Socio-economic benefits of space utilization

2.3.1.1 Current solutions

Currently, it would be fair to say the data from Landsat and RADARSAT series, and a growing input of data from Sentinel-series are the main stalwarts for applications building. Other government data sets are being used on an ad-hoc basis, or in building operational nation-wide environmental monitoring applications (such as MODIS for monitoring land use and land use change detection.) The use of commercial data sets is more limited. Cost being a primary factor, although a small amount of data is being procured on a project by project basis.

• Disaster management is perhaps the area assessed in which multiple sourced data sets are being used. This is a factor of Canada's participation to the International Charter, Space and Major Disasters. When the Charter is activated within Canada, Public Safety Canada (PSC) receives data through the CSA from multiple global space agencies and commercial operators (such as ROSCOSMOS, JAXA, KARI etc.). As flooding is the major Charter-invoked activation by PSC (and the most prevalent disaster risk in Canada along with forest fires), SAR data plays a greater role in utilization: RADARSAT-2, Sentinel-1, ALOS, etc. were all utilized following the Quebec flooding of 2017.
• For agriculture the use of satellite solutions largely depends on the scale of the agricultural mapping required. AAFC, having the mandate to provide national mapping, rely on larger swath optical imaging sensors such as MODIS and Landsat series. Moving to the more localised level, where monitoring of individuals fields, and field sizes is required, higher resolution systems are needed.
• Environment monitoring has perhaps the most diverse data needs depending on the specific climate variables being monitored. However, it mostly relies on freely available solutions. In monitoring of habitats, such as wetlands monitoring, mainly optical data is utilized: Landsat, MODIS, Sentinel-2. Whereas the Canadian ice services rely on SAR, the CIS being one of the largest users of RADARSAT-2, along with meteorological data and wide area optical scanners such as MODIS and AVHRR. On occasions, where higher resolution is required, Enfotec will purchase commercial SAR data to augment ice maps in small quantities.

2.3.1.2 Future solutions

The main factor noted for future usage is the anticipation of a greater amount of satellite-based EO imagery becoming available. It is not necessarily a question of replacing one imagery source with another, but to augment solutions with a growing, more capable supply. Two areas are noted: the launch of RCM and the greater data collection this will bring, and how to benefit from the launch of low-cost commercial imagery constellations. There is also expected to be an increase in the amount of Sentinel data being used as the satellite series continues its roll-out.

High revisit constellations such as Planet are expected to help develop further application areas by offering increased access to cloud free data, and data acquisition at much higher frequency. For instance, data from Planet will be able to monitor precise periods of time such as the start and end of the growing seasons. The role this can play in precision agriculture is anticipated: Planet can offer imagery multiple times a day, whereas Landsat only passes a few times during growing season.

There is also the question as to how all of this data will be managed in the future: RCM will bring an increased load of data, as will the expansion of the Sentinel-1 series, therefore questions remain around what will be the best way to integrate this new SAR data supply and extract information in the most efficient manner. Automation is expected to play a greater role, as is the role of artificial intelligence in being able to provide predictive analytics.

2.3.1.3 Alternatives

The main alternative to satellite-based imagery is data collected for airborne sources. This has historically meant the use of sensors on manned airplanes; however, the growing adaptation of UAV/drone technology adds a further dimension. Depending on the specific usage one solution would be preferred to the other: drone technology can offer much higher ground resolutions but can only cover narrow areas; satellites may have a courser ground resolution but can continually monitor the whole country at regular intervals. UAVs are less expensive to build, but more expensive to operate – for satellites the reverse is true. Further advantages of aerial solutions are brought in localised mapping to support height changes, measured with LiDAR, or when requiring a higher spectral capacity, such as to measure biophysical crop changes. At this stage high resolution/accuracy satellite data collection in LiDAR and hyperspectral does not exist – and this is not expected to change in short to mid-term. Therefore, in such cases, aerial is the only solution.

