Documenting no-till and conventional till practices using Landsat ETM+ imagery and logistic regression

The ability of agricultural lands to sequester carbon from the atmosphere and help mitigate global warming has the potential to add value to farmland through the development of carbon-credit trading. Crucial to the creation of a market-based carbon credit trading system is the monitoring and verification of agricultural practices that promote carbon storage. Using remotely sensed images for this purpose could prove more efficient and cost-effective than traditional land-based methods. Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) imagery and logistic regression had >95% accuracy in verifying no-till fallow fields. Further research is needed to investigate the potential for this low-cost technology to assist in the monitoring and verification of practices that sequester carbon. Development of an accurate, low-cost, efficient means of monitoring and verifying carbon sequestering practices will further the development of cropland carbon credits, thus helping to mitigate global warming, and will add value to U.S. farmland.