Valuable records of the earths’ surface

Satellite images represent valuable and continuous records of the earths’ surface. With the development of remote sensing techniques, the lessons we learn from earth observation has reached new levels.

The continuous improvement of available data, e.g. in its temporal, spatial and spectral resolution, helps to make land use analyses more efficient, secure and trustworthy. The challenge is to select, process and interpret the huge amounts of available data for the relevant requirements and solutions.

This is where GRAS shows its strengths

Georeferenced datasets and satellite imagery present a wealth of information. The sensors of satellites can perceive more than the human eye can see. Satellite imagery makes it possible to study the changes in land use in less time, at low cost and with high accuracy. GRAS processes the different available data products with its own developed innovative methodologies and algorithms to conduct the assessments we need and to answer the urgent questions our customers have:

  • When was the first land clearing within the area of interest?
  • When was the field/plantation established?
  • What land cover type was on the area before the establishment of the field/plantation?
  • What impact does the land use change have for the area?
  • Where are the vulnerable sustainability risk hotspots within my supply base?
  • On which region or sustainability criteria should I focus my improvement strategy to have the most effective impact?
  • How can I prove and communicate the compliance and impact of my sustainability and no-deforestation strategies to my partners and customers?

Clarifying these questions on a field visit can be extremely difficult and time-consuming

Satellite images allow the efficient analysis of the land history prior to an on-site audit. The usage of data from different points in time allows the analysis of changes over time and is used by GRAS to identify areas of land use change with cut-off-dates individually set by our customers.

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2014

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2015

GRAS uses remote sensing data from a wide range of sensors, mostly carried on satellites, to perform sustainability analyses in a respective region or for a certain problem. High-resolution images (e.g. Sentinel, Landsat) are continuously processed with high-quality algorithms to identify and verify deforestation and other kinds of land use change.

GRAS takes advantages of the fast developments in the field of remote sensing technology:

  • The spatial and temporal resolution of the sensors improves constantly
  • Availability of freely accessible satellite images increases and allows cost-efficient solutions
  • The quality of available data increases with every mission that is sent into the earths’ orbit
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The images demonstrate the differences in spatial resolution of different sensors. Left: Landsat 8 (30 m resolution); Center: Sentinel 2 (10 m resolution), Right: Aerial image