Within disaster management, flood monitoring may be easier from satellites, but for forest fires, airborne solutions are preferred. Optical data is better suited to forest fire management over SAR but is impacted by smoke. Secondly, a fire can change direction quickly, thus a satellite image may be tasked and received, but by this time the area may already be burnt, or the fire has changed direction. The only real practical system for collecting data today is airplanes with full imaging capabilities which can downlink data in real-time. Drones, while being useful, require permits to fly which can take time to process.

In other application areas, drone technology is being tested with some successes albeit if overall usage is more limited. OMAFRA and the Government of Alberta similarly acquire aerial ortho-imagery every few years to monitor land use. However, widespread use of drones is not the case. A key factor is the regulatory requirements to be able to fly drones, while operational expenditures can also ramp-up. It is a similar story in the use of drones for sea ice monitoring. Both the CIS and Enfotec use drones, but in very limited cases: the CIS receives about 200-300 flying hours a year through Transport Canada to monitor the route of special-interest vessels for reconnaissance purposes. Enfotec have also used drones from a ship to provide beyond-line-of-sight data on sea ice conditions, but the cost-benefit is not obvious.

2.3.2.1 Current solutions

Satellite communications solutions utilized depend on the specific application areas. Broadband is mostly based on fixed satellite solutions, with LEO constellations expected to add to capacity in the near future. Low data rate transmission utilizes payloads on satellites operating in various orbits.

• Satellite broadband services are centred around a few key players. Xplornet is the largest rural internet service provider utilizing satellite and fixed wireless networks. Satellite capacity is leased over Canada from several satellites including Echostar-17, Echostar-19, Viasat-1, and Viasat-2; and Ka-band capacity on Anik-F2 from Telesat. Northern communities are still heavily reliant on C-band predominantly provided by satellites from SES and Telesat.
• For low data rate communications, data collected from the ARGO floats is transmitted through the Iridium constellation. For search and rescue operations, COSPAS-SARSAT is made up of five LEO and five GEO satellites with dedicated payloads on-board NOAA and EUMETSAT meteorology satellites operating in both LEO and GEO. In the future the system will incorporate satellites operating in MEO, with payloads to be carried on Galileo and Glonass navigation satellites.
• The global nature of the IoT technology and the vast amount of data to gather in real-time across the globe requires the use of a network of satellites in LEO. Applications are nascent at this stage with supply gradually rolling out. AIS technology is provided by exactEarth, with next generation payloads on-board the Iridium NEXT constellation (60 AIS systems in total).

2.3.2.2 Future solutions

The next generation of HTS systems is expected to further decrease cost of broadband and increase available throughput over Canada which will be able to support rural and remote communities. Telesat has announced plans for a new satellite, Telstar-20V, potentially adding 40 Gbps more capacity over Canada's North. There is also interest in new satellite constellations. Telesat's LEO high-throughput broadband constellation of nearly 120 satellites aims to offer low latency coverage of all Canada. OneWeb's proposed constellation of over 700 satellites will similarly provide blanket coverage of Canada, which is targeted as one of the operator's first markets upon its expected limited service entry in 2020. Quality of service is also expected to improve. These new projects from Telesat, Oneweb and SpaceX will offer uniform high-speed, low latency broadband services to consumers in rural and remote areas.

In the realm of IoT, several new satellite constellations are expected to potentially emerge including Canadian start-ups Helios Wire and Kepler Communications. The primary benefit of the new constellations is to lower capital cost by using small satellite technology and therefore enlarging the addressable market for space-based IOT services.

2.3.2.3 Alternatives

The main alternative to satellite communications are ground based solutions, such as fiber, DSL, cable and wireless connectivity. Cable and DSL are still the dominant terrestrial networks in Canada, connecting over 7 million subscribers for cable and 4.5 million for DSL. Fiber allows the highest data rates (≥1 Gbps) to the end-user, with little or no degradation over long distances. However, whilst satellite cannot compete on price, other solutions become less available when moving away from urban centres.

