FIRE RISK MAP 
RANTHAMBHORE NATIONAL PARK 
LEGEND 
HIGH 
MODERATE 
LOW 
VERY LOW 
NO RISK 
M 2000 0 
KMS 
MRS, Dehradun. 
Fig. 6 
5. BIOMASS AND PRODUCTIVITY 
ESTIMATION 
Vegetation type, its biomass and productivity 
estimations are considered important components 
affecting biosphere-atmosphere interactions. The 
measurements of biomass per unit area and productivity 
have also been set as goals for International Geosphere- 
Biosphere Programme (IGBP). Biomass distribution in 
forest ecosystem is a function of vegetation types, its 
structure and site condition. The stratification based on 
type, density, and physiography/soil from remote 
sensing platforms is used to define homogenous 
vegetation strata. Roy and Shirish (1996) have suggested 
remote sensing based methods to estimate biomass by 
integrating ground measurements (Figs. 7 & 8). The two 
methods suggested are; (i) statistical sampling approach 
using homogenous vegetation stratum produced from 
satellite derived maps; and (ii) spectral response 
modelling. 
In the second method the empirical relationships 
are used for converting multispectra! response in 
biomass values. The ground measurements are done in 
the homogenous vegetation sample stratums. The 
correlation coefficient between observed and predicted 
biomass is 0.77 (with error of estimate as 10.5%). 
Among the two methods, the first one has been found to 
be more accurate and extendable on larger landscapes. 
Primary productivity and their seasonal variations 
are the key components in the carbon cycling. 
Estimation of this provides insight for our better 
understanding of the global climatic changes and the 
rates of mass and energy fluxes between plant canopies 
and atmosphere, which are intricately linked with the 
landuse changes. Recent research has shown that the 
integrated vegetation index can be related directly to the 
regional primary productivity. However, such studies, 
have remained confined to NOAA-AVHRR spatial 
resolution. Several models are now available for the