Uncertainty [MGD Sections]
UNFCCC decisions and requirements
IPCC good practice guidance
Significance and key category analysis
Design decisions relevant to national forest monitoring systems
Quality assurance and quality control
Practical considerations in choosing an integration tool
Estimating uncertainty of area and change in area
Estimating total emissions/removals and its uncertainty
Guiding principles – Estimation and uncertainty
Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
Financial considerations
Sampling
Relative efficiencies
Developing and using allometric models to estimate biomass
IPCC good practice guidance
Significance and key category analysis
Design decisions relevant to national forest monitoring systems
Quality assurance and quality control
Practical considerations in choosing an integration tool
Estimating uncertainty of area and change in area
Estimating total emissions/removals and its uncertainty
Guiding principles – Estimation and uncertainty
Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
Financial considerations
Sampling
Relative efficiencies
Developing and using allometric models to estimate biomass
Remote Sensing Observations [MGD Sections]
UNFCCC decisions and requirements
IPCC good practice guidance
Relationship to UNFCCC
GHGI coverage, approaches, methods and tiers
Design decisions relevant to national forest monitoring systems
Land cover, land use and stratification
Forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Quality assurance and quality control
Guiding principles – Requirements and design decisions
Estimation methods for REDD+ activities
Integration frameworks for estimating emission and removals
Selecting an integration framework
Activity data x emission/removal factor tools
Fully integrated tools
Practical considerations in choosing an integration tool
Guiding principles – Methods and approaches
Remote sensing observations
Coarse resolution optical data
Medium resolution optical data
High resolution optical data
L-band Synthetic aperture radar
C-band and X-band SAR
LIDAR
Global forest cover change datasets
Ground-based observations
National forest inventories
Auxiliary data
Guiding principles – Remote sensing and ground-based observations
Activity data
Methods for estimating activity data
Maps of forest/non-forest, land use, or forest stratification
Detecting areas of change
Additional map products from remote sensing
Estimating uncertainty of area and change in area
Estimating total emissions/removals and its uncertainty
REDD+ requirements and procedures
Reporting forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Technical assessment of forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Reporting results of REDD+ activities
Technical analysis of the REDD+ annex to the BUR
Additional advice on REDD+ reporting and verification
Guiding Principles – Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
Financial considerations
Country examples – Tier 3 integration
Use of global forest change map data
Relative efficiencies
Developing and using allometric models to estimate biomass
IPCC good practice guidance
Relationship to UNFCCC
GHGI coverage, approaches, methods and tiers
Design decisions relevant to national forest monitoring systems
Land cover, land use and stratification
Forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Quality assurance and quality control
Guiding principles – Requirements and design decisions
Estimation methods for REDD+ activities
Integration frameworks for estimating emission and removals
Selecting an integration framework
Activity data x emission/removal factor tools
Fully integrated tools
Practical considerations in choosing an integration tool
Guiding principles – Methods and approaches
Remote sensing observations
Coarse resolution optical data
Medium resolution optical data
High resolution optical data
L-band Synthetic aperture radar
C-band and X-band SAR
LIDAR
Global forest cover change datasets
Ground-based observations
National forest inventories
Auxiliary data
Guiding principles – Remote sensing and ground-based observations
Activity data
Methods for estimating activity data
Maps of forest/non-forest, land use, or forest stratification
Detecting areas of change
Additional map products from remote sensing
Estimating uncertainty of area and change in area
Estimating total emissions/removals and its uncertainty
REDD+ requirements and procedures
Reporting forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Technical assessment of forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Reporting results of REDD+ activities
Technical analysis of the REDD+ annex to the BUR
Additional advice on REDD+ reporting and verification
Guiding Principles – Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
Financial considerations
Country examples – Tier 3 integration
Use of global forest change map data
Relative efficiencies
Developing and using allometric models to estimate biomass
Record Keeping [MGD Sections]
Measurement, reporting and verification processes
Operational requirements
Guiding principles – Institutional arrangements
GHGI coverage, approaches, methods and tiers
Significance and key category analysis
Design decisions relevant to national forest monitoring systems
Quality assurance and quality control
Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
REDD+ requirements and procedures
Reporting forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Technical assessment of forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Reporting results of REDD+ activities
Technical analysis of the REDD+ annex to the BUR
Additional advice on REDD+ reporting and verification
Guiding Principles – Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
Operational requirements
Guiding principles – Institutional arrangements
GHGI coverage, approaches, methods and tiers
Significance and key category analysis
Design decisions relevant to national forest monitoring systems
Quality assurance and quality control
Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
REDD+ requirements and procedures
Reporting forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Technical assessment of forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Reporting results of REDD+ activities
Technical analysis of the REDD+ annex to the BUR
Additional advice on REDD+ reporting and verification