Fiber's downsides are construction costs, which can limit roll-out to areas with low household or business density. While mobile (cellular) broadband networks have extended their coverage, the cost of mobile data plans cannot compete with fixed terrestrial network solutions. Fixed-wireless towers are now deployed and considered as the most economical solution for areas with 5-30 households per square kilometre. Satellite is expected to remain the most cost-effective option for low density areas, where household's density <5 households per square kilometre.

The pros and cons of satellite-based IoT is also somewhat dependant on population densities. Terrestrial infrastructures such as the 4G and the upcoming 5G communication networks are well developed and utilized in urban areas. The more remote the area, including open oceans, the greater potential for satellites due to the costs to build up a terrestrial infrastructure.

2.3.3.1 Current solutions

In Canada, the U.S. GPS is almost exclusively the GNSS network utilized to support ranging applications, from personal navigation devices to defense, to enabling aircraft ATC and supporting precision agriculture in the context of this study.

ADS-B transponder technology consists of transmitters and receivers equipped on aircraft. It relays real-time information about position, direction of flight, altitude, airborne velocity etc. of the transmitting airplanes. The ADS-B data distribution system relies on GNSS satellites as its core input, the geolocation information being processed by the carrier internal instruments before being disseminated. Satellite communication relays to convey flight information to the ground. Such systems are now entering the market, for example, Aireon, with payloads being carried on the Iridium NEXT constellation.

2.3.3.2 Future solutions

ADS-B remains in the development phase, with solutions being implemented from 2018. The Aerion solution will be fully operational once the last remaining Iridium NEXT satellite will have been launched to orbit, in mid-2018. As of June 2018, no official announcement has been made on another satellite constellation being equipped with ADS-B payloads. Further GNSS systems being available in Canada will offer greater robustness to the solutions, reducing risk if there was to be any issues with regards to GPS. The European Galileo system would be expected to be utilized in the future, albeit a full cross-over from GPS would seem unlikely. In addition, companies which are heavily involved in the equipment side of the agriculture business which integrate GPS, such as John Deere, are U.S.-based companies.

2.3.3.3 Alternatives

GNSS is well established, and satellite systems are unique in being able to offer global positioning coverage. Services based on GNSS however can have alternatives. Terrestrial ADS-B has been implemented on land, a successor to the costlier radar-based ground technologies. At present, both systems are used concurrently and provide a complementary solution to the emerging space-based ADS-B. There is no real alternative to the space-based solution where ground infrastructure doesn't exist, such as over oceans.

3.1.1.1 Satellite Communications

Satcom is used along all phases of the disaster cycle: Mitigation – Preparedness – Response – Recovery. Nonetheless, activities are primarily conducted in response to the disaster event and in the subsequent recovery efforts. Satellites are critical for providing/re-establishing communications in the aftermath of disasters when terrestrial networks (fixed and/or wireless) have been affected, destroyed or overloaded. Satcom enables access to vital information and coordination between government agencies, civil and defense government departments, humanitarian organizations and other entities that are involved in rescue and recovery operations. Satcom is also critical to other required services areas including hospitals, news broadcasters, and corporate networks (e.g.: ATM, supermarkets, gas stations, etc) which have suffered from disrupted terrestrial services. Terrestrial cellular operators also employ satellites to provide backhaul support for restoration of cellular and text services.^{Footnote 6}

Government agencies and inter-governmental organizations (IGOs) assist in the deployment of satcom technologies and services for disaster management at a national, regional and/or international level in collaboration with private industry. Utilization examples include:

• The Emergency Telecommunications Cluster (ETC) – led by the World Food Programme (WFP) – is a global network of humanitarian, private and governmental organizations that work together to provide shared communications services in disaster events.^{Footnote 7} It provides communications services within 48 hours of activation. Through its ETC2020 strategy, it is evolving from being primarily a service provider, to broker and facilitator of technology in emergency response.^{Footnote 8}
• In 2011, the government of Luxembourg launched its Emergency.lu program as a public-private partnership with SES, HITECH Luxembourg, and Luxembourg Air Ambulance. The program provides satellite capacity, terminals and logistics for rapid deployment in response to disasters.^{Footnote 9}
• In the U.S., the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has partnered with satellite operators such as Intelsat, Hughes, Viasat for the provision of satellite communication services to support rescue and recovery operations.

