Borstad Associates Ltd. - The Use of LandSat Imagery in Support of Watershed Management

The Use of LandSat Imagery
in Support of Watershed Management - A Reality Check

In 2003, the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) asked Borstad et al to interview watershed managers across Canada to establish their interest in using satellite imagery in support of their various responsibilities. Two reports have been published: An Assessment of the Potential Contribution of Satellite Earth Observation to Watershed Management Programs; and Canada’s Stewardship Agenda: the Role of Satellite Imagery in Watershed Management.

The three major findings were that:

Some of the watershed management organisations already use satellite imagery, but the majority reported that “satellite data are expensive, difficult to use and require expensive software and extensive staff training”.
The “watershed stewardship” management model is likely to include a mix of people with widely different agendas and there is a need to establish to a common understanding of the issues as perceived by each stakeholder.
“Indicators” are being introduced as a means of reporting change in a wide range of parameters representing the “health” of the watershed ecosystem.

The purpose of this web site, sponsored by the Canadian Space Agency, is to encourage the use of Earth Observation satellite data in support of watershed management tasks by demonstrating that:

Satellite imagery can be obtained free of charge from a number of Canadian and U.S. web sites; and
Image products useful to the watershed manager can be produced without recourse to complex image analysis programs.

The projects described on this web site are aimed at first time users of satellite data, not image analysis and GIS professionals.