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Hitachi Systems case study
Monitoring Japanese community forests  

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Monitoring forests to optimize their health, impact and carbon value

 

 

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Challenge

 

Hitachi Systems work with local governments in Japan to design digital solutions supporting their sustainable development. 

Hitachi and their client, a local authority, were looking for a solution to monitor the health and carbon sequestration of a 3900 hectares forest on Japan’s Honshu mainland.

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Image by Andrew Coelho
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Solution

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Hitachi Systems selected Everimpact to monitor the forest and assess the best approach to manage the land for optimal health and carbon sequestration, while paving the way to access funding from carbon markets.

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The solution was based on the following: 

  • Best in class satellite imagery  

  • Expert carbon and biomass analysis based on gross productivity dynamics indicators, land use changes and forest productivity models since 2001

  • Climate change impact modeling using IPCC scenarios

  • Everimpact’s team’s in depth knowledge of sustainable forestry practices 

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The data is being made available to Hitachi Systems through an API and is used to create dashboards for land & forestry managers from the local authority.

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Impact 
 

Everimpact's advanced monitoring platform and forestry expertise has empowered Hitachi Systems and their clients to accurately assess the carbon stock, identify several factors impacting the forest health and sequestration capacity.

This allowed to identify and plan significant mitigation actions related to climate change adaptation and biodiversity-oriented forest management strategy. 

The insight and the related mitigation actions are a prerequisite to generate carbon credits.

Everimpact also advised on the best methodology to generate carbon credits.

Findings

  • The forest is losing diversity 

  • The forest is aging - 70 years old, as a consequence, its NDVI is declining

  • Modeling the impact of climate change (using IPCC scenarios) on the land revealed the land is expected to be drier under the effect of temperature rise and steady rainfall. This creates higher wildfire risk for the incumbent species -conifers.

  • Current carbon sequestration levels were established.

  • Future carbon sequestration levels were simulated with and without mitigation measures

Key mitigation measures identified to increase carbon storage and generate credits

  • Intervention required to remove older trees to make space for natural regeneration 

  • Plant younger trees to increase sequestration levels and biodiversity

  • Regenerate forest with broadleaf species which are more adapted to a hotter and drier climate

  • The forest inventories need to be corrected to be more accurate and consistent

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