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Over the past 15 years, satellite imagery has revealed that deforestation has been increasing at an unprecedented rate in the Peruvian Amazon. According to the Environment Ministry of Peru, the high rates of deforestation are attributable to the rise of agroindustrial crops such as coffee, cacao and African palm oil. These ‘cash crops’ are transforming the Amazon rainforest, impacting the local climate, water cycle and biodiversity. Satellite imagery has been used to produce valuable maps which reveal the ‘hotspots’ where this deforestation is occurring and where the effects are likely to be most prominent.

These maps show how the deforested areas are closely correlated to regions where large-scale plantations have already been established, thus showing how agroindustrial crop managers are expanding their operations. The Peruvian government are actively demonstrating an awareness of climate change, especially with protecting the Amazon rainforest, though the trend in local government appears to disagree.

Peruvian law forbids private ownership of the public forest, though recently, permits for forest land parcels have been awarded to the agriculture industry. Coupled with poor law enforcement and possible corruption, the local authorities are effectively promoting unsustainable deforestation.

The indigenous people have gathered to form an opposition to this movement, using satellite imagery as their evidence. The area of San Martin lost 24,300 hectares of forest between 2010 and 2014, and the total loss in Peru was larger than the state of Rhode Island in the US, deemed unacceptable by the local population.

In light of these findings, Peru has received $300 million of pledges from Norway and Germany to improve its forest management, with the goal of achieving a ‘net zero’ deforestation by 2021. Curbing the deforestation of our rainforests is of global importance, as they are critical in the fight against human-induced climate change. Satellite imagery has proved once again to be vital, helping the Peruvian government understand the gravitas of their current situation

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The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC®) announces that the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers (IOGP) through the Geomatics Committee and IPIECA (the global oil and gas industry association for environmental and social issues) have issued, in cooperation with OGC and Resource Data, Inc., the OGC IOGP/IPIECA Recommended Practice for a Common Operating Picture for Oil Spill Response.

This is the final report of the IOGP/IPIECA Joint Industry Project to produce a recommended practice for GIS/Mapping in support of Oil Spill Response and for the use of GIS technology and geospatial information in forming a Common Operating Picture (COP) for management of the response.

Rob Cox, Technical Director, IPIECA, explained, “The report lays the groundwork for coordinated activities by multiple stakeholders that need to come together quickly to respond to a spill. Having the report endorsed as an OGC Best Practice gives it the authority it needs to act as a focal point in support of that coordination.”

As stated in the report, “Responding to an oil spill requires access to and understanding of many types of information. Effective, coordinated operations for the response are based on a shared, common picture of the situation. Interoperability provides shared situational awareness of the crisis and the response activities. What is needed is a common picture of reality for different organizations that have different views of the spill so that they all can deal with it collectively.

Recent oil spills have provided lessons learned and recommendations on forming a Common Operating Picture for oil spill response. Through a joint project, industry is responding to the call, moving from recommendations to reusable best practices supported by open standards that can be deployed quickly in any region of the globe.

This architecture report is part of the IOGP and IPIECA Oil Spill Response – Joint Industry Project (IOGP–IPIECA OSR-JIP) to produce a recommended practice for GIS/mapping in support of oil spill response and for the use of GIS technology and geospatial information in forming a Common Operating Picture to support management of the response.

The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) is an international consortium of more than 515 companies, government agencies, research organizations, and universities participating in a consensus process to develop publicly available geospatial standards. OGC standards support interoperable solutions that “geo-enable” the Web, wireless and location-based services, and mainstream IT. OGC standards empower technology developers to make geospatial information and services accessible and useful with any application that needs to be geospatially enabled.

The International Association of Oil & Gas producers (IOGP) is a unique global forum in which members identify and share best practices to achieve improvements in every aspect of health, safety, the environment, security, social responsibility, engineering and operations. IOGP encompasses most of the world’s leading publicly-traded, private and state-owned oil & gas companies, industry associations and major upstream service companies. IOGP members produce more than half the world’s oil and about one third of its gas.

IPIECA is the global oil and gas industry association for environmental and social issues. IPIECA was formed in 1974 following the launch of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). IPIECA is the only global association involving both the upstream and downstream oil and gas industry on environmental and social issues. IPIECA’s membership covers over half of the world’s oil production. IPIECA is the industry’s principal channel of communication with the United Nations. When IPIECA was set up in 1974 the acronym stood for the International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association. In 2009, recognizing that this no longer accurately reflected the breadth and scope of the association’s work, IPIECA stopped using the full title. The association is now known as IPIECA, the global oil and gas industry association for environmental and social issues.