There is also coordination in the private sector to provide support following disaster events. In 2015, satellite operators Eutelsat, Hispasat, Inmarsat, Intelsat, SES, Thuraya and Yahsat signed the Crisis Connectivity Charter, managed under the umbrella of the EMEA Satellite Operators Association (ESOA), the Global VSAT Forum (GVF) and in coordination with the UN and ETC. The Charter aims to establish an industry-led mechanism that can be triggered by the ETC to provide a coherent, predictable and scalable implementation of an end-to-end satcom based response in times of crises.^{Footnote 10}

Satcom services utilized in disaster management include satellite phones and portable terminals, as well as transportable and fixed Very-Small Aperture Terminals (VSATs). All of these solutions are used to provide critical links for safety and security communications, voice and internet connections. Satellite phones for instance, are vital in the first 72 hours after a disaster/emergency situation to establish voice communications when fixed networks and base stations have been affected. In this context, mobile satellite services (MSS) companies such as Iridium, Inmarsat and Globalstar provide a crucial service to first responders. Broadband Global Area Networks (BGAN) and VSAT terminals are employed to provide connectivity of up to several Mbps for applications including voice, data, video and Internet emergency response.^{Footnote 11}

There are multiple utilization examples in which satcom services have played a critical role for disaster management. For example, in 2017, the hurricanes Irma and Maria caused serious damage to telecommunications infrastructure, which severely affected voice and internet services in Puerto Rico and other islands in the Caribbean. Over 5,000 Iridium phones were used in Puerto Rico alone.^{Footnote 12} Hughes installed about 50 sites in Puerto Rico for FEMA and transmitted about 30,000 calls.^{Footnote 13} Kymeta (with partners Intelsat and Liberty Puerto Rico) provided communications to 33 communities across the country.^{Footnote 14} Emergency.lu also deployed three portable terminals employing SES satellite capacity to re-establish the communication for humanitarian responders in Dominica and Saint Martin.^{Footnote 15} The 2016 Hurricane Matthew in Haiti had a similar response^{Footnote 16}, as did the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami in 2011 that caused damage to approximately 1.9 million communication fixed-lines and 29,00 base stations in Japan. The ETC has been activated in Syria since 2013 to provide shared secure voice and internet connectivity services to the humanitarian organizations.^{Footnote 17}

In addition the COSPAS-SARSAT is the international programme that provides both the Search and Rescue Satellite Aided Tracking (SARSAT) distress beacon detection system and coordinates Search and Rescue (SAR) organizations. The system is used by search and rescue authorities to assist persons in distress. Since its creation in 1982, COSPAS-SARSAT has helped to save over 32,000 lives globally. The SARSAT system uses both GEO and LEO satellites. COSPAS-SARSAT is augmenting its programme with MEO satellites, which consists on search and rescue repeaters hosted on GPS, GLONASS and Galileo. The system, called Medium Earth Orbit Search and Rescue (MEOSAR), will enable the detection of beacon signals within 10 minutes with more accuracy (5 km), compared to the current system which could take up to over an hour.^{Footnote 18}

3.1.1.2 Imagery (Earth observation)

EO imagery is again used along all phases of the disaster cycle. According to a review in "Science", the use of imagery in support of disaster management grew from seven cases in 2000, to 123 cases in 2014.^{Footnote 19} The growth in utilization is further supported by activations of the International Charter, with 11 cases in 2001 compared to 44 in 2017.

