Erratum published on 19 January 2017,
see
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2017, 6(1), 22.
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2016, 5(12), 242; doi:10.3390/ijgi5120242
Integrating Multiple Spatial Datasets to Assess Protected Areas: Lessons Learnt from the Digital Observatory for Protected Areas (DOPA)
Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Directorate for Sustainable Resources, Ispra 21027, Italy
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editors: Duccio Rocchini and Wolfgang Kainz
Received: 23 September 2016 / Revised: 11 November 2016 / Accepted: 30 November 2016 / Published: 15 December 2016
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Spatial Ecology)
Abstract
The Digital Observatory for Protected Areas (DOPA) has been developed to support the European Union’s efforts in strengthening our capacity to mobilize and use biodiversity data so that they are readily accessible to policymakers, managers, researchers and other users. Assessing protected areas for biodiversity conservation at national, regional and international scales implies that methods and tools are in place to evaluate characteristics such as the protected areas’ connectivity, their species assemblages (including the presence of threatened species), the uniqueness of their ecosystems, and the threats these areas are exposed to. Typical requirements for such analyses are data on protected areas, information on species distributions and threat status, and information on ecosystem distributions. By integrating all these global data consistently in metrics and indicators, the DOPA provides the means to allow end-users to evaluate protected areas individually but also to compare protected areas at the country and ecoregion level to, for example, identify potential priorities for further conservation research, action and funding. Since the metrics and indicators are available through web services, the DOPA further allows end-users to develop their own applications without requiring management of large databases and processing capacities. In addition to examples illustrating how the DOPA can be used as an aid to decision making, we discuss the lessons learnt in the development of this global biodiversity information system, and outline planned future developments for further supporting conservation strategies. View Full-TextKeywords:
biodiversity conservation; web services; protected areas; Aichi Target 11; EU Biodiversity Strategy
▼
Figures
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. (CC BY 4.0).
Share & Cite This Article
MDPI and ACS Style
Dubois, G.; Bastin, L.; Bertzky, B.; Mandrici, A.; Conti, M.; Saura, S.; Cottam, A.; Battistella, L.; Martínez-López, J.; Boni, M.; Graziano, M. Integrating Multiple Spatial Datasets to Assess Protected Areas: Lessons Learnt from the Digital Observatory for Protected Areas (DOPA). ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf. 2016, 5, 242.
Note that from the first issue of 2016, MDPI journals use article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.
Related Articles
Article Metrics
Comments
[Return to top]
ISPRS Int. J. Geo-Inf.
EISSN 2220-9964
Published by MDPI AG, Basel, Switzerland
RSS
E-Mail Table of Contents Alert