Resource Data, Inc. (RDI) has been supporting the oil & gas industry with information technology for spill response since 1989. RDI brings unparalleled experience to oil spill response, leading the geographic information system (GIS) and database teams for the Exxon-Valdez spill and more recently the GIS response team in the Macondo/Deepwater Horizon spill. RDI has developed numerous spill response data systems, participated in multiple drills, and developed risk analysis systems for major pipeline networks. Our depth and breadth of expertise in spill preparedness and response uniquely positions RDI to assist in the development of a Common Operating Picture for the oil & gas industry.

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[Via Satellite 02-22-2016] DigitalGlobe has formed a joint venture with TAQNIA, a firm dedicated to accelerating technology development for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, in partnership with King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), to develop a constellation of highly capable small imaging satellites to support the needs of customers around the world. The joint venture will be responsible for developing six or more sub-meter resolution imaging satellites.

The companies expect the small satellites to be capable of collecting imagery with anticipated 80 cm resolution and to leverage DigitalGlobe’s ground infrastructure. The companies expect the spacecraft to launch in late 2018 or early 2019.

TAQNIA and KACST will benefit from DigitalGlobe’s imagery production platform and catalog of high-resolution, high-accuracy imagery, which will improve the native accuracy of the small satellite imagery. TAQNIA and KACST will also benefit from DigitalGlobe’s global distribution capability and existing customer relationships with worldwide buyers of commercial satellite imagery and geospatial information.

KACST will construct, integrate, and launch the satellites, and will own 50 percent of the satellites’ imaging capacity inside of KACST’s communication cone, which includes Saudi Arabia and the surrounding region. DigitalGlobe will have rights to the other 50 percent of the capacity inside this region and 100 percent of the satellites’ capacity outside of the region. TAQNIA will be responsible for marketing and monetizing 50 percent of the capacity within the KACST communication cone. DigitalGlobe will be responsible for marketing and monetizing the remaining 50 percent of capacity within the KACST communication cone and 100 percent of the remaining worldwide capacity. Additionally, DigitalGlobe, TAQNIA, and KACST will share the commercially generated revenue.

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Fast Market Research announces the availability of the new TechNavio report, “Global Satellite-based Earth Observation Market 2016-2020”, on their comprehensive research portal

Boston, MA — (SBWIRE) — 02/17/2016 — Satellite-based EO involves the gathering of vital information pertaining to the earth’s system through remote sensing satellites. It is used across verticals such as defense and intelligence, weather, agriculture, natural resources, engineering and construction, media and entertainment, and tourism.

Technavio’s analysts forecast the global satellite-based EO market to grow at a CAGR of 14.11% during the period 2016-2020.

Covered in this report
The report covers the present scenario and the growth prospects of the global satellite-based EO market for 2016-2020. To calculate the market size, the report considers the revenue generated from the following:
-Data and VAS, including image and data processing, and information products.
-Defense and intelligence, government authorities, energy and natural resources, navigation and location-based services, and living resources.
-Revenue generated for EO industrial applications by insurance, manufacturing, and agriculture industries.

Get More Details on this Report and a Full Table of Contents at Global Satellite-based Earth Observation Market 2016-2020

The market is divided into the following segments based on geography:
-APAC
-EMEA
-Latin America
-North America

Technavio’s report, Global Satellite-based Earth Observation Market 2016-2020, has been prepared based on an in-depth market analysis with inputs from industry experts. The report covers the market landscape and its growth prospects over the coming years. The report also includes a discussion of the key vendors operating in this market.

Key vendors
-Airbus Group
-DigitalGlobe
-DMC International Imaging
-MDA
-ImageSat International

Other prominent vendors
-BlackBridge Group (Planet Labs)
-Deimos Imaging (UrtheCast)
-e-GEOS (an ASI/Telespazio company)
-GeoOptics
-Geosys
-hisdeSAT Servicios Estrategicos
-PlanetiQ
-Planet Labs
-Satellogic
-Skybox Imaging (Google)

Market driver
-Widening application base of EO satellites
-For a full, detailed list, view our report

Market challenge
-Adoption of UAV-based earth observation
-For a full, detailed list, view our report

Market trend
-Increased lift-off of nano and micro satellites
-For a full, detailed list, view our report

Key questions answered in this report
-What will the market size be in 2020 and what will the growth rate be?
-What are the key market trends?
-What is driving this market?
-What are the challenges to market growth?
-Who are the key vendors in this market space?
-What are the market opportunities and threats faced by the key vendors?
-What are the strengths and weaknesses of the key vendors?

