
<p><strong>Stay atop the latest research and news! The Global Nature Watch blog uses data to illuminate the state of forests and other ecosystems worldwide and tells the stories of people dedicated to protecting them. Read about deforestation, fires, sustainable agriculture, management and other topics critical to the future of the world’s lands.</strong></p>


Global Nature Watch Blog

<p><strong>Stay atop the latest research and news! The Global Nature Watch blog uses data to illuminate the state of forests and other ecosystems worldwide and tells the stories of people dedicated to protecting them. Read about deforestation, fires, sustainable agriculture, management and other topics critical to the future of the world's lands.</strong></p>

Read about data-backed topics critical to the future of forests, including rainforests, deforestation, fires, sustainable agriculture, forest monitoring and management.

Forest News, Research & Monitoring | Global Forest Watch Blog

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Radial agricultural settlement in Bolivia visible in high-resolution Imagery.

Data &amp; Tools

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deforestation

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Crystal Davis

<p>In September 2020, the Norwegian Government <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.nicfi.no/current/new-satellite-images-to-allow-anyone-anywhere-to-monitor-tropical-deforestation/" target="_blank">announced a contract</a> providing public access to high-resolution satellite imagery of tropical forests. Never has the public had open access to satellite imagery with such high spatial and temporal resolution. But what does this data windfall mean for forest monitoring? How will it contribute to our goals of reducing tropical deforestation and restoring forest landscapes?</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">High-resolution imagery worth over $40 million, now available for free</h3>



<p>Under this new contract, the earth imaging company <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.planet.com/pulse/planet-ksat-and-airbus-awarded-first-ever-global-contract-to-combat-deforestation/" target="_blank">Planet</a> will provide free public access to 5-meter resolution satellite imagery covering the entire tropical forest region, to be updated monthly. Any person can <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://gfw.global/2Tsj7VO" target="_blank">view the mosaics</a>—compilations of the clearest images taken the previous month— via websites like Global Forest Watch(GFW). More technically inclined users can <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.planet.com/nicfi/" target="_blank">download the data directly from Planet</a> to conduct analyses and create derivative map products. The contract is valued at $43 million USD and is secured for a two-year period, with the possibility of extension for an additional <a href="https://www.ksat.no/news/news-archive/2020/faq-deforestation-monitoring/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">two years</a>.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">At 5-meter resolution, we can monitor a single tree</h3>



<p>Existing forest monitoring systems, GFW included, rely primarily on freely available medium-resolution imagery (10-30 meter pixels) from NASA’s Landsat or the European Space Agency’s Sentinel programs. At this scale, we can detect with <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://gfw.global/2ToiMmX" target="_blank">reasonable accuracy</a> where forests are cleared, and— over longer time periods— where forests have grown back. Landsat captures a complete picture of the Earth every eight days, although it may take many months or even years to capture a usable image in areas with high cloud cover, including many tropical rainforests.</p>



<p>At 5-meter resolution, we can see changes in forests on the scale of a single tree. Furthermore, Planet’s constellation of over 150 microsatellites image the entire Earth daily, which significantly increases the odds of capturing cloud-free images every month. </p>



<p>The high spatial and temporal resolution of Planet’s imagery opens a world of possibilities in forest monitoring. Small-scale and short-lived forest change dynamics like degradation due to selective logging may now be detectable. We may be able to more accurately monitor areas with less tree cover, such as the dry forests of the Brazilian Cerrado or African Sahel. Forest restoration, which often involves smaller and more incremental changes in tree cover, may be easier to track. We may also be able to better map crops and other land uses that replace forests, giving us a better understanding of what is causing deforestation.</p>



<div class="imagecenter"><img decoding="async" class=" wp-image-3569 alignright" style="padding-bottom: 10px;" alt="High-resolution imagery shows selective logging in the Republic of Congo." src="https://content.globalforestwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/SelectiveLoggingGIF.gif" width="100%">Planet images of the Republic of Congo show why forest degradation is difficult to monitor by satellite. The subtle impacts of selective logging can be seen in March, but the forest canopy closes again by June, erasing evidence of the disturbance that can be seen from satellites. Image © 2020 Planet Labs Inc.</div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Will better data mean safer forests?</h3>



