Monitoring and assessment of endangered UNESCO World Heritage Sites using space technology: a case study of East Rennell, Solomon Islands

A balance between vegetation degradation and improvement was observed on East Rennell Island from 2000 to 2020. The study, leveraging multi-source remote sensing data (MODIS and Worldview), revealed that while the island's forest cover change trend showed weak continuity, significant recovery is possible with adequate protection measures and investment. East Rennell demonstrates strong vegetation regeneration capacity, underscoring the critical need to restrict disruptive human activities such as mining, logging, and road construction to preserve its unique ecosystem. The research utilized Sen + Mann–Kendall and Hurst index models to analyze forest cover changes and developed a high-resolution land cover classification system for future monitoring.

Huo, S., Wang, M., Chen, G., Shu, H., & Yang, R. (2021). Monitoring and assessment of endangered UNESCO World Heritage Sites using space technology: a case study of East Rennell, Solomon Islands. Heritage Science, 9(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40494-021-00574-5