Title: Synergistic use of FIA plot data and Landsat 7 ETM+ images for large area forest mapping

Author: Huang, Chengquan; Yang, Limin; Homer, Collin; Coan, Michael; Rykhus, Russell; Zhang, Zheng; Wylie, Bruce; Hegge, Kent; Zhu, Zhiliang; Lister, Andrew; Hoppus, Michael; Tymcio, Ronald; DeBlander, Larry; Cooke, William; McRoberts, Ronald; Wendt, Daniel; Weyermann, Dale

Year: 2002

Publication: In: McRoberts, Ronald E.; Reams, Gregory A.; Van Deusen, Paul C.; Moser, John W., eds. Proceedings of the Thrid Annual Forest Inventory and Analysis Symposium; Gen. Tech. Rep. NC-230. St. Paul, MN: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, North Central Research Station: 50-55

Abstract: FIA plot data were used to assist in classifying forest land cover from Landsat imagery and relevant ancillary data in two regions of the U.S.: one around the Chesapeake Bay area and the other around Utah. The overall accuracies for the forest/nonforest classification were over 90 percent and about 80 percent, respectively, in the two regions. The accuracies for deciduous/evergreen/mixed and forest type group classifications were around 80 percent and 65 percent, respectively, and were consistent in the two regions. These results suggest that use of FIA plot data together with satellite imagery and relevant ancillary data may substantially improve the efficiency, accuracy, and consistency of large area forest land cover mapping.