Agroecosystem ecological sustainability indicators derived from satellite remote sensing: a systematic review

Monitoring the ecological sustainability of agroecosystems is essential for mitigating the negative impacts of agriculture on the environment. The development of earth observation by satellite allows this monitoring over a large area. Several indicators derived from satellite remote sensing make it possible to monitor agroecosystems. This study proposes an overview of ecological sustainability indicators (ESI) for agroecosystems derived from satellite remote sensing. The Web of Science and Environmental Science Collection databases were explored using a research equation. Eight hundred peer-reviewed scientific articles and reviews published between 1990 and 2022 were analyzed, and only 49 were selected for the systematic literature review. Respectively 12% and 42% of these publications proposed ESI based entirely or partially on satellite remote sensing. The remaining 46% proposed ESI which, while not currently dependent on satellite remote sensing data, can be derived from it. From the 49 publications, 101 ESI of agroecosystems derived from satellite remote sensing were inventoried, of which 32% were based on analysis of land cover and land use map. Fifty-two percent of the ESI assessed the capacity of agroecosystems to preserve natural ecosystems. This study shows that the availability of data and indicators derived from satellite remote sensing can facilitate long-term, low-cost monitoring of the ecological sustainability of agroecosystems. The particularities of different agroecosystems may also require specific indicators for effective monitoring of their dynamics.