Human Footprint Inventory (HFI) for the Oil Sands Monitoring (OSM) Region, 1980s

The Human Footprint Inventory (HFI) for the Oil Sands Monitoring (OSM) Region provides historical spatial information on human-induced land disturbances across the OSM Region of Alberta, representing conditions circa 1980s. Developed by the Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute (ABMI) in collaboration with the Alberta Human Footprint Monitoring Program (AHFMP) and OSM, the dataset was derived from the 2023 Human Footprint Inventory using historical aerial photographs, satellite imagery, existing geospatial datasets, and year-of-origin information to reconstruct human footprint conditions during the 1980s. The dataset contains 105 human footprint feature types organized into 19 sublayers, including roads, seismic lines, pipelines, well sites, mining areas, industrial facilities, timber harvesting, agriculture, and residential development. It provides polygon-based information on the spatial extent and classification of historical anthropogenic disturbances. The dataset supports historical land-use assessment, analysis of human footprint changes, and evaluation of long-term anthropogenic disturbances and cumulative effects within the Oil Sands Region.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field Value
Alternate Title/Name
Creator Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute (ABMI)
Contributor Alberta Human Footprint Monitoring Program
Publisher Alberta Environment and Protected Areas
Subject Human Footprint, Land Use, Land Cover, Historical Anthropogenic Disturbance, Oil Sands Development, Forestry, Agriculture, Transportation, Industrial Development, Vegetation, Biodiversity, Environmental Monitoring, Cumulative Effects
Group/Subgroup Geospatial
Parameters Human Footprint Type, Human Footprint Area, Year of Origin, Disturbance Source, Industrial Sector, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Nighttime Light Radiance (VIIRS DNB), Anthropogenic Noise, Exploration and Production Classification, Human Footprint Feature ID
Data Type Discrete, Historical Geospatial Vector Data (Polygons), Remote Sensing and Aerial Photography Derived, Spatial Attributes
Frequency Historical Snapshot (Circa 1980s); Updated as Needed
Temporal Coverage Begins 1980-01-01
Temporal Coverage Ends 1989-12-31
Spatial Coverage Oil Sands Monitoring (OSM) Watershed Region, Northeastern Alberta, Canada, including the Athabasca, Peace River, and Cold Lake Oil Sands Areas.
Spatial Projection NAD 1983 10TM AEP Forest (EPSG:3400), Transverse Mercator Projection, NAD83 Datum, Metres.
Usage Considerations or Constraints The dataset represents reconstructed human footprint conditions circa 1980s and should be interpreted as an estimate of historical anthropogenic disturbances rather than a complete record of all activities occurring during that period. Historical features were identified using aerial imagery, existing datasets, and year-of-origin attributes. Dates prior to 2005 generally indicate that a feature existed as of the assigned year, rather than its exact year of construction or disturbance. Year-of-origin attribution remains incomplete for some feature categories, particularly roads and verges, which may result in missing historical features and underestimation of human footprint extent. The dataset also excludes linear feature centreline layers because of insufficient historical dating information. The dataset does not account for vegetation succession or reclamation and treats historical disturbances equally regardless of subsequent vegetation recovery. The completeness and positional or thematic accuracy of features vary with imagery availability, source data, and interpretation methods. Some seismic lines and other narrow disturbances may be missing. The dataset contains information from open, proprietary, and ABMI-created sources, each subject to specific usage and redistribution restrictions. Users should consult the accompanying ABMI metadata documentation before conducting historical change analyses or redistributing the data.
Source/Citation Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute and Alberta Human Footprint Monitoring Program. (2026). Human Footprint Inventory (HFI) for the Oil Sands Monitoring Region, 1980s. Geodatabase. Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Relation
Extent
Format .gdb
Resource Type Geodatabase
Language English
OSM Asset? Yes
Contact Email [email protected]