Improved Landsat-based forest mapping in steep mountainous terrain using object-based classification

The accuracy of forest stand type maps derived from a Landsat Thematic Mapper (Landsat TM) image of a heterogeneous forest covering rugged terrain is generally low. Therefore, the first objective of this study was to assess whether topographic correction of TM bands and adding the digital elevation model (DEM) as additional band improves the accuracy of Landsat TM-based forest stand type mapping in steep mountainous terrain. The second objective of this study was to compare object-based classification with per-pixel classification on the basis of the accuracy and the applicability of the derived forest stand type maps. To fulfil these objectives different classification schemes were applied to both topographically corrected and uncorrected Landsat TM images, both with and without the DEM as additional band. All the classification results were compared on the basis of confusion matrices and kappa statistics. It is found that both topographic correction and classification with the DEM as additional band increase the accuracy of Landsat TM-based forest stand type maps in steep mountainous terrain. Further it was found that the accuracies of per-pixel classifications were slightly higher, but object-based classification seemed to provide better overall results according to local foresters. It is concluded that Landsat TM images could provide basic information at regional scale for compiling forest stand type maps especially if they are classified with an object-based technique.