You can request one free hour of our analyst’s time when you purchase this market report. Details are provided within the report.

Companies Mentioned in this Report: Airbus Group, DigitalGlobe, DMC International Imaging, MDA, ImageSat International, BlackBridge Group (Planet Labs), Deimos Imaging (UrtheCast), e-GEOS (an ASI/Telespazio company), GeoOptics, Geosys, hisdeSAT Servicios Estrategicos, PlanetiQ, Planet Labs, Satellogic, Skybox Imaging (Google).

About Fast Market Research
Fast Market Research is a leading distributor of market research and business information. Representing the world’s top research publishers and analysts, we provide quick and easy access to the best competitive intelligence available. Our unbiased, expert staff is always available to help you find the right research to fit your requirements and your budget. For more information about these or related research reports, please visit our website or call us at 1.800.844.8156.

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To ensure adequate emergency monitoring in Russia’s Arctic, the country will build two new remote sensing centres in the region. The same was confirmed by Russian Emergencies Ministry (EMERCOM) on Wednesday.

The ministry added that it also planned to create a net of 10 search-and-rescue centers in the Arctic. Four of them have already been launched. “In October 2015, a joint Remote Sensing Center on the basis of EMERCOM’s Murmansk department was launched. Similar centers will be deployed in Dudinka and Anadyr, which will enable control over the Russian Arctic territory,” the statement issued by the ministry reads. Russia unveiled a strategy to boost its presence in the Arctic, believed to hold vast oil and natural gas reserves, in 2014.

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This study, provided by Policy Department A at the request of the ITRE committee, aims to shed light on the potential applicability of data acquired from the EU Galileo and Copernicus satellite systems in both the public and private sector, and on the reasons why such potential still remains largely underutilized.

The regulatory framework, market characteristics and policy actions that are being taken to make use of space data, are comprehensively analysed. The study also addresses recommendations for different policy levels.

IPOL_STU(2016)569984_EN.pdf

Dairy farming is the latest addition to the list of traditional businesses that are achieving higher efficiency and productivity through technology.

Big cooperatives are taking the help of Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) to track the milk system at village-level more efficiently. The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) has taken the help of satellite imaging to track the animal population, fodder status, and land use patterns. Recently, an NDDB project won an award at the Geosmart India 2016 for developing an ‘internet-based dairy geographical information system’ or IDGIS.

IDGIS is a visualisation tool which enables identification of villages and integrates human census, livestock census, land-use and land-cover of villages in all the major milk producing states. A senior NDDB official said around 500,000 villages had been covered, helping milk unions plan their village-level activities more efficiently.

Anand-based NDDB has also joined hands with Isro’s Space Applications Centre and completed a pilot study of the fodder growing areas in Banaskantha district of Gujarat, using satellite imaging. Implemented at a mass scale, this would help policymakers address scarcity of fodder.

The project assumes significance when pitched against the current fodder growing pattern in India. While India is the largest milk producing country in the world, around 80 per cent of dairy farmers are small and marginal and contribute to 70 per cent of total milk production. They, however, do not own much land. According to estimates only five per cent of the country’s farmland is devoted to fodder farming.

Isro had earlier developed crop production forecast technology for major food crops, using remote sensing techniques. However, fodder crops are normally grown sparsely and on very small plots, said an NDDB official.

“This makes the job of discrimination of these crops through remote sensing quite challenging,” he added.

The pilot project at Banaskantha estimated the area under green fodder crops in the district (81,000 hectares) and fallow areas as well as cultivable wastelands (57,000 hectares) with 77 per cent accuracy level. It also pointed out that around 35 per cent of the villages in the district have more than five per cent wasteland which could be developed to grow fodder.

The aim of the study was to generate data that could help in using available fodder optimally, the NDDB official added.

This would help in planning the fodder supply chain in case of any shortage in a particular area. Fodder prices have nearly doubled in the past 10 years and fodder shortage is estimated to rise to 400 million tonnes by 2025. This study will now be scaled up on the national level.

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Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service is pleased to deliver a New Service Release from 13 April 2016.

