Assessing Usefulness of High-Resolution Satellite Imagery (HRSI) in GIS-Based Cadastral Land Information System

The development of a GIS-based cadastre primarily depends on the availability of reliable spatial and non-spatial datasets. Currently, the cadastral maps in Pakistan are mainly of paper format. Detailed study shows lack of standards in these paper mapping products with out-dated information. Therefore, these maps cannot be used directly as an input to a GIS-based cadastral Land Information System (LIS). Such a situation demands that all cadastral information in these traditional maps be timely maintained in standard forms with quality indicators as information for the users. Considering the present situation in Pakistan, this paper firstly elaborates the present cadastral mapping system and the methods used for producing, updating, and maintaining these cadastral data. This research paper investigates on the use of High-Resolution Satellite Imagery (HRSI) and Global Positional System (GPS) that constitute vital elements in timely maintaining many of the cadastral data in GIS-based cadastral LIS. The abilities of remote sensing imageries in cadastral mapping are then assessed using QuickBird high-resolution satellite images for two case study areas with different topography i.e. a flat and a mountainous area in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. This study introduces the use of QuickBird panchromatic/colour imageries and the Garmin eTrex GPS navigation receiver to develop a method for cadastral surveying through on-screen digitisation techniques in the field on the soft copy of HRSI. This study shows that the cost and time can be reduced to its half if the cadastral maps are generated using the newly developed technique. Finally, the results are concluded for the use of HRSI data as an input to GIS-based cadastral information system in general and especially in Pakistan.