GIS approaches to creating maps based on vegetation indices for forest management

Abstract

The article considers the main approaches to providing information support for improving forest management on the territory, taking into account the most up-to-date experience, modern approaches and implementing sustainable forestry management based on the data of remote sensing and geoinformational modelling. To identify the state of vegetation in the area under analysis, the authors of the article propose to introduce the definition of a normalized differential vegetation index. A characteristic feature of vegetation and its state is spectral reflectivity, which is characterized by substantial differences in reflecting radiation from different wavelengths. To obtain the necessary MODIS packages, we used the LAADS DAAC service supported by NASA. The data of this service are freely accessible, convenient for the user, and they are taken from a large number of satellites and their spectra. The optimal option for solving the tasks of compiling NDVI maps is using the geographic information system QGIS. Among the main advantages of this GIS we can consider user-friendliness and its multi-platform basis. For proper visualization of the NDVI map, a special discrete scale of values is used, the purpose of which is to differentiate between organic and non-organic nature, as well as determine the density of vegetation. The introduction of the proposed technology will significantly increase the mobility and effectiveness of forest management.