NATIONAL-SCALE ONTARIO LAND COVER (OLC):

AN OVERVIEW OF ONTARIO'S VEGETATION AND LAND SURFACE

 

What is the National-Scale OLC?

 

The National-Scale Ontario Land Cover (OLC) maps the forest types, waterbodies, wetlands, farmland, and towns and cities, over the 1-million square-kilometre territory of the province of Ontario. These maps show what actually appears on the earth's surface rather than how the land is used. The information on the maps is derived from satellite image data recorded mainly in the early 1990s by the Thematic Mapper sensor on Landsat earth-resource satellites. The information on forest cutovers and burns, however, is derived from 1996 images.

 

The data set consists of 92 1:250,000-scale map sheets in digital form. The maps were developed from a land cover data base for Ontario created by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources during the 1990s. That Ontario data base was the first in Canada to provide complete provincial land cover mapping from satellite remote sensing technology alone. The land cover types were identified by the characteristic way in which they reflected the various wavelengths of sunlight. While the mapping process itself was largely automated, the criteria by which the mapping was done were drawn from expert visual interpretation of the satellite data and extensive field knowledge.

 

The OLC has long-lasting information value, insofar as many aspects of the land cover picture change very slowly. As a digital product generated from repetitive satellite coverage, the land cover information is readily updated. Perhaps most importantly, however, the National-Scale OLC represents Ontario's land cover conditions at a particular point in time, and thus provides a baseline for future environmental monitoring.

 

The National-Scale OLC is a telling example of how the Canadian investment in remote sensing technology has fulfilled its promise. It represents the first in a new series of national geographic information products for Canada: Satellite Land Cover.

 

What Are the Objectives of the National-Scale OLC?

 

·         To give Canadians in government, industry and education broad-scale information on the land cover of a large segment of the country.

·         To provide the basis for broad-scale monitoring of vegetation across Ontario.

·         To provide the basis for some broad-scale inferences on land use and environmental quality across Ontario.

·         To give resource and land managers a common, broad-scale geographic reference source for consultation with stakeholders.

·         To stimulate the application of remote sensing and GIS technologies and promote realization of their benefits.

·         To lay the cornerstone of a new national geographic product, Satellite Land Cover.

·         To stimulate the geomatics industry by providing a new data source and by promoting the use of geomatics technologies.

 

How was the National-Scale OLC Produced?

 

In 1999, GeoInnovations sponsored a project to prepare the Ontario land cover data for distribution, free of charge, via GeoGratis. This project involved converting the Ontario provincial land cover data base of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources into a national-scale information product. The original 28 provincial-scale land cover classes were translated into 15 national-scale land cover classes, and the spatial resolution, or smallest information element, was generalized from 25 metres to 100 metres. The data was converted from a raster format to a vector format. Finally, the data set was segmented into 1:250,000-scale NTS map sheets.

 

Who were the Partners in the National-Scale OLC Project?

 

GeoInnovations provided essential funding for converting the OLC to a national-scale product for distribution via GeoGratis. The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources provided the source provincial-scale land cover data, made a financial contribution to the project, and provided technical coordination. The National-Scale OLC was produced by two Canadian private-sector contractors, Spectranalysis Inc. (a remote sensing consulting company based in Oakville, Ontario) and Spatialanalysis (an Ottawa-based GIS consulting firm). These contractors brought unique specialization to the project: Spectranalysis Inc. had produced most of the Ontario provincial-scale land cover data base, and Spatialanalysis had prepared the historical Canada Land Inventory for distribution via GeoGratis.

 

How Can Users Obtain the National-Scale OLC?

 

Users can obtain the National-Scale OLC free of charge through the GeoGratis site of CEONet. They select the 1:250,000-scale map sheet area(s) they require from an index map. They can view the map before downloading it. They can readily identify the map sheets that lie on all sides of their selected map(s). Users select from either latitude/longitude or UTM projection. The data is downloaded by 1:250,000-scale NTS map sheet units. A "readme" file describing the data set automatically downloads with each map sheet. A Windows metafile is also provided with each map sheet so that users can print the data.

 

What Land Cover Types are Mapped?

 

The following are the land cover classes included in the National-Scale OLC:

 

1.  Water. The delineation of water bodies is based on the spectral signature of the imagery and is not derived from a secondary map source. Hence, the boundaries of water bodies may differ from that of topographic base maps.

 

2.  Marshes. Tidal marshes of the Hudson Bay - James Bay lowland, freshwater coastal marshes, and inland marshes (seasonal marshes, cattail marshes, and grassy meadow  marshes).

 

3. Open Wetlands. Open fens (including grassy fens with open pools occurring most extensively in the Hudson Bay - James Bay lowlands) and open bogs (including bogs with some partial cover of stunted trees occurring generally in the province but most extensively in the Hudson Bay - James Bay lowlands; and "string bogs" of the Hudson Bay - James Bay lowlands which have a high proportion of open water surface). 

