression, and we were able to explain 32% to 68% of the variability of socio-economic variables. This confirms that spatial patterns and their change are linked to socio-economic indicators. We also identified the spatio-temporal metrics that were more relevant in the models: we found that urban compactness, concentration degree, the dispersion index, the densification of built-up growth, accessibility and land-use/land-cover density and change could be used as proxies for some socio-economic indicators. This study is a first and fundamental step for the identification of such relationships at a global scale. The proposed methodology is highly versatile, the inclusion of new datasets is straightforward, and the increasing availability of multi-temporal geospatial and socio-economic databases is expected to empirically boost the study of these relationships from a multi-temporal perspective in the near future.Sapena Moll, M.; Ruiz Fernández, LÁ.; Taubenböck, H. (2020). 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ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information, 6(2), 55. doi:10.3390/ijgi6020055Chen, X., & Nordhaus, W. D. (2011). Using luminosity data as a proxy for economic statistics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 108(21), 8589-8594. doi:10.1073/pnas.1017031108Rimal, B., Zhang, L., Keshtkar, H., Wang, N., & Lin, Y. (2017). Monitoring and Modeling of Spatiotemporal Urban Expansion and Land-Use/Land-Cover Change Using Integrated Markov Chain Cellular Automata Model. ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information, 6(9), 288. doi:10.3390/ijgi6090288Oldekop, J. A., Sims, K. R. E., Karna, B. K., Whittingham, M. J., & Agrawal, A. (2019). Reductions in deforestation and poverty from decentralized forest management in Nepal. Nature Sustainability, 2(5), 421-428. doi:10.1038/s41893-019-0277-3Sims, K. R. E., Thompson, J. R., Meyer, S. R., Nolte, C., & Plisinski, J. S. (2019). Assessing the local economic impacts of land protection. Conservation Biology, 33(5), 1035-1044. doi:10.1111/cobi.13318Lobo, J., Alberti, M., Allen-Dumas, M., Arcaute, E., Barthelemy, M., Bojorquez Tapia, L. A., … Youn, H. (2020). Urban Science: Integrated Theory from the First Cities to Sustainable Metropolises. SSRN Electronic Journal. doi:10.2139/ssrn.3526940Seto, K. C., Golden, J. S., Alberti, M., & Turner, B. L. (2017). Sustainability in an urbanizing planet. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 114(34), 8935-8938. doi:10.1073/pnas.1606037114Cities (Urban Audit)https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/cities/backgroundMetropolitan Areas, OECD Regional Statistics [Database]http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/data-00531-enEurostat, Geographical Information and Mapshttps://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/gisco/gisco-activities/integrating-statistics-geospatial-information/geostat-initiativeNASA Socioeconomic Data and Applications Center. 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Geography of Sand and Gravel Mining in the Lower Mekong River

L’extraction des sables et graviers en rivière a augmenté dans les pays développés depuis au moins le milieu du XXe siècle, en particulier pour la construction (béton) et les remblais (voies ferrées et routières, conquête de terrains en zone inondable, plates-formes en mer). Dans les 30 dernières années, ce phénomène a connu une grande expansion dans les pays en développement tels que la Chine, l’Inde et dans d’autres pays asiatiques à croissance rapide. Les impacts négatifs de l’extraction des ressources fluviales sont bien documentés en Europe et aux États-Unis depuis le début des années 1980 et des études sont maintenant disponibles sur les extractions en Asie du Sud-est et notamment en Chine. Le Bas Mékong et ses bassins tributaires sont des hauts lieux de la biodiversité mais ils ont connu un essor considérable de la construction des barrages, en particulier sur le cours chinois du Mékong, le Lancang. L’enjeu actuel le plus important dans le bassin du Mékong est sans aucun doute la menace qui pèse sur les côtes du delta car l’importance de ce dernier est remarquable en termes de sécurité alimentaire pour les populations en forte croissance du Vietnam et du Cambodge. Les raisons les plus souvent citées pour expliquer le recul du delta sont le piégeage des sédiments qui se fait dans les retenues du haut bassin et le changement climatique. Les extractions de sable et gravier dans le chenal du Mékong et sur ses affluents n’ont pas encore été prises en considération. Cet article fournit la première évaluation de l’extraction des ressources en granulat sur les 2 400 km du cours principal du Bas Mékong, de la frontière chinoise au delta. Le Fonds Mondial pour la Nature (WWF) a réalisé un relevé en 2011-2012. Des entretiens systématiques ont été réalisés dans les quatre pays du bas Mékong pour évaluer les types de matériaux extraits, les techniques utilisées, les volumes extraits, les tendances enregistrées ces dernières années et les changements attendus dans la géographie des extractions. Les résultats révèlent que le volume annuel de sable et de gravier extrait, en dépit d’une sous-évaluation évidente, excède le volume de sable et de gravier transporté par le fleuve. Les résultats soulignent aussi l’importance considérable de ce facteur dans les changements géomorphologiques et écologiques enregistrés dans les différents tronçons du Mékong et dans son delta.Sand and gravel mining from rivers has increased throughout the developed countries since at least the mid-1900s, for construction (concrete) and for landfill (railways, motorways, land reclamation in flooded areas, offshore reclamation). Over the past 30 years, this phenomenon has spread due to the economic development of countries such as China, India and other fast-growing economies of South-East Asia. The detrimental impacts of aggregate extraction have been well documented in Europe and in the U.S. since the early 1980s and studies are now available on extraction in S.E. Asia, notably in China. The lower Mekong River and its tributary watersheds are hotspots for biodiversity, but have seen considerable dam construction, particularly along the Lancang, the upper course of the Mekong in China. Currently, the most important issue in the Mekong basin is certainly the threat to the delta coastline because of its importance in terms of food security for the growing populations of Vietnam and Cambodia. The reasons most often cited to explain the retreat of the delta are the trapping of sediment in the existing upstream reservoirs and climate change. Sand and gravel mining in the Mekong River bed and in the tributary channels has not been taken into consideration to date. This paper provides the first assessment of sediment extraction along the 2 400-kilometre channel of the main stem of the lower Mekong River, from the Chinese border to the delta. The World Wide Fund for Nature ran a survey in 2011-2012. Systematic interviews assessing the types of aggregates, extraction techniques, extracted volumes, trends over the past years and the expected changes in the geography of extraction were carried out in the four countries drained by the Lower Mekong. The survey results reveal that the yearly volume of sand and gravel extracted, despite its undervaluation, exceeds the transported volume of sand and gravel in the Mekong sediment load. The results also highlight the extreme importance of this factor in the geomorphologic and ecological changes of the Mekong reaches and the delta