<p>For forest monitors around the world, it feels as if we’ve just won the lottery. But we still have work to do. That’s because satellites don’t protect or restore forests. People do. The Government of Norway has made high-resolution satellite data more accessible than ever before. Now we need a wide variety of actors—academic researchers, law enforcement, civil society groups, journalists and indigenous communities—to apply this data in ways that support conservation and restoration efforts. This will require significant innovation and investment beyond the $43 million used to purchase the imagery. </p>



<p>GFW will support this effort&nbsp;by ensuring universal access to the imagery via our suite of tools, which reached over 1.5 million people in 2019 alone&nbsp;across the <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://gfw.global/2HAMFOw" target="_blank">Global Forest Watch website</a>, the <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://gfw.global/3osqCtW" target="_blank">Forest Watcher mobile app</a> and <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://gfw.global/3e0SEIo" target="_blank">GFW Pro</a>. The imagery can be easily used to support ongoing monitoring, investigation, advocacy, planning and enforcement efforts. For example, high-resolution imagery can be used to quickly verify and prioritize <a href="https://gfw.global/2HvyTwq" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">deforestation alerts</a> generated from Landsat data for follow-up action, or provide visual proof of deforestation.</p>



<p>We are also eager to bring together the research community to identify how this imagery can be used to generate new data products that fill critical gaps in our knowledge about tropical forests. Can we better estimate forest degradation and related carbon emissions? Can we better identify landscapes offering the greatest potential for restoration? Can we build more confidence in performance-based conservation mechanisms like REDD+? I’m hopeful that Planet’s data will help us unlock answers to some of these critical questions. </p>



<p>We must act quickly to take advantage of this opportunity, the availability of which is uncertain beyond the next 2-4 years. While the problems we face often seem intractable and entrenched, GFW has shown us that technology, innovation and partnership can help pave the road to positive change. I am excited for what the future holds.</p>



<hr> 

<div class="attribute" style="”padding-bottom:" 10px;”=""> 
Imagery can be viewed on <a href="https://gfw.global/3ovkDVm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Global Forest Watch</a> or be downloaded <a href="https://www.planet.com/nicfi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">here</a>. 

</div> 

 

<hr>



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We Now Have Unprecedented Access to Satellite Imagery. How Do We Turn This Into Action?

<p>In September 2020, the Norwegian Government <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.nicfi.no/current/new-satellite-images-to-allow-anyone-anywhere-to-monitor-tropical-deforestation/" target="_blank">announced a contract</a> providing public access to high-resolution satellite imagery of tropical forests. Never has the public had open access to satellite imagery with such high spatial and temporal resolution. But what does this data windfall mean for forest monitoring? How will it contribute to our goals of reducing tropical deforestation and restoring forest landscapes?</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">High-resolution imagery worth over $40 million, now available for free</h3>



<p>Under this new contract, the earth imaging company <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.planet.com/pulse/planet-ksat-and-airbus-awarded-first-ever-global-contract-to-combat-deforestation/" target="_blank">Planet</a> will provide free public access to 5-meter resolution satellite imagery covering the entire tropical forest region, to be updated monthly. Any person can <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://gfw.global/2Tsj7VO" target="_blank">view the mosaics</a>—compilations of the clearest images taken the previous month— via websites like Global Forest Watch(GFW). More technically inclined users can <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.planet.com/nicfi/" target="_blank">download the data directly from Planet</a> to conduct analyses and create derivative map products. The contract is valued at $43 million USD and is secured for a two-year period, with the possibility of extension for an additional <a href="https://www.ksat.no/news/news-archive/2020/faq-deforestation-monitoring/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">two years</a>.</p>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">At 5-meter resolution, we can monitor a single tree</h3>



<p>Existing forest monitoring systems, GFW included, rely primarily on freely available medium-resolution imagery (10-30 meter pixels) from NASA’s Landsat or the European Space Agency’s Sentinel programs. At this scale, we can detect with <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://gfw.global/2ToiMmX" target="_blank">reasonable accuracy</a> where forests are cleared, and— over longer time periods— where forests have grown back. Landsat captures a complete picture of the Earth every eight days, although it may take many months or even years to capture a usable image in areas with high cloud cover, including many tropical rainforests.</p>



