The Hémera Earth Observation Center was awarded the project "Development of activity data through sampling grids for the national estimation of REDD+ carbon emissions," promoted by the National Forestry Corporation (CONAF), which will establish a key methodology to strengthen Chile's National Forest Monitoring System.
Its execution, lasting 7 months, will be led by Waldo Pérez, director of the Hémera Center, who will work alongside a multidisciplinary team of nearly 30 professionals, who will articulate scientific and technological capabilities to address an environmental challenge of national scope. Among them, participants include Leonardo Durán, Enrique Arce, and Claudia Montoya, academics from the School of Forest Engineering; Carlos Maldonado, researcher at the Center for Genomics and Bioinformatics (CGB); Virginia Carter, researcher at the School of Government and Public Administration; as well as researchers and professionals from the Hémera Center, EngineeringForest students and external specialists
To this end, a national network of 13,366 evaluation points, distributed from Arica and Parinacota to Magallanes, will be analyzed using satellite images to identify changes in land use and land cover. The information obtained will allow for a more precise understanding of forest evolution and territorial transformations, strengthening the estimation of carbon emissions and removals in the forestry sector. Additionally, it will contribute to improving the quality, consistency, and traceability of the information that Chile reports within the framework of its international commitments to climate change.
The project will cover the country's four macrozones (arid, Mediterranean, temperate, and austral) and will include the implementation of a national pilot, specialist training, quality control processes, methodological validation, and the development of standardized procedures that will allow this methodology to be replicated in future updates of the National Forest Monitoring System. The entire process will be carried out using Earth observation technologies, geospatial interpretation platforms, and technical protocols created by CONAF.
For Waldo Pérez, this award represents significant recognition of the work they have carried out in applied research and technological innovation. "Contributing to the strengthening of the National Forest Monitoring System means putting our capabilities at the service of the country, generating robust scientific information that supports forest conservation, sustainable land management, and decision-making in the face of climate challenges," he said.
In this context, Leonardo Durán highlighted that the integration of forest knowledge with Earth observation technologies will allow for more accurate information. "This background will be key for the country's environmental decisions and reaffirms our commitment, as an institution, to the generation of applied knowledge, innovation, and technology transfer," he stated.
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to comment!
Leave a comment