Assessing the Relationship between Landscape Change and Conservation Plans since 1991 in Tompkins County, NY

Various levels of government try to manage the spread of urbanization and the increasing threat to open space and agricultural lands by implementing various comprehensive or conservation plans. Extensive research has also studied the changing landscape using remote sensing and GIS, yet little has been done to connect the environmental policies with these technologies. Using Tompkins County, New York as a case study, this project attempts to combine these two aspects by examining how land-cover and land-use is changing over time with respect to environmental policies put in place at various governmental levels. Each town in the county has developed its own comprehensive plan within the last fifteen years. Furthermore, at the county level, agricultural and open space conservation plans have been drawn up in addition to a county-wide comprehensive plan. Protection of open space and aid in development extends up through the state level with the New York State Open Space Conservation Plans, first published in 1992. Using GIS and remote sensing, land-use and land-cover classification maps were created for five years between 1991 and 2012. The change in open space was calculated at the county and town level. Using the textual analysis software Leximancer, seventeen documents from the town, county, and state level were examined for major themes and concepts. The results of the textual analysis were compared to the GIS results to determine whether changes in the landscape can be attributed to policies enacted at various governmental levels. This project found that environmental plans have shifted over time with changes in society but that different levels of government often focus on different factors. Further, changes in the landscape can be more strongly associated with local government plans rather than those at the state level

Assessing policy and governance aspects for the implementation of Nature-based Solutions (NBS) to manage the Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem (WEFE) nexus in a Mediterranean watershed

openAddressing the vital intersection of Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem (WEFE) Nexus through the lens of policy and governance, this thesis marks a pivotal contribution to sustainable resource management and ecological resilience. It underscores the importance of harmonizing environmental stewardship with human development and well-being. Focused on the Pinios River Basin (PRB) in Thessaly, North-Western Greece, the study embarks on a thorough investigation of policy and governance frameworks essential for Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) within the WEFE Nexus. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach, encompassing stakeholder questionnaires, interviews, and workshops, the research provides a comprehensive evaluation of governance structures, policy frameworks, and management practices related to NBS in the PRB, guided by the specialized framework developed by the University of Padova under the LENSES project. The analysis reveals a 76% effectiveness in 'Conducive Governance Arrangements,' highlighting the need for more streamlined responsibilities and participatory approaches. 'Supportive Policies' are notably effective, achieving a 100% score and demonstrating strong alignment with EU and national frameworks. However, the 'Supporting Policies' dimension, while solid at 75% effectiveness, requires enhancements to better serve human well-being and rights. High scores in 'Appropriate Regulatory Environment' and 'Technical Capacity' suggest a supportive climate for NBS in Greece, but also indicate a need for further specialization in NBS education. Significant gaps in 'Access to Finance' and 'NBS Management' emphasize the need for improved project management and financial legal frameworks. The study recommends establishing dedicated governance bodies, enhancing continuous education, and developing adaptive strategies for sustainable NBS. Concluding, the thesis calls for future research focused on the practical implementation of these recommendations, exploring innovative financing and measurement methods, and conducting longitudinal studies to assess the impact of governance changes on NBS practices, with potential applications extending from Greece to a global scale.Addressing the vital intersection of Water-Energy-Food-Ecosystem (WEFE) Nexus through the lens of policy and governance, this thesis marks a pivotal contribution to sustainable resource management and ecological resilience. It underscores the importance of harmonizing environmental stewardship with human development and well-being. Focused on the Pinios River Basin (PRB) in Thessaly, North-Western Greece, the study embarks on a thorough investigation of policy and governance frameworks essential for Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) within the WEFE Nexus. Utilizing a mixed-methods approach, encompassing stakeholder questionnaires, interviews, and workshops, the research provides a comprehensive evaluation of governance structures, policy frameworks, and management practices related to NBS in the PRB, guided by the specialized framework developed by the University of Padova under the LENSES project. The analysis reveals a 76% effectiveness in 'Conducive Governance Arrangements,' highlighting the need for more streamlined responsibilities and participatory approaches. 'Supportive Policies' are notably effective, achieving a 100% score and demonstrating strong alignment with EU and national frameworks. However, the 'Supporting Policies' dimension, while solid at 75% effectiveness, requires enhancements to better serve human well-being and rights. High scores in 'Appropriate Regulatory Environment' and 'Technical Capacity' suggest a supportive climate for NBS in Greece, but also indicate a need for further specialization in NBS education. Significant gaps in 'Access to Finance' and 'NBS Management' emphasize the need for improved project management and financial legal frameworks. The study recommends establishing dedicated governance bodies, enhancing continuous education, and developing adaptive strategies for sustainable NBS. Concluding, the thesis calls for future research focused on the practical implementation of these recommendations, exploring innovative financing and measurement methods, and conducting longitudinal studies to assess the impact of governance changes on NBS practices, with potential applications extending from Greece to a global scale