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GeoTerraImage has exceptional experience, both within South Africa and across the African continent, on a wide range of projects as well as developing very specific products for metropolitan regions. Various projects have been successfully completed providing land-cover and land-use maps, crop area estimates figures, plantation tree counts, land suitability studies and radio frequency planning data sets. Furthermore, specific products such as Growth Indicator©™ (urban residential structure counts) and metropolitan land use (urban cadastral parcel based) have been developed to support urban and municipal planning initiatives. Listed below are some of our most important projects to provide an overview of the range of projects.
FAO Africover and Land-Cover Classification Scheme (LCCS) (2000-present)
GeoTerraImage also has been extensively involved over the last 10 years in the development, evaluation and implementation of the internationally accepted FAO Land-Cover Classification System (LCCS), and by association, the AFRICOVER Programme, within Southern Africa, through a combination of regional and international expert consultation workshops. This association with the AFRICOVER / LCCS programmes was initiated after Thompson (GeoTerraImage) authored the original standard classification for land-cover mapping (using remote sensing) in South Africa (Thompson MW, 1996, S.A Jnl Science Vol 92, 1996). Recently, GeoTerraImage has been actively involved with the South African Chief Directorate: Surveys and Mapping in the updating of this local standard to a LCCS equivalent land-cover and land-use international standard.
South African National Land-Cover 1994 and 2000
GeoTerraImage has played significant roles in the implementation and successful completion of both the 1994 and 2000 (update) of the South African National Land-Cover Databases. These land-cover datasets were mapped from Landsat imagery, using photo-interpretive (1994) and digital (2000) classification methods. GeoTerraImage was involved in both planning, managerial, reviewer and mapping roles in both projects.
Provincial SPOT Land-Cover Databsets, SA (2007/2008/2009)
GeoTerraImage has completed three province-wide land-cover updates using multi-date SPOT4 and SPOT5 imagery, in support of regional agricultural, conservation and environmental planning programmes. These land-cover datasets cover 200 000 square km across North West, KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng provinces, and were all generated using digital classification and modelling techniques. The KwaZulu-Natal mapping was funded by Provincial Government Departments, the North West Province by the Finnish Aid Agency, and Gauteng was an internal investment as part of the continuous of expansion of the GeoTerraImage product range.
USAID Habitat Mapping of Sud Wetlands, Sudan (2004-2005)
GeoTerraImage provided remote sensing support as part of an international team of specialist consultants that undertook an USAID funded environmental impact and resource management assessment of the vegetation communities in and around the Sud Wetlands. GeoTerraImage’s specific activities involved the generation of detailed habitat / vegetation maps of the wetlands and surrounding areas, which necessitated the mapping of approximately 4M ha, using multi-year and multi-seasonal Landsat imagery.
Metropolitan Urban Land-Cover and Land-Use, SA (2007/2008/2009)
GeoTerraImage has developed a series of small scale urban land-cover and land-use classification GIS data products that have been developed to support the local business geography, urban planning and demographic modelling application areas. These comprehensive urban landscape databases cover all the major metropolitan centres in South Africa, and are updated on an annual basis. The concept, implementation and funding of these off-the-shelf GIS data products was undertaken completely by GeoTerraImage in-house. Data is captured and modelled from a variety of high resolution aerial and space-based imagery.
Peace Parks Foundation's SADC Land-Cover Database, (2007/2008/2009)
GeoTerraImage has been appointed by the international Peace Parks Foundation as the sole provider of remotely sensed land cover maps. Currently in progress is the creation of a standardised vegetation / land-cover database for all the proposed South African Transfrontier Conservation Areas, based on multi-seasonal Landsat imagery acquired in 2005. To-date approximately 90M ha of proposed and/or actual conservation areas in southern Africa have been mapped.
Environmental Baseline Data for Monitoring Mining Land-Cover, D.R.C. (2008)
GeoTerraImage was commissioned by an international mining house to create a series of baseline environmental land-cover maps suitable for GIS modelling, that illustrated the local landscape changes over a 20 year period from mine inception to current status. This involved digital classification of a wide range of multi-resolution, multi-year and multi-seasonal image datasets.
Telecommunication Data for Country Level Radio Frequency (RF) Planning
GeoTerraImage is an internationally recognised source for telecommunication planning data in Africa. Complete RF planning data sets (consisting of clutter, heights and vectors) at national level for all African countries have been generated from in house continent wide coverage of Landsat imagery. This includes information on the location and extent of urban/settlement polygons, wetlands and waterbodies and relevant vegetation structures coverage.
Telecommunication Data for Detailed Urban Radio Frequency (RF) Planning
GeoTerraImage has established a database of detailed urban data sets (consisting of clutter, heights and vectors) for RF planning for over 300 cities in Africa, including the capital cities of most countries. This information has been generated from a variety of high resolution sateliite images and ancillary data to provide a complete set of clutter (land-use / land-cover) classes. Recognising the unique structure of African cities, clutter data packages have been specifically designed to benefit RF planning activities by including vegetation structure as well residential types.
South African Agricultural Field Boundaries (2005/2006/2007/2008/2009)
GeoTerraImage in collaboration with other members of the National Crop Statistics Consortium, has recently completed a national mapping programme which digitally captured the boundary of each individual crop production field across all of South Africa, in order to establish a definitive national database on agricultural lands. The database, which comprise of approximately 800 000 fields, covering a total of 13 million hectares, has been upgraded from a Landsat derived product to a higher detail SPOT5 derived product, and is the core component of the Department of Agriculture’s annual crop forecasting programme.
Crop Type Classification per Field Parcel (2007/2008/2009)
GeoTerraImage as part of the National Crop Statistics Consortium, has successfully completed per field crop type classifications from satellite imagery for three consecutive years since 2007 for the Freestate Province. Field boundary polygons for the province was used as a framework for statistical aerial surveys (PICES) to capture crop type information. This information was used to calibrate the multi-seasonal satellite imagery recorded from August up to May every year. The multi-seasonal imagery captures crop development and phenology for winter and summer crops. At the end of each summer season, crop types are determined and assigned to each field parcel polygon for that year. The most important summer grain crops such as maize, sunflower, sorghum and soyabeans are then combined with winter grain crops such as wheat and oats into a single spatial layer depicting provincial crop type information. |
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