The main data requirements include timely delivery (nominally from multiple satellite sources), especially in response to disaster events. Drawn-out humanitarian crises require constant monitoring over a longer period of time. Civil and defense government departments, including civil protection departments, are the primary users of EO data for disaster management. IGOs such as the World Food Program (WFP), World Bank, regional development banks and UNESCO also assist with disaster and humanitarian relief efforts. In parallel, the UN-SPIDER acts as a gateway to space information for disaster management support by serving as a bridge between first responders and space communities. Non-government organizations (NGOs) (Doctors without Borders, etc.) are also often first responders and require the use of geospatial data.

The International Charter on Space and Major Disasters coordinates relief efforts using EO data. The charter aims to provide a unified system of space data acquisition and delivery to those affected by natural or man-made disasters through authorized users. Member countries of the International Charter provide imagery from national assets to provide support in response to a disaster, such as COSMO-Skymed (Italy), the KOMPSAT-series (South Korea), SPOT-series/Pleaides (France), and RADARSAT-series from Canada. The U.S. also provides solutions from the Landsat series, and high-resolution imagery under agreement with DigitalGlobe.

To date, most activity is conducted in the final two steps: in response to the disaster event, and in the subsequent recovery efforts. Indeed, this is true for all disaster management activity, not just restricted to space-based assets utilization. Most resources also flow into these elements. The main issue being the unpredictable nature of a disaster event, and the need to respond. However, for certain disaster types, more work is being performed in the mitigation area in which EO is playing a greater role. For instance;

• In mapping flood plains, land-use practices, urbanization etc. in order to provide indicators for flood risk and rainfall distribution, such as the U.K. and Australian collaboration on the "Short-term Ensemble Prediction System" (STEPS) to better monitor rainfall and highlight areas for potential flooding.^{Footnote 20} Also, within the Copernicus Emergency Management Services is the European Flood Awareness System (EFAS), built using mainly meteorology data combined with synthetic aperture radar (SAR).^{Footnote 21}
• In monitoring forested areas to identify healthy versus compromised vegetation (fuel) and utilizing weather data to build precipitation/solar irradiance models in support of forest fire mitigation. The Australian government, through the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) utilizes a combination of moderate resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) and advanced very-high-resolution radiometer (AVHRR) data to monitor areas prone to fires.^{Footnote 22} Previously, AVHRR was also utilized to build the European Space Agency hosted, World Fire Atlas, monitoring activity globally.
• And in monitoring land topography, elevation and usage, and deformation over time to provide inputs to highlight areas prone to landslides. Pilot studies are being conducted, for instance through Copernicus Emergency Mapping Services, using interferometric SAR (InSAR) data to monitor land shifts, combined with other surface and meteorological data.

Following a disaster event, or when the disaster is in and around urban areas, the focus is toward high-resolution datasets, both optical and SAR in order to guide the relief effort in as much detail as possible. Also, SAR plays a greater role in disaster events associated with heavy cloud cover, such as flooding. The emergence of lower cost solutions derived from the constellation approach is also of interest – higher frequency data collection would be able to support services related to change detection analytics. Being able to capture "before and after" images closer to real-time will also be able to better support relief efforts, as well as supporting insurance claims at a later date.

3.1.1.3 Satellite navigation

Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) play a vital role in disaster management to provide timely and accurate location of landmarks, buildings, emergency services resources, camps, etc. Combined with EO imagery and other GIS information, it enables the mapping of the disaster areas for rescue operations and to monitor long-term recovery operations. GNSS also assist meteorologists and scientists to characterize and predict earthquakes, storms, and floods. GPS, for instance, is capable of measuring tectonic plate motions to an accuracy better than 1 mm/year when combined with sensors on the ground.^{Footnote 23}

3.1.2.1 Effective flood management

During a disaster response Canadian Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation [CCMEO] collects data in which information is derived and then sent to PSC. PSC then coordinates all operations on the ground so as to not cause confusion in the chain of command. It may supply imagery directly to provincial governments that have the capacity to analyze imagery; if they do not have this capacity, this step can be undertaken by National Resources Canada (NRCAN)-Emergency Geomatics Services [EGS] to provide support.

