Category:Forest Maps

SLU Forest Map (tree heights) for a wind farm in Sweden

The forest maps are used in the forest models in WindPRO - and used for energy yield calculations in forested terrain. Model data is used in the displacement height calculator and the Objective Roughness Approach (ORA). Data is stored from the ‘elevation grid object’ with data-type set to ‘Heights above terrain (a.g.l) for elements’.

For an introduction to the ORA method and its benefits, we recommend the paper by Rogier Ralph Floors et al - "From lidar scans to roughness maps for wind resource modelling in forested areas". It is available as an open access paper from the Wind Energy Science journal, here:

• DOI: [https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-3-353-2018 https://doi.org/10.5194/wes-3-353-2018
• DTU - Orbit (as pdf): https://orbit.dtu.dk/files/149876264/wes_3_353_2018.pdf

Considerations

When using the forest maps and tree heights, you must manually consider the accuracy of the dataset used. You can do this by accessing and inspecting recent orthophotos or satellite images (which could be the windPRO European Satellite Imagery or the Global Satellite Imagery).