Landfill operators must collect data on the topography of their landfills, their biological and hydrological characteristics, and local meteorological conditions. These data can be collected by satellite, using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, or by traditional methods such as static flux chambers or modelling. They serve as the basis for landfill monitoring, including the identification and measurement of methane (CH4) gas emissions. Here, we present an approach for landfill mapping using sensor data from unmanned aerial drone systems (UADS) based on DJI Matrice 200 UAVs with Zenmuse X4S sensors and Trimble UX5 UAVs with Sony NEX-5R sensors. RGB (Red, Green, Blue) and near infrared (NIR) data from these sensors were processed using a Geographic Information System (GIS) to generate orthoimages, digital elevation models (DEMs), and normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) maps. These were then used to evaluate changes in the surface structure and topography of the study area (Kariotiškės landfill, Lithuania). The NDVI maps were used to identify areas of sparse vegetation cover that may indicate localized CH4 emissions. Surface temperature maps based on thermal infrared (TIR) images were then prepared for analysis of these problematic areas. Finally, the presence of CH4 in these areas was investigated using a prototype lightweight gas sensor array. The structure of the Kariotiškės landfill site remained unchanged over three years, but there is evidence of possible CH4 gas influence at the landfill cover’s surface. The combination of UADS-mounted imaging systems and the prototype gas sensor array enabled rapid analysis of emission hotspots and of landfill topography.

It has been recently observed that aircrafts tend to be replaced by light, simple structure unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) or mini unmanned aerial vehicles (MUAV) with the purpose of updating the field of aerial photogrammetry. The built-in digital photo camera takes images of the Earth’s surface. To satisfy the photogrammetric requirements of the photographic images, it is necessary to carry out the terrestrial project planning of the flight path before the flight, to select the appropriate flying height, the time for acquiring images, the speed of the UAV, and other parameters. The paper presents the results of project calculations concerning the UAV flights and the analysis of the terrestrial images acquired during the field-testing flights. The experience carried out so far in the Lithuanian landscape is shown. The taken images have been processed by PhotoMod photogrammetric system. The paper presents the results of calculation of the project values of the UAV flights taking the images by digital camera Canon S100 and the analysis of the possibilities of the UAV orthophoto images’ mode.

H. sosnowskyi (Heracleum sosnowskyi) is a plant that is widespread both in Lithuania and other countries and causes abundant problems. The damage caused by the population of the plant is many-sided: it menaces the biodiversity of the land, poses risk to human health, and causes considerable economic losses. In order to find effective and complex measures against this invasive plant, it is very important to identify places and areas where H. sosnowskyi grows, carry out a detailed analysis, and monitor its spread to avoid leaving this process to chance. In this paper, the remote sensing methodology was proposed to identify territories covered with H. sosnowskyi plants (land classification). Two categories of land cover classification were used: supervised (human-guided) and unsupervised (calculated by software). In the application of the supervised method, the average wavelength of the spectrum of H. sosnowskyi was calculated for the classification of the RGB image and according to this, the unsupervised classification by the program was accomplished. The combination of both classification methods, performed in steps, allowed obtaining better results than using one. The application of authors’ proposed methodology was demonstrated in a Lithuanian case study discussed in this paper.

The present study aims at predicting future land use/land cover (LULC) and quantifying and mapping the ecosystem services (ESs) of water yield, outdoor recreation opportunity and food production in current (here, 2017) and future landscapes in Northern Iran, using the InVEST, Recreation Opportunity Spectrum (ROS) and yield models. To that end, two LULC scenarios known as business as usual (BAU) and protection-based (PB) plan were applied for 2028, using the Markov Artificial Neural Network and Multi-objective land allocation (MOLA) models. The results show that rapid urbanisation, caused by the expansion of human settlements and industrial areas, has led to a decline in the ESs in the region. Compared to the ESs in 2017, the service of water yield increases as urban expansion increases, whereas food production and recreation services decrease as urban expansion increases, under the BAU scenario. On the other hand, in the PB scenario, relatively better conditions can be observed for all three ESs. Considering that the ecological structures of this region have been severely affected by rapid urban expansion, the results of this research will be useful for maintaining the existing ESs and can greatly affect planning and decision-making regarding future development towards urban sustainability.