GIS Mapping for Forestry

GIS mapping of a forest with forestry-related icons and labels.
Stylized graphic of a mountainous region on a map.
Hero Image

Become your own GIS specialist with Nova

Geographic Information System (GIS) technology has revolutionized the way we understand and manage our natural resources. In the realm of forestry, GIS mapping has become an indispensable tool for integrated planning, monitoring, and decision-making. As drones are quickly becoming an essential tool for foresters across America, you and your teams need powerful, easy-to-use software to unlock new insights about the woodlands you manage. 

From silviculture strategy and reforestation to timber volume estimations, Nova enables forestry professionals to create better maps, faster. 

Traditional methods of gathering data in the forestry industry are time-consuming and expensive. Get the insights you need and the analytics you want, all laid out on an easy-to-create map on Nova, without the need for a GIS degree. Nova simplifies the data collection and analysis process, making it accessible to professionals with varying levels of technical expertise. Nova allows for the quickest method of sharing information from the drone in the sky to the decision-makers on the ground. 

Get started

Featured Plugins

Visual Imagery and Orthomosaics

Unlock the full potential of your forestry data with Nova's MapMosaic plugin. MapMosaic empowers you to quickly create high-resolution orthomosaics that can be transformed into detailed PDF maps or integrated with Nova's other plugins for a comprehensive, data-rich environment. This synergy elevates your forestry management, enabling more informed decision-making and effective collaboration.

MapMosaic streamlines the process of stitching together hundreds of drone-captured images, handling complex photogrammetry, image distortion correction, and file conversions with ease. This efficiency frees up your time to focus on the mission at hand, ensuring that your projects are completed with precision and speed.

Orthomosaics are invaluable GIS tools in forestry, offering a detailed overview of the landscape. They are instrumental in assessing deforestation, tracking reforestation efforts, monitoring forest health, and supporting forest mapping and inventory projects. With MapMosaic, you can harness the power of these detailed aerial views to gain insights into your forested areas, enhancing your management practices and contributing to the sustainability of these vital ecosystems.

Hotspot Detection

Nova’s Hotspot plugin by Fire AI is a revolutionary piece of technology that allows forestry professionals the ability to monitor burning operations in the winter months. Ensuring that your piles are out isn’t a recommendation, but a requirement. Your biggest asset is your existing and growing stands, making sure you double, triple check piles for remaining heat is a must.

The Hotspot plugin takes infrared data from your drone and automatically identifies and locates any remaining heat on the landscape. Hotspots can be tough to see in deep piles. Fire AI’s hotspot detection uses a machine learning algorithm that has been trained on over a million hotspots collected on wildfires and burn piles in the last decade, reassuring you that no hotspot will go unnoticed. Placing these hotspots to within 10ft (~3m) of their location means its quick for your teams to action and extinguish any risk in your blocks.

Video Footage

Nova's VideoSync feature is a crucial tool for forestry professionals looking to enhance their mapping and data analysis capabilities. VideoSync synchronizes drone-recorded video footage with the corresponding flight path on a map, providing a dynamic view of the forest landscape as the drone navigates its route.

This seamless integration of video and GIS spatial data offers invaluable insights into forest management and conservation efforts. Whether you're monitoring tree health, assessing the impact of environmental changes, or evaluating the success of reforestation projects, VideoSync brings a new level of detail and context to your analysis. By correlating visual information with precise geographic locations, you can easily identify specific areas of interest and make informed decisions based on comprehensive data.

Incorporating Nova's VideoSync feature into your forestry workflows not only enhances your understanding of the terrain but also streamlines your data collection and analysis processes. This unique capability empowers you to unlock deeper insights into your forested areas, ensuring more effective and sustainable management practices.

GIS Applications in the Forestry Industry

In the forestry industry, where natural disasters such as wildfires, landslides, storms, and floods can have devastating effects, effective disaster management is crucial. Nova plays a vital role in this context by providing rapid data processing capabilities, enabling forestry professionals to quickly map and assess damage. This timely and accurate information is essential for making informed decisions during critical situations, allowing for efficient allocation of resources and prioritization of areas for intervention. Nova’s foundation of collaboration and engagement ensures that team members are always in the know and can get the updates they need in real-time.

Nova's high-resolution imagery and detailed maps help identify specific areas of concern, such as weakened tree stands or eroded soil, facilitating targeted actions. This mitigates further damage and plan for sustainable reconstruction. Moreover, the software supports preventive measures, emergency response, recovery, and rehabilitation efforts, as well as planning and preparedness activities, enhancing the overall disaster management efforts in the forestry industry. By leveraging Nova, forestry managers can effectively reduce the impact of natural disasters, ensuring a quicker return to normalcy for affected ecosystems and communities.