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(Submission #408)
The EAGLE concept
Many applications of LC/LU data have led to the existence of various classification systems. Most of them contain a mixture of LC and LU information. Each system emphasizes particular aspects and purposes of LC and LU data. Differences in data collection methods, incompatible definitions hamper the comparability of data from different classification systems. Technological progress on the one hand, and more complex thematic requirements and political reporting obligations have evolved. Consequently, the need for a revision of the conventionally used nomenclatures and concepts (like CLC) has become evident. The EAGLE data model has been designed according to a number of key criteria. It separates between LC and LU, is scale independent and also tackles the temporal aspects of transient or altering phenomena. The EAGLE concept is technically represented as an object-oriented UML model and a cross-table (EAGLE matrix). The data model consists of three main blocks of Land Cover Components (LCC), Land Use Attributes (LUA) and additional landscape Characteristics (CH). Both the LCC and LUA are INSPIRE-compliant and have a strong connection to the INSPIRE data specifications of the themes land cover (PLCC) and land use (HILUCS). The EAGLE model aims at being a tool for analytic decomposition of class definitions and for semantic translation between recent or future nomenclatures. It further offers a conceptual basis for a future harmonized European land monitoring system and is open to be implemented as an object-oriented guideline for mapping and monitoring initiatives. Finally, the EAGLE concept does not represent another classification system but instead is a descriptive vehicle for harmonization of LC/LU information supporting both top-down and bottom-up approaches. Once a land monitoring system based on the EAGLE concept will be established, several fields of work can benefit from such a harmonized approach to describe landscape component-wise instead of classifying it with inflexible pre-defined classes. Then, more robust figures can be calculated based on a more object-oriented and parameterized perspective on landscape rather than losing information due to cut-off-effects by threshold. Several tasks and tools have been worked out so far by the EAGLE group. On a web-platform under the Copernicus ‘Land’ domain of EEA, the documentation and methodology of the concept as well as the developed tools are made available. Some use cases have already emerged to assess the applicability and usefulness of the EAGLE concept in the field of habitat monitoring and citizen science.
Topic Area: [2.4] INSPIRE + Open Data + COPERNICUS Abstract Type: Oral Presentation
Comments: land cover, land use, object-oriented data model, land monitoring
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