The majority of imagery services (>95%) used goes towards monitoring flooding and ice-jam analysis. This is a reflection of the practicalities of which disasters can be best met with satellite imagery, and Canadian needs – flooding and forest fires being the most pre-eminent types of natural disaster. Information derived from satellite imagery – mainly SAR from RADARSAT-2 and Sentinel-1 – was for instance used to monitor and support relief efforts of the Quebec 2017 flooding. This information was sent to DND to support logistics, for example where personnel were needed on the ground such as areas at flood risk in which sand-bagging was required. This had the effect of creating greater efficiencies in logistical support and preventing further damage to properties which would have resulted in greater insurance claims and impacts on homeowners. Satellite imagery was also able to provide a full view of the assessment, noting flooded areas not as yet been detected by authorities.

The use of the "NRCAN Observer"^{Footnote 24} also came into effect, particularly in flooded urban areas which require image validation; areas covered with water can be confused with concrete areas. Crowdsourced information from the App allowed the public to upload pictures of flooded areas, which was then used to validate imagery. For instance, this came into effect by better delineating areas of flooding in the Pierrefonds area of Montreal, thus information provided by CCMEO to PSC is improved and it is better able to support ground-based logistics. In itself this represents an interesting trend. Crowdsourced information is replacing previously relied on static in-situ measurements, such as from weather stations with mass sourced in-situ data i.e. the population is leveraged to collect data in real-time.

3.1.2.2 Benefiting from the International Charter, Space and Major Disasters

The International Charter, Space and Major Disasters [the Charter] aims to coordinate data tasking, acquisition and dissemination during times of a disaster event. On occasions, PSC has enacted the Charter to request support. Satellite imagery is then provided by the Charter partners and coordinated by a central body. Nominally one of the Charter members in rotation acts as the project manager, or, when the disaster event is in one of the Charter member countries, it is likely that the country's space agency takes the coordinating role. Therefore, in the case of Canadian activations the CSA takes responsibility for coordinating the response.

Canada, through the CSA, was an early member of the Charter, joining in 2002. Since the Charter's inception, PSC has activated it 13 times, mainly for flooding. In such cases SAR data is used to provide mapping of flooding extent. The above example of the Quebec flooding utilized data sets from Charter members after it was activated by PSC. Other events in which Charter partners have support include several cases of wildfires, in which monitoring of the situation and supporting logistics on the ground are the main applications, and the Lac-Mégantic train accident in which imagery was used to assess damage on the ground. All the Charter activations are mapped on the diagram below.

Canadian International Charter, Space and Major Disasters Activations

3.1.2.3 Supporting international relief efforts

In terms of natural disaster occurrences and its impact on human life, Canada is relatively fortunate. The Charter activation for instance monitors the fall-out from earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis. However, as a Charter member and through further peace-keeping and humanitarian relief deployments, Canada supports global disaster relief efforts through the provision of satellite imagery.

With regards to the Charter as of June 2018, it has been activated 576 times since its inception. Of these activations, RADARSAT 1 and 2 data has supported approximately two-thirds of the disaster response efforts helping to mitigate the effects of the disaster.^{Footnote 25} There are several benefits outlined as to Canadian involvement within the Charter:

• Export of Canadian expertise: in bringing operational procedures and standards in data management and reporting
• Disaster Coverage in Canada: responding to disaster events in Canada, as noted above
• Exploitation of RADARSAT data and archives: approximately 1,700 RADARSAT 1/2 images have been delivered to the Charter following activation to date. Adding visibility to the RADARSAT program globally as to its capabilities, and Canadian capabilities in SAR technology
• RADARSAT development and promotion of use: building new application areas, such as radargrammetric mapping, water column depths, data fusion techniques etc. which can be showcased
• Bringing visibility to the RADARSAT program: news/press releases following disaster events and demonstrating the use of satellite data. For instance, the usage of RADARSAT-2 imagery demonstrating lava flow extents in the recent Kilauea Volcanic event (products for the USGS provided by MDA).

