In order to better and properly manage the environment in the Tam Giang-Cau Hai Lagoon, decision makers need to be provided with the information that is as complete and up-to-date as possible on changes in land cover and land uses in the area. The land-use data is also useful to understand the influence of land-use activities and their changes on the lagoon ecosystem over time.

The IMOLA Project, together with the Center of GeoTechnologies at the University of Siena, undertook the complete land-use mapping for the areas surrounding the lagoon for three independent years, using a set of satellite imageries with an extensive sessions of field validation ("ground truthing").

Particulars of the Land Use Survey

In this land-use mapping process, the satellite imagineries from SPOT5, ASTER, and LANDSAT were obtained and photointerpreted, and six 1:50,000-scale and sixteen 1:25,000-scale topographic maps were scanned and digitized as topographic references. To validate the results, more than 400 ground-truth points were surveyed in August 2006 and July 2007, and more than 400 pictures were taken to assist the photointerpreters in studying the satellite images.

[Click on the map to enlarge]
1989	2000	2006