National land cover data
Sweden is growing and with it the pressure on our natural resources. In order to protect biodiversity and sustainable development, national information about the landscape is needed. Therefore, on behalf of the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, we are mapping the whole of Sweden and creating information that will be freely available as open data. The project has been named National Land Cover Data (NMD).
A common basis for everyone
NMD will be a common basis for describing and analyzing the entire Swedish green infrastructure: land cover, nature and forest types. This will enable the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency and other stakeholders to monitor how the landscape changes over time in relation to the goals of the 2030 Agenda. The data can then be used as a basis for environmental impact assessments, climate and vulnerability analyses, and for municipal detailed and comprehensive plans.
- "It is very valuable that we are creating a joint database between several authorities that describes the current land cover for the whole of Sweden. It will facilitate the planning, analysis and reporting of our protected areas and will be of great benefit to many other parts of social planning," says Birgitta Olsson, administrator at the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency.
Making the right decisions now and in the future
The information will be updated regularly to reflect the reality of
changes in reality. This means that both the Swedish EPA and other social actors can analyze the information to make change analyses. NMD is available as open data and can be downloaded via links in the Swedish EPA's Environmental Data Portal.
Mapping of the entire Swedish land cover using satellite images
The mapping is done using remote sensing of satellite images and laser data. The aim is to obtain better information about the landscape and how it is changing.
- "I see it as a great advantage to be involved in this national mapping. It is when we work systematically and regularly that we can see how nature is changing, both through natural processes and human influence. We help with the data collection and with the analysis that makes the data available and easy to use for everyone," says Camilla Jönsson, senior GIS and remote sensing consultant at Metria.
Facts about National Land Cover Data
National Land Cover Data (NLCD) is funded by a stakeholder steering group consisting of the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency with support from Statistics Sweden, the Swedish Forest Agency, the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency, the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management, the Swedish Transport Administration and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. The aim is to map the whole of Sweden between 2017 and 2019 and then to update the information regularly.
The project includes a reference group that, in addition to the above authorities, consists of: the Swedish National Space Board, the National Board of Housing, Building and Planning, Lantmäteriet, the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI), the Swedish Geotechnical Institute (SGI), the Geological Survey of Sweden (SGU), the Swedish Board of Agriculture, the Sami Parliament, the Swedish Armed Forces (GeoSE), the Swedish National Heritage Board, the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (SKL), the County Administrative Boards of Norrbotten, Västmanland and Stockholm counties and Stockholm University.
Watch a movie about National Land Cover Data
Download National Land Cover Data (Swedish Environmental Protection Agency)