Call for authoritative geospatial information to be included in EU Zero Pollution Action Plan

“Data from Europe’s National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authorities is already being used for environmental monitoring, measurement and management, realising national climate targets and biodiversity plans, and delivering smarter, sustainable, intelligent transport,” says Léa Bodossian, Secretary General and Executive Director, EuroGeographics.

“Examples include: Precision farming using the Austrian Positioning Service; land cover maps which reveal new insights about the Portuguese landscape; contributing to the Belgian National Access Point for multimodal transport information; new land use and Lidar projects to support public policies in France; and providing policy-makers with vital information for the transition to solar energy in the Netherlands.”

“As recently noted by Pascal Canfin, Chair of the European Parliament Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, however, pollution does not respect borders. To track and tackle it across Europe, we need to be able to monitor its spread across different countries – and to do this we need pan-European data we can trust.”

“Together with our members, we provide the only interoperable pan-European datasets created using official authoritative geospatial data. These include topographic data and a digital elevation model which are to be released as open data through the Open Maps for Europe project. Imagery, a cadastral index map, and a regional gazetteer will also be available by the end of 2022.”

“From knowing who owns the soil and its responsible management to air quality and the reduction of pesticides, our members’ data is available as a tool to mitigate pollution and address the challenge of biodiversity loss. If we are to achieve a healthy planet, we believe this information should be a vital component of the EU Zero Pollution Action Plan.”