Guiding Principles – Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
Integration + Estimation [MGD Sections]
GHGI coverage, approaches, methods and tiers
Design decisions relevant to national forest monitoring systems
Guiding principles – Requirements and design decisions
Estimation methods for REDD+ activities
Integration frameworks for estimating emission and removals
Selecting an integration framework
Activity data x emission/removal factor tools
Fully integrated tools
Practical considerations in choosing an integration tool
Guiding principles – Methods and approaches
Reporting forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Technical assessment of forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Reporting results of REDD+ activities
Guiding Principles – Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
Financial considerations
Country examples – Tier 3 integration
Design decisions relevant to national forest monitoring systems
Guiding principles – Requirements and design decisions
Estimation methods for REDD+ activities
Integration frameworks for estimating emission and removals
Selecting an integration framework
Activity data x emission/removal factor tools
Fully integrated tools
Practical considerations in choosing an integration tool
Guiding principles – Methods and approaches
Reporting forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Technical assessment of forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Reporting results of REDD+ activities
Guiding Principles – Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
Financial considerations
Country examples – Tier 3 integration
Ground Based Observations [MGD Sections]
UNFCCC decisions and requirements
IPCC good practice guidance
GHGI coverage, approaches, methods and tiers
Significance and key category analysis
Design decisions relevant to national forest monitoring systems
Land cover, land use and stratification
Forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Quality assurance and quality control
Guiding principles – Requirements and design decisions
Estimation methods for REDD+ activities
Integration frameworks for estimating emission and removals
Selecting an integration framework
Activity data x emission/removal factor tools
Fully integrated tools
Practical considerations in choosing an integration tool
Guiding principles – Methods and approaches
Ground-based observations
National forest inventories
Intensive monitoring sites
Auxiliary data
Guiding principles – Remote sensing and ground-based observations
Emissions/removals factors
Above- and belowground biomass
Dead wood and litter pools
Soil organic carbon
Emissions from prescribed fires and wildfires
National choices in emissions and removals factor estimation
Emission and removal factor uncertainties
Estimating total emissions/removals and its uncertainty
Guiding principles – Estimation and uncertainty
Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
Financial considerations
Sampling
Country examples – Tier 3 integration
Brief review of the potential for estimation of biomass by remote sensing
mgd_Appendix_H
IPCC good practice guidance
GHGI coverage, approaches, methods and tiers
Significance and key category analysis
Design decisions relevant to national forest monitoring systems
Land cover, land use and stratification
Forest reference emission levels and forest reference levels
Quality assurance and quality control
Guiding principles – Requirements and design decisions
Estimation methods for REDD+ activities
Integration frameworks for estimating emission and removals
Selecting an integration framework
Activity data x emission/removal factor tools
Fully integrated tools
Practical considerations in choosing an integration tool
Guiding principles – Methods and approaches
Ground-based observations
National forest inventories
Intensive monitoring sites
Auxiliary data
Guiding principles – Remote sensing and ground-based observations
Emissions/removals factors
Above- and belowground biomass
Dead wood and litter pools
Soil organic carbon
Emissions from prescribed fires and wildfires
National choices in emissions and removals factor estimation
Emission and removal factor uncertainties
Estimating total emissions/removals and its uncertainty
Guiding principles – Estimation and uncertainty
Reporting and verification of emissions and removals
Financial considerations
Sampling
Country examples – Tier 3 integration
Brief review of the potential for estimation of biomass by remote sensing
mgd_Appendix_H
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4.1.5 C-band and X-band SAR
SAR systems operating at shorter wavelengths (C-band: 5.6 cm; X-band: 3.1 cm) typically reflect from the surface and top layer of the forest (leaves and twigs) and thus provide information about canopy structure. While the contrast between forest and low vegetation generally is less distinct compared with longer wavelength SAR, the use of two polarisations improves discrimination. X-band SAR data can be acquired at a spatial resolution better than 5 metres, which allows more detailed characterisation of forest canopy structure and although still regarded as research, has potential to provide information about forest degradation (e.g., selective logging (Baldauf, 2013)).
Frequent time series of C-band SAR data has demonstrated capacity for detection of changes in forest cover, and has potential for use for early warning of forest clearing. For forest-related C-band applications, data collected at dual-polarisation (including one cross-polarisation channel) is a critical requirement. To avoid confusion with changes occurring in other land cover classes, change detection can be applied relative to a pre-determined forest area derived e.g. from optical or L-band SAR data.
Sentinel-1A and -1B (successfully launched in 2014 and 2016) are C-band core missions. They will provide intra-annual observations of all global land areas, with potential higher frequency observations over selected countries or regions. Data from the Sentinel 1 missions are being distributed with a free and open data policy, making it an attractive option for monitoring forest activities in the tropics. Data can be accessed through the Copernicus data hub
as well as the Alaska SAR Facility
.


Amongst non-core missions, a full global coverage of X-band SAR data have been collected by the TanDEM-X satellite constellation.