Vegetation Recovery Classification from Landsat Imagery in Alberta

Annual Vegetation Recovery Classification Results from the Alberta Energy Regulator's Play-Based Regulation pilot study area. The dataset classifies vegetation recovery into six land cover classes using Landsat multispectral imagery from 2005 and 2006. It was created by the Government of Alberta to assess surface change from energy exploration.

Use Cases

• Classify pixels into one of six land cover types (shrub land, grassland, agricultural areas, coniferous forest, broadleaf forest, mixed forest) using Landsat spectral bands.
• Analyze vegetation recovery patterns following anthropogenic disturbances like oil and gas infrastructure by comparing 2005 and 2006 classifications.
• Map the spatial extent of different recovery vegetation classes across the defined pilot area from Twp. 52 to Twp. 70.
• Validate or train machine learning models for land use and land cover (LULC) classification using historical, region-specific labeled imagery.

Strengths

• Derived from Landsat multispectral imagery, providing standardized, multi-temporal earth observation data.
• Classification into six distinct, ecologically relevant vegetation recovery classes (1-6).
• Covers a defined geographic area spanning multiple townships and several towns in Alberta.

Limitations

• Data is temporally limited, covering only two years (2005-2006), which may not capture longer-term recovery trends.
• The classification is specific to a single pilot study area in Alberta, limiting geographic generalizability.
• Underlying image resolution is constrained by the Landsat sensor capabilities of that era.

Provenance

Source

Government of Alberta, Alberta Energy Regulator (AER).

Collection Method

Produced using Landsat multispectral imagery for 2005 and 2006 and Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) classification data derived from 2006.

Time Range

2005 to 2006.

Freshness

Last updated record is 2026-03-04, but the underlying imagery and analysis are from 2005-2006.

Geography

Alberta, Canada. Specifically, the Play-Based Regulation pilot area from Twp. 52, Rge. 7, W 5th Mer. to Twp. 70, Rge. 5, W 6th Mer., covering towns including Edson, Fox Creek, Mayerthorpe, Whitecourt, Swan Hills, and Valleyview.