<p>At 5-meter resolution, we can see changes in forests on the scale of a single tree. Furthermore, Planet’s constellation of over 150 microsatellites image the entire Earth daily, which significantly increases the odds of capturing cloud-free images every month. </p>



<p>The high spatial and temporal resolution of Planet’s imagery opens a world of possibilities in forest monitoring. Small-scale and short-lived forest change dynamics like degradation due to selective logging may now be detectable. We may be able to more accurately monitor areas with less tree cover, such as the dry forests of the Brazilian Cerrado or African Sahel. Forest restoration, which often involves smaller and more incremental changes in tree cover, may be easier to track. We may also be able to better map crops and other land uses that replace forests, giving us a better understanding of what is causing deforestation.</p>



<div class="imagecenter"><img class=" wp-image-3569 alignright" style="padding-bottom: 10px;" alt="High-resolution imagery shows selective logging in the Republic of Congo." src="https://content.globalforestwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/SelectiveLoggingGIF.gif" width="100%">Planet images of the Republic of Congo show why forest degradation is difficult to monitor by satellite. The subtle impacts of selective logging can be seen in March, but the forest canopy closes again by June, erasing evidence of the disturbance that can be seen from satellites. Image © 2020 Planet Labs Inc.</div>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Will better data mean safer forests?</h3>



<p>For forest monitors around the world, it feels as if we’ve just won the lottery. But we still have work to do. That’s because satellites don’t protect or restore forests. People do. The Government of Norway has made high-resolution satellite data more accessible than ever before. Now we need a wide variety of actors—academic researchers, law enforcement, civil society groups, journalists and indigenous communities—to apply this data in ways that support conservation and restoration efforts. This will require significant innovation and investment beyond the $43 million used to purchase the imagery. </p>



<p>GFW will support this effort&nbsp;by ensuring universal access to the imagery via our suite of tools, which reached over 1.5 million people in 2019 alone&nbsp;across the <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://gfw.global/2HAMFOw" target="_blank">Global Forest Watch website</a>, the <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://gfw.global/3osqCtW" target="_blank">Forest Watcher mobile app</a> and <a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://gfw.global/3e0SEIo" target="_blank">GFW Pro</a>. The imagery can be easily used to support ongoing monitoring, investigation, advocacy, planning and enforcement efforts. For example, high-resolution imagery can be used to quickly verify and prioritize <a href="https://gfw.global/2HvyTwq" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">deforestation alerts</a> generated from Landsat data for follow-up action, or provide visual proof of deforestation.</p>



<p>We are also eager to bring together the research community to identify how this imagery can be used to generate new data products that fill critical gaps in our knowledge about tropical forests. Can we better estimate forest degradation and related carbon emissions? Can we better identify landscapes offering the greatest potential for restoration? Can we build more confidence in performance-based conservation mechanisms like REDD+? I’m hopeful that Planet’s data will help us unlock answers to some of these critical questions. </p>



<p>We must act quickly to take advantage of this opportunity, the availability of which is uncertain beyond the next 2-4 years. While the problems we face often seem intractable and entrenched, GFW has shown us that technology, innovation and partnership can help pave the road to positive change. I am excited for what the future holds.</p>



<hr> 

<div class="attribute" style="”padding-bottom:" 10px;”=""> 
Imagery can be viewed on <a href="https://gfw.global/3ovkDVm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Global Forest Watch</a> or be downloaded <a href="https://www.planet.com/nicfi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">here</a>. 

</div> 

 

<hr>

High-resolution imagery from Planet is now available on GFW, making it easier than ever to spot deforestation on the scale of a single tree.

High-Resolution Imagery Now Free on GFW | Global Forest Watch Blog

Comment

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Sarah Ruiz

Congo Basin

Congo Basin | Global Forest Watch Blog

Pascal Douard

<p>By <a href="http://www.wri.org/profile/pascal-douard" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Pascal Douard</a> and <a href="http://www.wri.org/profile/craig-hanson" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Craig Hanson</a>  The rainforests of Africa’s Congo Basin are vast—the world’s <a href="http://www.worldwildlife.org/places/congo-basin" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">second largest</a>—and one of the last bastions of a once-widespread system of intact, biodiverse, and carbon-rich forests. And they are increasingly one of the <a href="http://blog.cifor.org/11433/under-threat-deforestation-pressure-on-congo-basin-forests-increasing#.U8QgfvldV_4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">most threatened</a>. Agriculture, mining, logging, and climate change are already chipping away and thinning out the forests’ edge and interior.  The Congo Basin forests’ biggest threat, however, is unseen: a lack of good information. With poor infrastructure, government capacity challenges, and hard-to-detect patterns of change, the forests of the Congo Basin are among the most difficult in the world to monitor and manage.  That may be about to change. Starting this month, 1,500 high-resolution satellite images of the Congo Basin from the <a href="http://www.astrium-geo.com/en/143-spot-satellite-imagery" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">SPOT satellite constellation</a> provided by <a href="http://airbusdefenceandspace.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Airbus Defence and Space</a> are being shared with WRI, thanks to an agreement with French institutions of the <a href="http://bassinducongo.reddspot.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tropical Forest Spatial Observation</a> program. It is financed by Agence Française de Développement (<a href="http://www.afd.fr/lang/en/home" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">AFD</a>), and coordinated by an IGN France International (<a href="http://www.ignfi.com/en" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">IGN-FI</a>)-led consortium of several institutes: Institut National de l’Information Géographique et Forestière (<a href="http://www.ign.fr/institut/en" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">IGN</a>), Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (<a href="http://www.cnes.fr/web/CNES-en/7114-home-cnes.php" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CNES</a>), and Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (<a href="http://en.ird.fr/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">IRD</a>).  This imagery will be provided for viewing and analysis through <a href="https://www.globalforestwatch.org/countries/overview" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Global Forest Watch</a> and <a href="http://www.wri.org/our-work/project/congo-basin-forest-atlases" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Congo Basin Forest Atlases</a>, along with other data on forest change and land management. Together, these WRI initiatives will offer one of the largest publicly-available resources for high-resolution satellite images for the Congo Basin. They can offer governments, businesses, and communities insight into how forests in the region are changing.</p>
<h3>The Challenges of Observing Tropical Forest from the Sky</h3>
<p>When it comes to monitoring forests, the Congo Basin remains one of the most challenging environments in the world. Much of the region remains remote with poor infrastructure, which makes wide-scale, on-the-ground monitoring difficult. Looking down on forests from space can give a view of remote areas, but the Congo Basin presents challenges here as well. Dense rainforests generate water vapor through evapotranspiration, which can mask forests in clouds and <a href="http://www.unredd.net/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=2371&Itemid=53" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">obscure</a> a satellite’s view.  