Statistics show that the majority of radar images (including RADARSAT) supplied to the Charter go towards supporting flood events (66% of all SAR data supplied in 2016); flooding represents about half of all Charter activations. A further 26% of SAR usage relates to ocean/wind events, with other disaster types (fire, volcano, earthquake) more limited.^{Footnote 26} This reflects the benefits of SAR data for cloud penetration/all-weather wide area imaging; optical imagery by comparison is better suited to monitoring impacts on urban landscapes.

Outside of the Charter, Canada assists in wider global relief efforts. In the cases below CCMEO provides information to DND to support operations on the ground:

• In Afghanistan, CCMEO monitors snow melt in mountainous regions using RADARSAT-2 and MODIS data. The melt may result in flash floods which could impact refugee camps in the region. Work was also done to monitor the potential volume of snow by measuring snow thickness with the gravity mapping GRACE sensor.
• In response to the Haiti earthquake, CCMEO provided the DND Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) with information as to where water sources were and which airfields were damaged, supporting logistics on the ground etc. with RADARSAT-2 data, and imagery obtained through the Charter.

3.1.2.4 Taking the "Search" out of Search and Rescue

The primary benefit of utilizing satellite systems for search and rescue, is to reduce the search time. This has obvious benefits to the individuals being supported, as well as resulting in cost savings by minimizing the resources expended over a protracted search time. In using the COSPAS-SARSAT satellite system, individuals can activate their personal beacons in times of distress. The population of beacons in circulation within the Canadian population has expanded significantly: from under 10,000 in 2006 to over 50,000 in 2017 (in addition the government has over 3,000 military beacons.) Users span workers in harsh/remote regions of the country as well as numerous adventurists pursuing outdoor activities: for instance, when hiking in remote regions.

Further commercial companies operate similar distress beacons. The commercial SPOT Personal Tracker offers a similar service utilizing the Globalstar satellite network. The SPOT service contacts the relevant jurisdiction (so again will go through PSC) once its signal is activated. The system claims to have helped save the lives of nearly 6,000 people globally.^{Footnote 27}

3.1.3.1 Satellite Solutions

In the event of a disaster relevant information delivered in a timely fashion is paramount. Thus, whether it is supporting imagery or communications, having the correct channels to receive data with low latency, is key. CCMEO note that during a disaster event, they can receive data 15 minutes after it is acquired, and the product delivered to a handheld device within a total of 30 minutes after acquisition. This near real-time information gives first responders as much time as needed to react to an evolving situation.

For flood mapping, CCMEO utilizes data from RADARSAT-2, Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2. Sentinel-1 data receives directly through its own proprietary antenna. For flooding there is mainly a focus on SAR solutions – the main reason being that flooding is associated with cloud cover, limiting the possibilities of optical solutions. Further data is provided on a good will basis, often with the CSA mediating: ALOS (JAXA) and Resurs-series (ROSCOSMOS) data was sent to support the Quebec flooding of 2017; and KOMPSAT series (Korea) and Airbus data (through the DLR) was sent to support the monitoring of the Fort McMurray wildfires. It is noted that bilateral data exchanges at times of a disaster event can work better than the Charter due to data being able to be received faster. Overall, imagery usage is expected to grow in support of disaster management at the provincial level. PSC notes that the seven provinces it has provided solutions for, have realized the benefits in supporting emergency management, and in better preparing for the next event.

