Minimum data input for a LiDAR based timber inventory

The main objective of the study focused on investigating a single phase LiDAR based timber inventory using apriori data to derive accurate and precise tract and strata level volume estimates with minimal data inputs. LiDAR data were obtained from a previous study for a study site in St. Tammany Parrish Louisiana where a double sample LiDAR based inventory was performed in an industrial application. The minimum acceptable precision at the tract and strata level was +/-15% sampling error for a minimum sample size of 5 LiDAR plots to every 1 ground plot whereas the previous double-sample study used an 8:1 ratio. The significant overestimations of volume at tract and strata levels for single phase LiDAR based timber inventory was attributed to the bias introduced during the height interpolation of the raw LiDAR data that did not have a matching ground data in the baseline study.