 

4.  Treed Wetlands. Fens with dense shrub and tamarack tree cover occurring generally in the province but most extensively in the Hudson Bay - James Bay lowlands; and bogs with low- to high-density tree cover. Some degree of overlap exists between treed bog and sparse conifer forest in more northerly parts of the province, especially in the Hudson Bay-James Bay  lowlands.

 

5. Tundra Heath.  Areas of dense ericaceous (heather-like) vegetation occurring on better-drained areas, found only in the Hudson Bay coastal zone.

 

6. Dense Deciduous Forest. Largely continuous forest canopy composed approximately 80 percent of deciduous species; includes deciduous shrub cover on old burns and alder thicket swamps in the Hudson Bay-James Bay lowlands.

 

7. Dense Coniferous Forest.. Largely continuous forest canopy composed approximately 80 percent of coniferous species; includes dense conifer swamp in the Hudson Bay-James Bay lowlands; includes mature conifer plantations, mostly pine, growing in evenly spaced rows, mainly in Southern Ontario; does not include artificially regenerated cutovers or burns in Northern Ontario.

 

8.  Mixed Forest. Largely continuous forest canopy of both coniferous and deciduous species.

 

9. Sparse Forest. Patchy or sparse forest canopy (approximately 30 to 40 percent canopy closure) composed of either coniferous (mainly in northerly regions of Ontario) or deciduous species, or both.

 

10. Early Successional Forest. Forest growing on clear-cuts and burns estimated at less than 10 years of age.

 

11. Successional Forest. Forest growing on clear-cuts and burns estimated at more than 10 years of age.

 

12. Mine Tailings, Quarries, Bedrock Outcrops, Mud Flats. Areas of minimal vegetation cover including mine tailings; rock and gravel quarries; rocky Great Lakes shorelines; bedrock outcrops; and mudflats on the Hudson Bay and James Bay coast.

 

13. Settlement and Developed Land. Clearings for human settlement and economic activity; larger transportation routes.

 

14. Agriculture. Row crops, hay crops, open soil, open grassland with sparse shrubs, and orchard land.

 

15. Unclassified Areas. Cloud and shadow areas, within the provincial study area.

 

99. Outside Study Area. Land or water areas, including small islands, within the NTS map area  but outside the provincial study area.

 

 

To Obtain the Original, Provincial-Scale Ontario Land Cover:

 

Users can obtain the original, provincial-scale land cover data set, in customized excerpts, on a partial-cost-recovery basis, from the following source:

 

Geomatics and Data Acquisition Section

Natural Resources Information Branch

Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources

300 Water Street, North Tower, 2nd Floor

Peterborough, Ontario K9J 8M5

 

Attention:  David White

Telephone 705-755-1470; Fax 705-755-1640

E-mail: david.white@mnr.gov.on.ca

 

Background Information on the Provincial-Scale Ontario Land Cover Data Base

 

In the early 1990s, the Natural Resources Information Branch (NRIB) of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources began to compile a land cover data base for the province derived from Landsat TM data. This initiative built upon several extensive, regional land cover data sets commissioned by the Forest Landscape Ecology Program of the Ontario Forest Research Institute (OFRI). NRIB added data sets for other regions of the province through a series of private-sector contracts until, by the end of the decade, complete provincial coverage was achieved. In 1996, the forest cutovers and burns in the data base were updated. In 1998/99, the entire data base was rationalized to minimize inconsistencies that existed between the classifications prepared to meet the earlier OFRI objectives and those prepared for NRIB.

 

The Provincial-Scale Ontario Land Cover data base serves a wide range of applications. Landscape ecological analyses have been conducted of Ontario forests, both across the province and within ecoregions and ecodistricts. Wildlife habitat mapping and assessment has been carried out. Inventories of wetlands and specific forest types have been performed for areas of particular interest to public resource managers and the forest industry. The land cover data have also provided a basic GIS layer for various development planning projects. At the level of province-wide planning and monitoring, the Provincial-Scale Ontario Land Cover provides a baseline for monitoring Ontario’s progress toward long-term environmental objectives.

 

While several provinces have produced land cover and resource data bases for substantial areas of their territory from remote sensing data, the province of Ontario was the first to generate a continuous land cover data base of its entire territory by satellite data classification.

 

Ontario's early leadership in remote sensing was based on its history as a leader in aerial photography and photogrammetry, particularly with respect to forest inventory. As early as 1973, Ontario established within OMNR a multidisciplinary provincial remote sensing centre known as the Ontario Centre for Remote Sensing, or OCRS. OCRS worked with a wide range of public and private-sector organizations in the province to develop remote sensing applications for natural resource management.

 

Over the years, OCRS underwent several transformations. Today, it is the Geomatics and Data Acquisition Section of the Natural Resources Information Branch (NRIB) that manages the acquisition of remote sensing consulting services for the Ontario Government, acts as custodian of the provincial remote sensing data resources, and provides consultation in remote sensing applications to Ontario users from all sectors of the economy. This program plays a key role in Ontario's initiative to integrate information on the land base, natural resources, infrastructure, and public services into a consistent, georeferenced, provincial land information system.