There are several options for using freely available, global satellite data, such as the MODIS (up to 250 meter resolution) and Landsat (30 meter resolution) systems, but the nature of forest change in the region can again present challenges. In the Congo Basin, <a href="https://www.forestcarbonpartnership.org/sites/fcp/files/DriversOfDeforestation.pdf_N_S.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">research indicates</a> that local and subsistence agriculture is the largest driver of deforestation, while charcoal production is the leading driver of forest degradation. These activities leave a smaller, more fragmented physical footprint than commercial agriculture or logging, the largest <a href="http://www.globalcanopy.org/sites/default/files/LittleBookofBigDeforestationDrivers_EN_0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">drivers</a> in Asia and the Americas. As a result, change in the Congo Basin can be difficult to detect with medium or coarse-resolution satellite imagery, and only the sharpest images (less than a 30 meter-resolution) can give a clear picture of what is happening on the ground.</p>
<h3>The Contribution of SPOT Satellite Images</h3>
<p>Now, thanks to the agreement with the French institutions, this sort of high-resolution imagery will become available for the Congo Basin. The images were acquired by SPOT satellites with 10 to 20 meters resolution, have been processed to be ready-to-use, and follow the IPCC guidelines for national inventories of greenhouse gas emissions. This will allow WRI and others to compare, validate and consistently improve observations on <a href="http://www.earthenginepartners.appspot.com/science-2013-global-forest/download.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">forest cover change</a> and <a href="https://www.globalforestwatch.org/sources/forest_change#forma" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">FORMA alerts</a> in the Congo Basin. The images provided so far are from the 2008 to 2012 time period, and new images, continuously being acquired, will also be made available for the coming years at a remarkable 1.5-meter resolution.</p>
<div class="center">  <img decoding="async" class="aligncenter  wp-image-671" alt="Congo River Basin SPOT footprint" src="https://content.globalforestwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Congo-River-Basin_map1_0.png" width="100%" srcset="https://content.globalforestwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Congo-River-Basin_map1_0.png 924w, https://content.globalforestwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Congo-River-Basin_map1_0-300x282.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 924px) 100vw, 924px" />  Footprint of Spot images in the Congo Basin | Source: IGN-FI</div>
<p>The high-resolution SPOT images will also help to refine WRI’s analysis including quantifying forest cover change and identifying whether such change is due to expansion of agricultural crops around villages, or logging activities in or outside the forest concessions. They will also provide generally better understanding of the spatial dynamics of forest areas.</p>
<div class="center">  <img decoding="async" class="aligncenter  wp-image-672" alt="SPOT Landsat comparison" src="https://content.globalforestwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/SPOT_Landsat_comparison.jpg" width="100%" />Landsat images are a composite of cloud-free Landsat 7 images, circa 2012. | Sources: SPOT, Landsat 7</div>
<h3>The Beginning of a Meaningful Collaboration</h3>
<p>Through the production and sharing of analyses that will emerge from this partnership, the French consortium and WRI both will share information adapted to the environmental challenges that Congo Basin countries are facing today. This action will help governments, the private sector and civil society make better decisions, based on reliable and accurate data.</p>
<hr />
<div class="attribute">This post originally appeared on <a href="http://www.wri.org/blog/2014/07/new-french-satellite-imagery-help-forest-management-congo-basin" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">WRI Insights</a>.</div>
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New French Satellite Imagery to Help Forest Management in the Congo Basin

