EO4AgroClimate

In support of EO4AgroClimate, the project will evaluate current and future capacity of Earth observations for addressing blue carbon and coastal zone management (including for aquaculture), with primary reference to Australia and the United Kingdom but also encompassing other nations and regions. The project will focus on establishing how existing efforts in mapping and monitoring of mangroves and other coastal ecosystems have been used to i) quantify and manage blue carbon within these landscapes and ii) understand likely impacts of change under different scenarios (e.g., climatic variability, economics). Gaps in data availability by sensor type and data/methods for assessing uncertainties in the quantification of blue carbon (amounts, change) will be identified in order to remove actual or potential barriers to the wider use and uptake of EO data. Further consideration will be given to the capacity of EO to retrieve or classify environmental descriptors relevant to coastal ecosystems and how these can be combined to construct land cover classifications and determine causes and consequences of change, whether natural or human-induced (including through climate change). The potential use of future planned or proposed EO sensors for characterising, mapping and monitoring coastal ecosystems and their role in informing planning or predicting future landscapes (types and use) will be investigated.