CEMS On-Demand Mapping Annual Conference 2024

Meeting summary

The annual meeting aims to gather the CEMS on-demand community to exchange novelties and provide feedback on the provision and evolution of the service. The meeting focused on informing the community about the novelties, improving the EMS service, developing a new website with enhanced communication features, discussing the use of aerial imagery in emergency management, and emphasizing the importance of accurate data for effective emergency response.

The CEMS user conference is focused on improving the service, making it faster, higher quality, and more effective. The team is working on various aspects of the service, including collaboration with the European Space Agency and developing new services like the areal component.

New Website

The new website being developed will serve as a central entry point for all web applications. The website aims to enhance communication among all actors involved during an activation. The website will include features such as improved activation search, a new service request form, and a notification and messages platform. The URL for the new website will change to mapping.emergency.eu due to a restructure of the JRC. Different levels of accounts with different privileges will be available on the new website. The web site is scheduled to be online in mid-January.

Service Request Form (SRF)

The new version of the service request form was presented. This new version is customized based on feedback from ERCC and end users.

One of the main improvement is that users will be able to invite others to help complete the service request form.

Situational Reporting

Situational reporting provides up-to-date information during emergencies and a consolidated summary for complex events. A new template of situational reporting for emergency response is being developed to simplify the report while retaining important information. The structure and content of situational reports for preparedness and recovery are customized for each activation. These reports serve as executive summaries, providing background, methodology, and results of the activation. Situational reporting provides live and updated information, including exposure information, even before analysis results. In addition, relevant statistics about the results are available in the interactive dashboard that allows tailored calculations

Aerial Component

Aerial imagery is a crucial component and complement to satellite imagery in emergency management. Aerial imagery offers higher spatial resolution and flexibility in targeting specific areas. The choice between aerial and satellite imagery depends on project requirements, budget, and trade-offs between resolution and coverage. Acquisitions of detailed data enable precise auto rectification and 3D impression of damaged areas. The aerial component is currently only available for EU countries, with Norway and UK included due to its membership in Copernicus. The presentation highlighted the importance of the collaboration with users (Civil Protection) to plan and contribute data to improve activation product quality. The service is free to users. The framework covers the EU, Norway and the UK.

Improving Flood Monitoring

The INFLOS tool has been developed to estimate flood depths and is being continuously improved and tested. The quality of input data, such as flooded area delineation and elevation data, is crucial for accurate results. Incorporating accurate and up-to-date data from national mapping agencies is valuable for emergency services. Examples were shown of how national data was used for flood delineation, flood temporal analysis, and post-disaster risk assessment. The provision of national data is legally regulated by a framework license agreement and related annexes.

The EXFLOS tool is currently being developed and it will improve estimated flood depths in rural and urban areas. EXFLOS. Flood delineation extrapolated by modelling, to overcome the limitations in tree-covered and urban areas that obscure the ground surface from satellite imaging.

Geospatial database

Users are encouraged to contribute elevation data to improve the service. Users were assured that their data will be used exclusively in the production of CEMS products and not shared. The status of DTM and LiDAR point cloud collected across Europe was presented. Some examples of highly accurate flood mapping and soil erosion risk and impact assessment in RRM were presented.

Upcoming Workshops

Two upcoming thematic workshops were announced: