Abstract
The main aim of the new agricultural scheme, Environmental Land Management, in England is to reward landowners based on their provision of ‘public goods’ while achieving the goals of the 25 Year Environment Plan and commitment to net zero emission by 2050. Earth Observation (EO) satellites appear to offer an unprecedented opportunity in the process of monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) of this scheme. In this study, we worked with ecologists to determine the habitat–species relationships for five wildlife species in the Surrey Hills ‘Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’ (AONB), and this information was used to examine the extent to which EO satellite imagery, particularly very high resolution (VHR) imagery, could be used for habitat assessment, via visual interpretation and automated methods. We show that EO satellite products at 10 m resolution and other geospatial datasets enabled the identification and location of broadly suitable habitat for these species and the use of VHR imagery (at 1–4 m spatial resolution) allowed valuable insights for remote assessment of habitat qualities and quantity. Hence, at a fine scale, we obtained additional habitats such as scrub, hedges, field margins, woodland and tree characteristics, and agricultural practices that offer an effective source of information for sustainable land management. The opportunities and limitations of this study are discussed, and we conclude that there is considerable scope for it to offer valuable information for land management decision-making and as support and evidence for MRV for incentive schemes.
Highlights
The sustainability of land-use and -cover systems are determined by the interaction between natural resources, climate, and human activities while ensuring a long-term productivity of these resources and maintaining a balance within the environmental functions [1]
The outcomes of the Step 2 and Step 3 for the five species are presented
At the SH-Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty’ (AONB) scale, we can observe the availability of many areas of suitable habitats that can support this species
Summary
The sustainability of land-use and -cover systems are determined by the interaction between natural resources (including soils, water, plants, and wildlife), climate, and human activities while ensuring a long-term productivity of these resources and maintaining a balance within the environmental functions [1]. Has been debated extensively in the literature [2,3,4] and can be defined as “a knowledgebased procedure that helps to integrate land, water, biodiversity, and environmental management to meet rising food and fibre demands while sustaining ecosystem services and livelihoods” [5]. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) supports integrated land resource planning strategies through a wide range of comprehensive approaches, tools, and measures adapted to different biophysical and socio-economic contexts when aiming for sustainable land resilience and avoid degradation [6]. Land-use policy impacts land management and affects the extent and state of ecosystem services [7].
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