Official Statistics using Earth Observation

In recent years there has been increased interest in the concept of “Smart Statistics”, where traditional sources of official statistics, such as surveys and administrative data, are complemented by information from new types of sensors, including satellite imaging. Organisations such as the United Nations Statistical office (UNSTAT), the European Statistical Office (EUROSTAT) as well as many national statistical offices (NSOs) are currently seeking to incorporate satellite imagery and other space-based data sources into their operational workflows.

The aim is to take advantage of the many new sources of EO data, especially the free data available through the EU’s Copernicus programme. The frequent revisit time and wide spatial coverage makes EO data very suitable to official statistics; however, before such sources can be formally adopted it is necessary to prove that they are sufficiently reliable to meet the formal requirements.

Agricultural Statistics

Food security is one of the world’s greatest challenges. To help manage this, a wide range of timely data and information is needed. The requirements for agriculture information are quite specific because of the strategic importance and the dynamic nature of food production, food availability and food prices in any country. The ESA funded Sen4STAT project has demonstrated a set of EO-based tools and products supporting collection of agricultural statistics which can be integrated in the workflows of NSOs.

Figure: Satellite imagery is revolutionising agriculture and can help farmers and public authorities take land monitoring to a new level. Credit: ESA.

Ecosystem Accounting

Ecosystem accounts are inherently spatial, depending on the availability of spatially explicit datasets. EO data s offer unprecedent opportunities for countries to efficiently monitor the extent and condition of their ecosystems, determine ecosystem services and implement their ecosystem accounting. However, the practical use of EO is limited due to a number of conceptual and technical challenges. The PEOPLE-EA project has created a number of tools and case studies that support the uptake of EO data by NSOs.

For instance, Wood Provision ecosystem service Accounts aim to quantify and track the supply of wood products from forests, woodlands, or other ecosystems over time. It involves assessing factors such as the volume of timber harvested, the value of the wood products produced, and the ecological impact of harvesting on the ecosystem's ability to continue providing wood in the future.

Figure: The Net Annual Increment (NAI) overbark shows more than 12 million m³ is available for wood supply, mainly located in the two eastern provinces in Slovakia. A validation was performed on two predominant species: European Beech (hardwood) and Norway Spruce (softwood). The results show an R² of 0.24.

Sustainable Development Goals

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) enable countries and the global community to measure, manage, and monitor progress on economic, social and environmental sustainability. EO plays an insightful role in monitoring targets, planning, tracking progress, and helping nations and stakeholders make informed decisions, plans, and on-going adjustments that will contribute toward achieving the SDGs.

Figure: Forest Area Gain and Loss between 2017 and 2020 in Ethiopia

Other Examples

The case studies gathered by the SEF show the breadth of possible applications of satellite data, any of which could be adapted to the purposes of gathering official statistics. The ESA-funded GAUSS project worked with statistical agencies across Europe to implement several examples, around air pollution, condition of green areas, drought indicators and snow statistics.

Figure: Air quality categorised by municipal level in Greece in January 2020. Source: GAUSS project’s report.

Further resources

Relevant ESA projects

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