Application of sentinel data for the classification of biotope types and green infrastructure

Based on the feasibility study "SeMoNa22", we investigate in the present project the transferability of the findings of SeMoNa22 to other areas, the integration into operational monitoring as well as the enlargement of the user group. SeMoNa22 aimed to investigate different remote sensing data from the earth observation satellites Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 with high-resolution public geodata for a regular, traceable, and validatable monitoring of green spaces (green infrastructure) and their biotope types in urban environments. In detail, it was investigated to what extent the biotope mapping, as well as the green space monitoring of the City of Vienna (Vienna Environmental Protection Department - MA 22), can be supported in the future with the help of remote sensing data. The SeMoNa22 feasibility study has shown that the combination of high spatial resolution data (airborne laser scanning data, image matching data) with high temporal resolution data from Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 has a high potential for the mentioned applications, but that additional research is needed about the large-scale roll-out, the transfer to areas with a poorer data basis than in Vienna, and the repeatability of the analyses in the context of operational monitoring. The goals of "Semona Reloaded" are derived from this. It is planned to extend the habitat classification to the entire Vienna Woods and the Danube Floodplain National Park. This will also ensure a better reference data basis for rare habitat types. In addition, it is planned to extend the analyses to areas outside Vienna (e.g. Wachau, Krems) to investigate the influence of different reference databases. In the course of this extension, the Danube University will be included as an additional project partner, which has built up extensive know-how in the fields of biodiversity research and ecosystem services in recent years and operates a "living lab" on this topic in the Wachau. The suitability of the results of Semona Reloaded as a basis for the evaluation of ecosystem services will be investigated. To integrate the expected results of Semona Reloaded into operational monitoring systems, contacts with the City of Vienna and the Province of Lower Austria will be intensified. Likewise, the connection with other Austrian projects (e.g. SIMS) on this topic will be strengthened in the framework of workshops.