North American Atlas

Commission for Environmental Cooperation

North American Land Change Monitoring System

A collaborative initiative between Canada, Mexico, and the United States to monitor the observed physical cover on the surface of the Earth and its change over time

NALCMS products can be used for a variety of applications, including: carbon sequestration analysis, wildlife habitat mapping, ecosystem monitoring, environmental planning, water quality assessments, and evaluation of biofuels production potential.

The maps produced under this initiative represent land cover in 2005, 2010, and 2015, and are based on either Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite imagery monthly composites at 250 m spatial resolution; Landsat-7; or RapidEye satellite imagery at 30 m spatial resolution.

The NALCMS’ nineteen land cover classes are based on the Land Cover Classification System (LCCS) standard developed by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.

Map Files

Land Cover 30m, 2015 (Landsat and RapidEye)

This map of North American land cover at a spatial resolution of 30 meters provides a harmonized view of the physical cover of Earth's surface across the continent based on 2015 Landsat satellite imagery for Canada and the United States, and...

Land Cover, 2010 (Landsat, 30m)

This map of North American land cover at a spatial resolution of 30 meters provides a harmonized view of the physical cover of Earth's surface across the continent based on 2010 Landsat satellite imagery. Nineteen Level II land cover classes were...

Land Cover, 2010 (MODIS, 250m)

This map of North American land cover at a spatial resolution of 250 meters provides a harmonized view of the physical cover of Earth's surface across the continent based on 2010 Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite...

Land Cover, 2005 (MODIS, 250m)

This map of North American land cover at a spatial resolution of 250 meters provides a harmonized view of the physical cover of Earth's surface across the continent based on 2005 Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite...

Interactive Pictorial Map of North America

Visualize and learn about different land cover classes across North America.

Click here to access an interactive pictorial map that allows users to visualize and learn about different land cover classes across North America.

Land Cover Diversity Map

Partners

Natural Resources Canada, United States Geological Survey (USGS), Comisión Nacional para el Conocimiento y Uso de la Biodiversidad (CONABIO), Comisión Nacional Forestal (CONAFOR), and Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía (INEGI).

Important Links

Publications

Here are scientific publications by North American Land Change Monitoring System experts:

IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observation and Remote Sensing

Authors: Colditz, R.R., Llamas, R.M., Ressl, R.A., 2014. Detecting change areas in Mexico between 2005 and 2010 using 250 m MODIS images

Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing

Authors: Colditz, R.R. Pouliot, D., Llamas R.M., Homer, C., Latifovic, R., Ressl, R.A., Meneses Tovar, C., Victoria Hernández, A., Richardson, K., 2014. Detection of North American land cover change between...

Remote Sensing of Land Use and Land Cover: Principles and Applications

Authors: Latifovic, R., Homer, C., Ressl, R., Pouliot, D., Hossain, S.N., Colditz, R.R., Olthof, I., Giri, C., Victoria, A., 2012. North American land change monitoring system...

Remote Sensing of Environment

Authors: Colditz, R.R., López Saldaña, G., Maeda, P., Argumedo Espinoza, J., Meneses Tovar, C., Victoria Hernández, A., Ornelas de la Anda, J.-L., Zermeño Benítez, C., Cruz López, I., Ressl, R., 2012