Richard Fournier

Research topics

My research work focuses on the remote sensing of natural plant ecosystems such as forests and wetlands. My main focus is the development of tools for the analysis of 3D data from terrestrial LiDAR in the context of forest inventories (LiDAR is particularly well suited to measure parameters that are otherwise difficult to obtain). I am also looking to improve the ability to measure forest cover with airborne LiDAR and other remote sensing tools such as optical/infrared satellite images of all spatial resolutions. Finally, I spend some time on studies on ecosystem conservation issues and the use of geomatics tools for watershed management.

Email

Richard.Fournier@USherbrooke.ca

Current projects

Assessment, modelling and extraction of structural parameters of forest stands using a terrestrial LiDAR (3D): assessment of stem, crown, leaf area and canopy element distribution parameters
Improvement of forest attribute mapping methods using LiDAR data (land, drone and airborne) and satellite images
Mapping, measuring and modelling of forest and tree structural attributes, such as wood fibre attributes, leaf area index, biomass, wood volume, stem scrolling, etc.
Use of geomatics tools for watershed or recreational water management
Mapping of conservation areas

Publications (selected articles)

  • Vandendaele, B., Fournier, R. A., Vepakomma, U., Pelletier, G., Lejeune, P., & Martin-Ducup, O. (2021). Estimation of Northern Hardwood Forest Inventory Attributes Using UAV Laser Scanning (ULS): Transferability of Laser Scanning Methods and Comparison of Automated Approaches at the Tree-and Stand-Level. Remote Sensing, 13(14), 2796.
  • van Lier, O. R., Luther, J. E., White, J. C., Fournier, R. A., & Côté, J. F. (2021). Effect of scan angle on ALS metrics and area-based predictions of forest attributes for balsam fir dominated stands. Forestry: An International Journal of Forest Research.
  • Batistin, B., Danneyrolles, V., Boucher, Y., Fournier, R. A., & Guindon, L. (2021). Modeling post-logging height growth of black spruce forests by combining airborne LiDAR and historical forestry maps in eastern Canadian boreal forest. bioRxiv.
  • Frizzle, C., Fournier, R. A., Trudel, M., & Luther, J. E. (2021). Using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool to develop a LiDAR-based index of the erosion regulation ecosystem service. Journal of Hydrology, 595, 126009.

Livres

  • Fournier, R.A., D. Mailly, J.-M.N. Walter, and I.G.C. Jonckheere (2011) Acquiring hemispherical photographs in forest environments: from planning to archiving photographs. In: Hemispherical photography for forest science: theory, methods, and applications. Eds. Fournier R.A and R. Hall. Kluwer.
  • Frazer G.W., R.A. Fournier, S.G. Leblanc, and J.-M.N. Walter (2011) Measurement of element clumping for spatially heterogeneous forest using hemispherical photography. In: Hemispherical photography for forest science: theory, methods, and applications. Eds. Fournier R.A and R. Hall. Kluwer.
  • Leblanc, S.G. and R.A. Fournier (2011) Measurement of forest structure with hemispherical photography, In: Hemispherical photography for forest science: theory, methods, and applications. Eds. Fournier R.A and R. Hall. Kluwer.
  • Mora B., R.A. Fournier and S. Foucher (2009) Comparative performance between Free DSm model and the Dempster-Shafer Theory to map regenerating forest stands, In Smarandache F. and J. Dezert (Editors), Advances and Applications of DSmT for Information Fusion (Collected Works), American Research Press, Rehoboth, Chapter 21, p. 529-547.
  • Fournier R. A.; Mailly, D.; Walter, J.-M. N. and Soudani, K. (2003). « Indirect measurement of forest structure from in situ optical sensors ». In: Methods and applications for remote sensing of forests: Concepts and case studies, Wulder M. and S. Franklin (Eds). Avril 2003, p. 77-113.