Application of Remote Sensing for Above-Ground Biomass Estimation

Forests are considered carbon reservoirs and plays a critical role in modeling carbon balance. The total amount of above-ground and below-ground organic matter of plant parts is called biomass. The forest aboveground biomass (AGB) estimation is important for climate change mitigation programs. Remote sensing (RS) based AGB estimation methods have gained importance and substantial research has been conducted in the past thirty years. This review paper provides a survey of aboveground biomass estimation methods using RS and demonstrates the benefits of RS over traditional methods. Optical data, Radio Detection and Ranging (RADAR), and Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) systems are the primary sources for AGB estimation. The literature review demonstrates the importance of biomass, description of various methods used for above-ground biomass estimation, and also reviews various attempts made by Indian researchers for estimating aboveground biomass using RS. This review has indicated the limitations of using single sensor data and the importance of integrating multi-sensor data to produce accurate results. More research is needed to reduce the data saturation problem through the use of advanced image processing technologies.