NEOS-QUICK Objectives

The objective of NEOS-QUICK was to develop novel Earth Observation applications for mapping Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) parameters as specified by the reporting standards of the Kyoto Protocol. The techniques contribute to the verification of the 1990 baseline as well as to mapping and quantifying forest cover and biomass, forest change, and the estimation of biomass changes.

The main objectives for the NEOS-QUICK project have been to:

• Develop and demonstrate EO based concepts as a basis for verifying LULUCF activities in Austria as specified by the Kyoto Protocol
• Develop a portfolio for EO based verification and quality control in the LULUCF sector, applicable to the national greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory of Austria, abroad and to sink projects in third countries
• Strengthen the capacity of the Austrian EO service providers to develop sustainable solutions for national and international Kyoto reporting obligations
• Establish a close collaboration with the ProSmart initiative, the TerraSAR development teams and ESA/EU GMES initiatives

The challenges to achieve the goals have been multifaceted:

• Improve understanding of requirements stemming from the Kyoto Protocol and subsequent political agreements; analysis of economic and scientific implications of Kyoto reporting and verification obligations
• Elaborate on existing ideas for a scientific quality control and verification concept and identify most crucial LULUCF parameters
• Understanding of calibration issues and software tools for working with ENVISAT ASAR data (various modi) and ESAR; design of radiometric correction schemes for radar data based on an iterative approach or existing land cover information
• Improve segmentation and classification schemes for very high resolution optical and SAR imagery
• Determine functional relationship between various EO and LULUCF parameters
• Explore capabilities of multi-polarimetric (ENVISAT) and fully polarimetric SAR (E-SAR) systems
• Develop ArcGIS prototype software for quality control of LULUCF reports
• Deliver a first (simple) verification concept and identification of critical LULUCF parameters including better awareness of capabilities of novel EO systems (radar and optical) in the user community
• Creation of market opportunities
• Strengthening of international collaboration on the subjects
• Information of the wider public