Monitoring the status and trends of species habitat, vegetation communities, watersheds, and invasive species is a critical component of natural resource management. Ecological monitoring programs are often challenged by lack of funding, inconsistent data acquisition over time, the complexity of data analysis, and the requirement for specialized skills. 

Remote sensing technology and analytical algorithms have revolutionized the ability to identify and map natural resources at landscape scales. Machine learning and artificial intelligence help scale observations from lidar, commercial satellites, and sensors affixed to UAS. Increasing the pace and efficacy of natural resource surveys and site mapping is a priority for managers and installation environmental staff. 

SERDP and ESTCP demonstrate and validate advanced and emerging monitoring methods and remote sensing technologies on DoD lands to improve the efficiency, scale, and accuracy of: population and habitat assessments for threatened, endangered and at-risk species; ecosystem health; resilience and trends monitoring; assessing fire risk and documenting fire effects; watershed health assessments; invasive species detection; species migrations; and carbon sequestration estimates.