Juan Suárez-Minguez

Project Manager

Head of the Remote Sensing Applications Programme. Main research activities are: Remote sensing, Wind risk modelling, Growth and Yield modelling, Forest Inventory, Forest Health and Condition and Tree Physiology. I regularly work in DEFRA, EU and UK-funded projects. International cooperation activities include countries like China, France, Canada, New Zealand, Spain, Germany, Belgium, USA and Chile.

B.A. Geography with History at University of Valencia, Spain (1984-1989). MSc in GIS from the Department of Geography at Edinburgh University (1996). PhD from the Department of Applied Mathematics, University of Sheffield (2010) on ‘An analysis of the consequences of stand variability in Sitka spruce plantations in Britain using a combination of airborne LiDAR analysis and models’.

Remote sensing applications in forest management (Airborne LiDAR, Field Laser Scanning, Digital Aerial photography and Optical Satellite systems)
Model development and integration to create GIS tools
Development of a GIS-based model for windthrow risk in forestry (ForestGALES)
The use of Airflow models applied to forest Climatology
Risk management and processes of decision
Programmer/analyst in the construction of automated decision support systems and commercial software.

Affiliations

Member of Association of Geography Information Laboratories of Europe (AGILE) from 2000. (Council member from 2002 until 2009)
Member of ForestSAT. Elected president of the organisation in 2014
Visiting professor at Forest Engineering Departments at the Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (Spain) and University of Córdoba. Main responsibilities include the supervision of MSc and PhD students and lecturing on laser scanning systems in the MSc courses
Research fellow at Swansea University. Department of Geography
Regular reviewer in International Journal of Remote Sensing, Journal of Forest Planning, Forestry and Canadian Journal of Forest Research

Links with academia

Research fellow at the University of Glamorgan (UK), Swansea (UK) and Edinburgh University. Main responsibilities on the supervision of MSc and PhD students.
Visiting professor at Forest Engineering Departments at the Universidad de Santiago de Compostela (Spain) and University of Córdoba. Main responsibilities on the supervision of MSc and PhD students and lecturing on laser scanning system in the MSc courses.
Assistant Research Professor at the University of Maryland, Department of Geography (USA). Main responsibilities on research in small footprint LiDAR, supervision of postgrad students and lecturing.
NASA Goddard Space Flight Centre, Greenbelt, Maryland (USA). Main responsibilities on small footprint LiDAR research for the Carbon Monitoring System project.

Consulting work

Regular reviewers in International Journal of Remote Sensing, Journal of Forest Planning, Forestry and Canadian Journal of Forest Research.
Regular member of the scientific committee of Silvilaser, ForestSAT and AGILE conferences.

BSc, MSc, PhD

+44 (0)300 067 5991

juan.suarez@forestresearch.gov.uk

Project Manager

Mensuration, growth and yield

NRS

Northern Research Station

Bush Estate

Roslin

Scotland

Other Research

DEFRA funded EODIP9

Project Leader

Earth Observation Data Integration Pilot, Research Project 9 – Innovative application of remote sensing to forestry management and monitoring

FR Programme 2 – Understanding biotic threats to resilience. Work Area 6 – Remote Sensing for tree health surveillance

Project Leader

Monitoring plant stress using a combination of hyperspectral and thermal sensors.

FR Programme 6 –Work Area 1.7 – Evaluate the potential of LiDAR to assess tree height, updating of Sub-Compartment Database and improving Production Forecast estimations

Project Leader

Use of airborne LiDAR to improve mensuration estimates at stand and sub-stand level, such as top height, yield class, biomass, mean diameter and volume.

Peer reviewed journal articles

Zhao, K., Suárez, J.C., García, M., Hu, T., Wang, C, and Londo. A. (2017). ‘Utility of multitemporal lidar to monitor forest change—Tree growth, biomass dynamics, and carbon flux’. Submitted to Remote Sensing of the Environment.