By <a href="http://www.wri.org/profile/pascal-douard" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Pascal Douard</a> and <a href="http://www.wri.org/profile/craig-hanson" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Craig Hanson</a>  The rainforests of Africa’s Congo Basin are vast—the world’s <a href="http://www.worldwildlife.org/places/congo-basin" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">second largest</a>—and one of the last bastions of a once-widespread system of intact, biodiverse, and carbon-rich forests. And they are increasingly one of the <a href="http://blog.cifor.org/11433/under-threat-deforestation-pressure-on-congo-basin-forests-increasing#.U8QgfvldV_4" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">most threatened</a>. Agriculture, mining, logging, and climate change are already chipping away and thinning out the forests’ edge and interior.  The Congo Basin forests’ biggest threat, however, is unseen: a lack of good information. With poor infrastructure, government capacity challenges, and hard-to-detect patterns of change, the forests of the Congo Basin are among the most difficult in the world to monitor and manage.  That may be about to change. Starting this month, 1,500 high-resolution satellite images of the Congo Basin from the <a href="http://www.astrium-geo.com/en/143-spot-satellite-imagery" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">SPOT satellite constellation</a> provided by <a href="http://airbusdefenceandspace.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Airbus Defence and Space</a> are being shared with WRI, thanks to an agreement with French institutions of the <a href="http://bassinducongo.reddspot.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tropical Forest Spatial Observation</a> program. It is financed by Agence Française de Développement (<a href="http://www.afd.fr/lang/en/home" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">AFD</a>), and coordinated by an IGN France International (<a href="http://www.ignfi.com/en" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">IGN-FI</a>)-led consortium of several institutes: Institut National de l’Information Géographique et Forestière (<a href="http://www.ign.fr/institut/en" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">IGN</a>), Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales (<a href="http://www.cnes.fr/web/CNES-en/7114-home-cnes.php" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CNES</a>), and Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (<a href="http://en.ird.fr/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">IRD</a>).  This imagery will be provided for viewing and analysis through <a href="https://www.globalforestwatch.org/countries/overview" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Global Forest Watch</a> and <a href="http://www.wri.org/our-work/project/congo-basin-forest-atlases" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Congo Basin Forest Atlases</a>, along with other data on forest change and land management. Together, these WRI initiatives will offer one of the largest publicly-available resources for high-resolution satellite images for the Congo Basin. They can offer governments, businesses, and communities insight into how forests in the region are changing.
<h3>The Challenges of Observing Tropical Forest from the Sky</h3>
When it comes to monitoring forests, the Congo Basin remains one of the most challenging environments in the world. Much of the region remains remote with poor infrastructure, which makes wide-scale, on-the-ground monitoring difficult. Looking down on forests from space can give a view of remote areas, but the Congo Basin presents challenges here as well. Dense rainforests generate water vapor through evapotranspiration, which can mask forests in clouds and <a href="http://www.unredd.net/index.php?option=com_docman&amp;task=doc_download&amp;gid=2371&amp;Itemid=53" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">obscure</a> a satellite’s view.  There are several options for using freely available, global satellite data, such as the MODIS (up to 250 meter resolution) and Landsat (30 meter resolution) systems, but the nature of forest change in the region can again present challenges. In the Congo Basin, <a href="https://www.forestcarbonpartnership.org/sites/fcp/files/DriversOfDeforestation.pdf_N_S.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">research indicates</a> that local and subsistence agriculture is the largest driver of deforestation, while charcoal production is the leading driver of forest degradation. These activities leave a smaller, more fragmented physical footprint than commercial agriculture or logging, the largest <a href="http://www.globalcanopy.org/sites/default/files/LittleBookofBigDeforestationDrivers_EN_0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">drivers</a> in Asia and the Americas. As a result, change in the Congo Basin can be difficult to detect with medium or coarse-resolution satellite imagery, and only the sharpest images (less than a 30 meter-resolution) can give a clear picture of what is happening on the ground.
<h3>The Contribution of SPOT Satellite Images</h3>
Now, thanks to the agreement with the French institutions, this sort of high-resolution imagery will become available for the Congo Basin. The images were acquired by SPOT satellites with 10 to 20 meters resolution, have been processed to be ready-to-use, and follow the IPCC guidelines for national inventories of greenhouse gas emissions. This will allow WRI and others to compare, validate and consistently improve observations on <a href="http://www.earthenginepartners.appspot.com/science-2013-global-forest/download.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">forest cover change</a> and <a href="https://www.globalforestwatch.org/sources/forest_change#forma" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">FORMA alerts</a> in the Congo Basin. The images provided so far are from the 2008 to 2012 time period, and new images, continuously being acquired, will also be made available for the coming years at a remarkable 1.5-meter resolution.
<div class="center">  <img class="aligncenter  wp-image-671" alt="Congo River Basin SPOT footprint" src="https://content.globalforestwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/Congo-River-Basin_map1_0.png" width="100%" />  Footprint of Spot images in the Congo Basin | Source: IGN-FI</div>
The high-resolution SPOT images will also help to refine WRI’s analysis including quantifying forest cover change and identifying whether such change is due to expansion of agricultural crops around villages, or logging activities in or outside the forest concessions. They will also provide generally better understanding of the spatial dynamics of forest areas.
<div class="center">  <img class="aligncenter  wp-image-672" alt="SPOT Landsat comparison" src="https://content.globalforestwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/SPOT_Landsat_comparison.jpg" width="100%" />Landsat images are a composite of cloud-free Landsat 7 images, circa 2012. | Sources: SPOT, Landsat 7</div>
<h3>The Beginning of a Meaningful Collaboration</h3>
Through the production and sharing of analyses that will emerge from this partnership, the French consortium and WRI both will share information adapted to the environmental challenges that Congo Basin countries are facing today. This action will help governments, the private sector and civil society make better decisions, based on reliable and accurate data.

<hr />

<div class="attribute">This post originally appeared on <a href="http://www.wri.org/blog/2014/07/new-french-satellite-imagery-help-forest-management-congo-basin" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">WRI Insights</a>.</div>

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By Pascal Douard and Craig Hanson The rainforests of Africa’s Congo Basin are vast—the world’s second largest—and one of the last bastions of a

New French Satellite Imagery to Help Forest Management in the Congo Basin | Data &amp; Tools | Global Forest Watch Blog

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We Now Have Unprecedented Access to Satellite Imagery. How Do We Turn This Into Action?

New French Satellite Imagery to Help Forest Management in the Congo Basin