The European Investment Bank has an annual lending portfolio of around 75 billion euros, operating globally in more than 130 countries. The Bank has been increasingly mainstreaming environmental considerations into its lending portfolio, boosting the need to monitor the impact of the projects it funds. As its environmental commitments have increased, so too has the demand for geospatial information.
Earth observation (EO) from space can provide consistent, accurate and timely information on the state of the global environment that could help the Bank to assess the feasibility, monitor the progress and quantify the environmental impact of its investment projects.
ESA began collaborating with the European Investment Bank (EIB) with three EIB projects chosen as pilots for initial small-scale demonstrations to show how EO can help to monitor their implementation. Specific EO-information services relevant to each project were defined with the help of the Luxembourg-based company LuxSpace, acting as a local technical agent on behalf of ESA. Under the technical guidance of ESA, these specifications were used to select the best offers from value-adding companies across Europe to carry out.
Following the initial demonstrations, ESA held a workshop at EIB to discuss the value of EO to support investment and development projects. The EIB has expressed further interest in EO capabilities and is currently looking at additional projects to start a more substantial evaluation together with ESA of the benefits of EO information across a wider range of the Bank’s activities.
Source: European Space Agency
For the full article please visit: http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMB3Z3KV5G_index_0.html
