Participatory Sensing in Environmental Monitoring -- Experiences

Commission VI, WG VI/4 KEY WORDS: citizen science, Earth observation, forest biomass, disaster mapping, water quality ABSTRACT:Citizen science is a promising way to increase temporal and spatial coverages of in-situ data, and to aid in data processing and analysis. In this paper, we present how citizen science can be used together with Earth observation, and demonstrate its value through three pilot projects focusing on forest biomass analysis, data management in emergencies and water quality monitoring. We also provide recommendations and ideas for follow-up activities.In the forest biomass analysis pilot, in the state of Durango (Mexico), local volunteers make in-situ forest inventory measurements with mobile devices. The collected data is combined with Landsat-8 imagery to derive forest biomass map of the area. The study area includes over 390 permanent sampling plots that will provide reference data for concept validation and verification.The emergency data management pilot focuses in the Philippines, in the areas affected by the typhoons Haiyan in November 2013 and Hagupit in December 2014. Data collected by emergency workers and citizens are combined with satellite data (Landsat-8, VHR if available) to intensify the disaster recovery activities and the coordination efforts. Simple processes for citizens, nongovernmental organisations and volunteers are developed to find and utilize up to date and freely available satellite imagery for coordination purposes and for building new not-for-profit services in disaster situations.In the water quality monitoring pilot, citizens around the Baltic Sea area contribute to the algae situation awareness by collecting algae observations using a mobile application. In-situ observations are compared with surface algal bloom products based on the satellite imagery, e.g. Aqua MODIS images with 500 meter resolution. As an outcome, the usability of the citizen observations together with satellite data in the algae monitoring will be evaluated.

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“…A number of approaches for enabling user motivation in observation campaigns have been identified earlier (Kotovirta et al 2012 …”

Section: Motivationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Citizen Science for Earth Observation: Applications in Environmental Monitoring and Disaster Response

Kotovirta

Toivanen

Tergujeff

et al. 2015

Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci.

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“…Methods for protecting privacy have been presented, e.g. by Kazemi and Shahabi (2011). In our case the mobile citizen observers were anonymous so the privacy was not the primary concern, however, with the missing contact details we could not ask for feedback about the mobile system.…”

Section: Data Qualitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Participatory surface algal bloom monitoring in Finland in 2011–2013

et al. 2014

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Background: Algal mass occurrences are one of the most distinguishing effects of eutrophication in lakes and the coastal waters of the Baltic Sea. Algal bloom occurrence in water bodies varies greatly in terms of both space and time, even during short periods, which makes reliable monitoring of blooms difficult. In this paper, we explore the possibilities to extend the sensor network both spatially and temporally by applying participatory sensing to surface algal bloom monitoring in Finnish lakes and the coastal areas of the Baltic Sea. Results: Two participatory sensing systems were used to collect visual algae observations by citizens: the mobile phone application Levävahti (Algae Watch) and the collaborative web service Järviwiki (Lake wiki), during the summers of 2011-2013. Citizen observations were compared with the visual observations performed by trained expert observers, and mean correlations between citizen and expert observations were calculated using the bootstrapping method: 0.72, 95% confidence interval (CI) [0.53 0.86]; 0.65, 95% CI [0.35 0.86]; and 0.56, 95% CI [0.29 0.76] for the years 2011, 2012 and 2013.Conclusions: Surface algal bloom monitoring is needed to obtain data on algal bloom frequency and intensity, in particular in lakes where the use of satellite remote sensing has limitations and/or phytoplankton monitoring is infrequent or totally lacking. The correlations between expert and citizen observations suggest that citizen observers can provide additional information to support algal bloom monitoring of inland and coastal waters.

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“…PS involves people, who may have ethical concerns about their privacy. If participants use their personal devices to collect data (e.g., Fang & Lu, 2012), as discussed in the literature (Kotovirta, Toivanen, Tergujeff & Huttunen, 2012;Liu, Liang, Gao & Yu, 2018) one of the key challenges in integrating them into a PS approach is the issue of 'privacy'. As PS involves the creation of data including time and the participant's location (see Christin et al, 2011), the disclosure of such data comes with location confidentiality threats for participants, which should be mitigated.…”

Section: Privacy Concernsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The problem of privacy is not new, and several works have pointed out the need to address it (Bowser & Wiggins, 2015;Cuff et al, 2008;Keßler & McKenzie, 2018;Kotovirta et al, 2012;Liu et al, 2018;Richardson et al, 2013). The technical challenges in providing privacy in PS originate from the simultaneous presence of several mutually untrusted (and/or potentially unknown) entities, including participants, data consumers and service providers (Eugster, Felber, Guerraoui & Kermarrec, 2003).…”

Section: Privacy Concernsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Connecting Citizens and Housing Companies for Fine-grained Air-Quality Sensing

Gupta¹,

Degbelo²,

Pebesma³

2018

giforum

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The complex nature of air quality suggests the need for fine-scale air-quality monitoring in cities. With 1 in 8 deaths worldwide being associated with air pollution in 2012, communities have started partnering with academic institutions and with state and federal agencies to assess local air quality and address these concerns. Participatory sensing has recently become one popular method for collecting air-quality information. It offers the prospect of collecting data at finer levels of granularity, but is subject to at least two significant challenges: data gaps (due, e.g., to the lack of calibration, maintenance and replacement of sensors), and citizens' concerns regarding privacy). We argue that including housing companies as stakeholders in participatory sensing frameworks may be beneficial in overcoming these challenges. A survey of housing companies suggests that they are willing to participate in air-quality monitoring for cities. The ideas presented here are pertinent to the design of more robust and privacy-aware participatory sensing frameworks.

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Participatory Sensing in Environmental Monitoring -- Experiences

Cited by 22 publications

References 14 publications

Citizen Science for Earth Observation: Applications in Environmental Monitoring and Disaster Response

Citizen Science for Earth Observation: Applications in Environmental Monitoring and Disaster Response

Participatory surface algal bloom monitoring in Finland in 2011–2013

Connecting Citizens and Housing Companies for Fine-grained Air-Quality Sensing

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