Distance From Forest Edge In The Pantropics: Geospatial Raster for Biomass Modeling

Distancefromforestedge_pantropics.zip is a geotiff file providing pixel-level distance in meters to the nearest forest edge across the pantropics, based on forest definitions from Baccini et al., 2012. The dataset includes a shapefile with regression coefficients for three methods to calculate biomass storage within 100km grid cells. It was authored by Richard Sharp of Stanford University.

Use Cases

• Modeling biomass storage in forest edges based on the provided regression methods.
• Analyzing spatial patterns of forest fragmentation across the pantropics based on distance-to-edge metrics.
• Estimating carbon dioxide emissions from deforestation using the carbon-density mapping framework referenced in the description.

Strengths

• Based on a peer-reviewed forest definition and carbon mapping methodology from a 2012 Nature Climate Change publication.
• Includes specific mathematical models (three regression methods) for calculating biomass from distance data.
• Covers the pantropical region, suggesting a broad spatial scope.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.
• Row count and exact file size are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

Richard Sharp, Stanford University, via paperswithcode.

Collection Method

Derived from geospatial analysis using forest edge definitions from Baccini et al., 2012.

Geography

Pantropical region.