Remote Sensing Applications in Monitoring of Protected Areas

Abstract

Protected areas (PAs) have been established worldwide for achieving long-term goals in the conservation of nature with the associated ecosystem services and cultural values. Globally, 15% of the world’s terrestrial lands and inland waters, excluding Antarctica, are designated as PAs. About 4.12% of the global ocean and 10.2% of coastal and marine areas under national jurisdiction are set as marine protected areas (MPAs). Protected lands and waters serve as the fundamental building blocks of virtually all national and international conservation strategies, supported by governments and international institutions. Some of the PAs are the only places that contain undisturbed landscape, seascape and ecosystems on the planet Earth. With intensified impacts from climate and environmental change, PAs have become more important to serve as indicators of ecosystem status and functions. Earth’s remaining wilderness areas are becoming increasingly important buffers against changing conditions. The development of remote sensing platforms and sensors and the improvement in science and technology provide crucial support for the monitoring and management of PAs across the world. In this editorial paper, we reviewed research developments using state-of-the-art remote sensing technologies, discussed the challenges of remote sensing applications in the inventory, monitoring, management and governance of PAs and summarized the highlights of the articles published in this Special Issue.

Current Trends and Issues in Applications of Remote Sensing in Coastal and Marine Conservation

“…Satellite RS is a powerful tool for the monitoring of vegetation dynamics. Remarkably, this general observation is pertinent in a wide range of habitats and Pas-from alpine rangelands and broad-leaved sub-alpine forests to nearshore bottom habitats of marine protected areas [4,5,8,9,16]. In this vast range of cases, the climatic factors affecting vegetation phenology, which are well-monitored using modern satellite RS data quarrying and interpretation, are snow cover, ice cover (cold-water duration), precipitation, and air temperature.…”

“…Due to this complexity, ecological specificity, and high spatiotemporal variability, coastal zones harbor some of the most endangered ecosystems on Earth [3] and offer valuable and often unique services. The essential services include the provision of refuge, food, breeding and nursing grounds for many terrestrial and aquatic wildlife species, retaining nutrients and other pollutants, checking coastal erosion, and absorbing flood and storm surge waters [4]. Moreover, coastal and nearshore habitats and ecosystems form an essential link for material, energy, and gene flows between the terrestrial and marine domains [5].…”

“…MPAs are among the essential leverages of marine conservation. Pivotal factors that affect the way wildlife responds to MPAs include the wave exposure, depth distribution, distribution of habitat types, the level of habitat integrity, prior level of resource extraction, and regulations [4]. Therefore, individual MPAs need to be networked to provide largescale ecosystem benefits and have the best opportunity of protecting all species in all life stages and ecological linkages if they comprise representative parts of all ecologically relevant habitat types in a replicated way [8].…”

“…Therefore, individual MPAs need to be networked to provide largescale ecosystem benefits and have the best opportunity of protecting all species in all life stages and ecological linkages if they comprise representative parts of all ecologically relevant habitat types in a replicated way [8]. To achieve this integrity, at least 4% of the open global ocean and 10% of the coastal and marine areas under national jurisdiction should be designated as MPAs [4].…”

“…MPAs are vital tools for the conservation of very dynamic coastal and nearshore environments. However, their designation, charting, and effective monitoring require regular, comprehensive, reliable data and cost-effective tools to record a wide range of multitemporal processes over large areas [3,4,9]. The vastness of marine spaces and the inherent dynamism of coastal and marine environments, as well as their spatial and temporal variation, pose substantial challenges for monitoring, protection, and management of MPAs.…”