Use of Remote Sensing and GIS in
Agriculture and Related Disciplines
Dhammika Dayawansa
Department of Agricultural Engineering
Faculty of Agriculture
University of Peradeniya
Geo-Informatics Education at University of
Peradeniya
• Two postgraduate programmes
– Postgraduate Institute of Agriculture - PGIA
– Postgraduate Institute of Science – PGIS
– Course on GIS and Remote Sensing for other postgraduate students
– Applications in research
• Undergraduate programmes
– Courses on remote sensing and GIS are offered for the undergraduates
in many faculties including Arts, Agriculture, Science and Engineering
– Use of geo-informatics technology in undergraduate research
• Short term training programmes
Remote Sensing
• acquisition of information of an object or a process, without
physical contact
Remote Sensing data sources
Satellite images
Aerial photographs
Geographical Information Systems
(GIS)
A system that
captures, stores,
analyzes, manages,
and presents data
that are linked to
locations
Can relate different
information in a
spatial context
Geo-Informatics and agriculture
• Remote Sensing, GIS and allied disciplines can be
used in
– Assessment of crop area extent
– Management of water resources
– Identification of pest attacks and diseases
– Yield assessment studies
– Land suitability assessment for agriculture
– Disaster management
– Precision agriculture
Assessment of crop area extent
• Assessment of crop area extent is useful in yield
forecasting, water and other input management
• Satellite images can be used to identify the crops
using
– Visual interpretation
– Digital image interpretation
– Expert classification techniques – knowledge based
classifier
Assessment of crop area extent
Paddy areas in Mahaweli System C with
different false colour composites (FCCs)
Paddy area extracted
by visual
interpretation of IRS
LISS II images
Paddy area extracted by
supervised classification of
IRS LISS III image
Paddy area extracted by
supervised classification of
ASTER image
Use of suitable satellite sensor in identification of crop areas is
important to improve the accuracy of the output
Management of water resources
• Identification and mapping of surface water
Infrared satellite images –
Identification of surface water
bodies
Inventory of water bodies,
reservoir capacity
calculation, identifying
seasonal fluctuations of
water levels
Identification of tank water levels and
irrigation command areas
Water resources management with RS
and GIS
• Irrigated lands assessment and inventory
• Calculation of water requirement of crops and subsequent
water budgeting for command areas
• Assessment of water availability in rivers and reservoirs for
optimal management to meet irrigation demand
• Based on empirical relations with surface area, shoreline
length and volume or based on topographic features Determine volume of water stored and change in the level
with time
Water resources management with RS
and GIS
- Delineation of water
logged /saline areas
- Identification of aquatic
vegetation associated
with water logging
- Eutrophication and
pollution monitoring
Assessment of land
degradation using
Geo-Informatics
Assessment of crop yield and
yield forecasting
Mostly based on vegetation indices
such as Normalized Difference
Vegetation Index (NDVI)
- By developing relationships
between yield & other crop
parameters
eg: canopy cover
biomass content
Identification of pest attacks and
diseases
Based on
changes in pigmentation
chlorophyll content
leaf orientation
vegetative characteristics
tillering, branching
Land suitability assessment for
agriculture
• Land suitability for a given crop is based on
– Soil characteristics
– Existing land use
– Climatic factors such as rainfall and temperature
– Topography
– Availability of transportation facilities and agricultural
labour
– Availability of water sources for irrigation
Land suitability assessment for
agriculture
• Land suitability can be assessed through the
modeling capabilities available in GIS
Disaster management
- Disaster forecasting
eg: Floods, Droughts, Cyclones, Forest fires
- Disaster affected area estimations
eg: Flooded area
Drought prone agricultural lands
Forest Fires
Precision agriculture
- To identify potential agricultural
lands considering
* water availability
* Soil salinity, fertility
* Topography
Crop Health
Soil Fertility
- To identify fish resources in inland and
marine aquaculture
Remote Sensing
Collaboration
GIS
Sustainable Agriculture
Thank you very much for your attention