Chloe Barnes, Heiko Balzter, Kirsten Barrett, James Eddy, Sam Milner and Juan C. Suárez (2017). Individual Tree Crown Delineation from Airborne LiDAR for Diseased Larch Forest Stands. Remote Sensing.

Navarro Cerrillo, R.M., Beira, J., Suarez, J., Xenakis, G., Sánchez Salguero, R, Hernandez-Clemente, R. (2016). ‘Growth decline assessment in Pinus sylvestris L. and Pinus nigra Arnold forest by using 3-PG model’. Forest Systems.

González-Ferreiro, E.; Diéguez-Aranda, U.; Barreiro-Fernández, L.; Buján, S.; Barbosa, M.; Suárez, J.C.; Bye, I.J.; Miranda, D. (2013). A mixed pixel- and region-based approach for using airborne laser scanning data for individual tree crown delineation in Pinus radiata D. Don plantations. International Journal of Remote Sensing 2013, 34, 7671

McInerney, D., Suárez, J.C. and Nieuwenhuis, M. (2011). Extending forest inventories and programmes using remote sensing: a review. Irish Forestry. In Press.

McInerney, D.O., Suárez, J.C., Valbuena, R. and Nieuwenhuis, M. (2010). Forest canopy heath retrieval using LiDAR data, medium resolution satellite imagery and kNN estimation in Aberfoyle, Scotland. Forestry Febr pp 1-12.

North, P.R.J., Rosette, J.A.B., Suárez, J.C. and Los, S.O. (2010). A Monte Carlo radiative transfer model for satellite waveform LiDAR. IJRS. Vol 31 No 5 pp 1343-1358.

Rosette, J.A., North, P.R.J., Suárez, J.C. and Los, S.O. (2010). Uncertainty within Satellite LiDAR Estimations of Vegetation and Topography. IJRS. Vol 31 No 5 pp 1325-1342.

Hill, R. and Suárez, J. (2010). Editors. Special Issue on Laser scanning in Forestry for IJRS. Vol 31 No 5.

Book and book chapters

Suárez, J. (2013). An individual canopy delineation algorithm based on Object-Oriented segmentation and classification. Book chapter in Challenges and opportunities for the worlds forests in the 21st century. Springer.

Rosette, J.A.B., Suárez, J.C., Nelson, R., Los, S., Cook, B., and North, P. (2012). ‘Lidar Remote Sensing for Biomass Assessment’. Book chapter in Remote Sensing of Biomass – Principles and Applications, Edited by Temilola Fatoyinbo. InTech, ISBN 978-953-51-0313-4.

Miranda, D., Suárez, J.C. and Crecente, R. (Eds.) (2010). Operational Tools in forestry using remote sensing techniques. Book publication. University of Santiago de Compostela Press. ISBN 978-84-693-5600-5.

Trade journal and newsletter articles

Suárez, J.C., Fonweban, J. and Gardiner, B. (2012). ‘Supporting Precision Forestry in Great Britain’. Earthzine, 22nd June 2012.

Suárez, J. (2011). The use of small footprint LiDAR to estimate biomass in the North American Woodlands. In prep. for the ICF journal.

Scientific conferences: presentations or posters

Tan, C.P., Marino, A. Woodhouse, I.H., Cloude, S., Suarez, J.C. and Edwards, C. (2011). See the forests with different eyes. IGARSS. IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium. Vancouver, Canada. 24-29th July.

Tan, C.P., Marino, A. Woodhouse, I.H., Cloude, S., Suarez, J.C. and Edwards, C. (2011). A comparison study of biomass estimation using ALOS PALSAR and LiDAR data. POLINSAR-ESA conference. Frascati, Italy 24-28 January.

Tan, C.P., Marino, A. Woodhouse, I.H., Cloude, S., Suarez, J.C. and Edwards, C. (2011). The potential of TERRASAR-X in assessing forest above-ground biomass in Scotland. POLINSAR-ESA conference. Frascati, Italy 24-28 January.