The NSW Government has mapped, monitored and reported on landcover change since 2008.
Data collection
Our landcover data collections and imagery help us measure, monitor and compare the type, extent and condition of vegetation and land use across NSW.
This information:
- improves our understanding of landcover and landcover change
- provides the science to measure changes to our natural resources and biodiversity
- provides a consistent way to describe and map landcover and native vegetation
- supports effective decision making about land use
- contributes to legislative, environmental and land management decision making about land use
- helps identify impacts on resources, biodiversity and ecosystems
- enables statewide environmental reporting.
Monitoring and reporting
We monitor and report on landcover change due to clearing of native vegetation and fire.
Vegetation change
We use satellite imagery combined with comprehensive human interpretation and validation to detect and report vegetation change using the Statewide Landcover and Tree Study (SLATS) method.