As of today, a new service release of the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) is available to users.

This new release offers improvements related to the product and service portfolios, such as period extension for reanalyses or addition of new variables (“Mixed Layer Depth” and “Bottom Temperature”) in models .

In total:
18 new products have been added to the CMEMS catalogue;
18 products have been removed from the catalogue;
82 products have been updated.

A detailed description of these evolutions is available here.

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MARKHAM, Ontario, Canada – April 14, 2016: PCI Geomatics, a world leading developer of remote sensing and photogrammetric software and systems, announced today a renewed partnership with its reseller for Southern Africa.

MapAfrika, a well-established company based in Johannesburg, has been providing land surveying services, camera systems and software to the Southern African region for many years. In addition, MapAfrika provides Geomatica and GXL image production systems and solutions to a growing number of customers who are leveraging the power of the satellite and aerial image processing technology developed by PCI Geomatics.

“Geomatica is fast becoming the chosen remote sensing and photogrammetry solution for universities, government agencies and mapping companies throughout Africa”, said Kevin Melhuish, President and Owner of MapAfrika.

The increased use of Geomatica in the region can be traced back to key initiatives such as the one initiated in March 2015, which established a unique partnership between PCI Geomatics, MapAfrika, and Stellenbosh University. An Education Alliance agreement was implemented to promote cooperation and information exchange between top researchers and industrial partners to advance remote sensing and image processing methods.

“PCI greatly values the contributions of higher-learning institutions to advance our collective knowledge of remote sensing science and applications,” said Arnold Hougham, VP of Sales and Marketing at PCI Geomatics. “Our partnership with Stellenbosch University, which includes the participation of our reseller MapAfrika, has already yielded excellent collaboration on our latest DEM extraction research and product releases. Feedback has been collected from top researchers to further improve specific algorithms in Geomatica”.

MapAfrika will be responsible for customers from an increased number of countries in Africa, including South Africa, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia, Malawi, Angola, Tanzania, Madagascar, Mauritius, DR Congo, Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda.

About PCI Geomatics

PCI Geomatics is a world-leading developer of software and systems for remote sensing, geo-image processing, and photogrammetry. With more than 30 years of experience in the geospatial industry, PCI is recognized globally for its excellence in providing software for accurately and rapidly processing satellite and aerial imagery. There are more than 30,000 PCI licenses, in over 150 countries worldwide.

Find out more about PCI Geomatics at www.pcigeomatics.com.

About MapAfrika
MapAfrika was founded in Johannesburg, South Africa as a surveying company serving South Africa and its neighbouring countries, providing engineering, topographic and cadastral surveying services. In 2000, MapAfrika was appointed as reseller for PCI Geomatics in Southern Africa and has been selling Geomatica and GXL licenses to companies, universities and government institutions in South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, Mozambique. MapAfrika has also been a Vexcel sales partner for Southern Africa since 2011, selling Ultracam digital aerial cameras. The mix of surveying services with remote sensing and photogrammetry make a good combination.
Find out more about MapAfrika at http://go.pcigeomatics.com/e/13502/2016-04-14/2ckshp/271051962

The 1st European Geospatial Business Summit will be organized alongside Geospatial World Forum starting from May 23-26, 2016, in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. The summit attempts to bring together leaders of European geospatial business and stakeholders and facilitate collaborative business transactions in a two-day event.

The event will witness 7 exciting sessions comprising of 45 speakers from the region.The platform is shaping up to be a unique and exclusive platform that’ll demonstrate the evolving geospatial business models and offer European geospatial professionals and companies the opportunity to learn, collaborate, and optimize their business dimensions. The summit promises to be an interactive platform to share experiences and learn from like-minded peers.
There are numerous reasons why you should be present at the event. Here’s a few reasons why you should block your calendar for May 24 – 25, 2016

  • Insights on geospatial business trends and opportunities in Europe
  • First-hand information on expanding European business outreach to international market
  • Discover the ‘pros’ and ‘cons’ of establishing start-ups in Europe
  • Showcase of the latest technology trends in Europe

As part of our campaign towards developing this platform, Geospatial Media and Communications has been undertaking market research activities in the form of survey questionnaires and round-table discussions in major cities across Europe. The findings of these activities will be summarized in a ‘Geospatial Business Outlook Report’, which will be produced and distributed to the delegates at the European Geospatial Business Summit. Click here to participate in the survey.