For search and rescue operations, COSPAS-SARSAT is made up of five LEO and five GEO satellites (with further availability if needed). The system payloads are on-board NOAA and EUMETSAT meteorology satellites operating in both LEO and GEO. One relatively recent advance was the switch to a 406 Mhz frequency which allows for contacting the individual who activated the distress beacon. This adds a further safety element, and also allows for cancelling accidental activations: false alerts still take away time and resources. In the future the system will incorporate satellites operating in MEO, with payloads to be carried on future Galileo and Glonass navigation satellites.

3.1.3.2 Alternatives

Depending on the disaster type the alternatives to satellite imagery can offer a better solution. For instance, there is limited value in managing forest fires using satellite imagery. Whilst work can be done in assessing fire risk, such as "hot-spot" detection, i.e. areas which are drying and prone to fire spread due to wind direction (systems such as AVHRR and MODIS are used). The management of the fire situation itself is a challenge due to a couple of factors. Firstly, optical data is better suited to forest fire management, but is impacted by the smoke which fires produce; and secondly, the ability to task and receive data in real-time is limited. A fire can change direction quickly, thus a satellite image may be tasked and received, but by this time the area may already be burnt, or the fire has changed direction. This means that tasking the satellite to collect the desired data can be problematic.

CCMEO noted that despite plenty of good will from data providers globally, most optical data supplied during the Fort McMurray fire event was not able to be used. Latency was also an issue in the case of the Charter activation with regards to the wildfires. There remain delays in receiving data to support efforts, noting that imagery can take 24 hours to four days to receive. In the case of the Fort McMurray fires this meant the data has limited practical use as the wildfire areas change rapidly. Radar data also has more limited value given the parameters of information which can be collected from such systems.

The Alberta Emergency Management Agency notes that the best data to support Fort McMurray came from DigitalGlobe quick look imagery, as it is updated when collected. Otherwise, the only real practical system for collecting data today is airplanes with full imaging capabilities which can downlink data in real-time. Fixed wing aircraft can also fly below the cloud ceiling. Drones, while being useful, require permits to fly which can take time to process.

Airplanes and drones are however less practical for monitoring flooding. This is a factor of the required coverage on the ground. These solutions become less cost-effective, whereas satellite can provide regular wide-area monitoring.

3.1.3.3 Potential blockages to future growth

Budgets are a key issue. Imagery utilized is either Canada proprietary (RADARSAT series), free (Sentinel series) or provided on a good will basis – as is often the case from both government and commercial providers during a disaster event. PSC notes that it occasionally procures commercial imagery through "National Master Standing Offers for Commercial Satellite Imagery" and delivered through NRCAN's "National Earth Observation Data Framework Catalogue" if projects budgets are permitting. PSC did not order any very high resolution commercial optical images in 2017, however in 2018 so far it has procured four images for issues related to border security.

Tasking conflicts can also be an issue surrounding RADARSAT-2 and/or if other end-users have requested the same imagery. The issue of data ordering is not expected to be resolved with the increased capacity brought through RCM, noting the policy for sharing data may go through some growing pains. It is anticipated that demands of DND and the CIS may cause data access issues to other government departments. Staffing can also be a factor. RADARSAT-2 imagery has become essential for PSC provincial partners, so time is spent ordering imagery and it is becoming a burden. PSC does not have dedicated personnel for receiving imagery requests from provincial partners or communicating with the CSA order-desk with regards to deliveries and ordering conflicts.

Supporting infrastructure can also be an issue. Current computing architecture is not considered to be adequate in supporting large amounts of data. RCM will also vastly increase the data volume. Ideally a centralized high-performance computer could fulfil the roles of data storage and dissemination. The question of supporting infrastructure was also apparent during the Fort McMurray fire. The Alberta Emergency Management Agency and the Wildfire Management Branch were inundated with data without the resources to be able to assess all imagery provided by the Charter and analyse it. They received 1.7 petabytes of data, but at different levels of processing. Ideally, the data needed to be all G.I.S. ready to integrate on delivery and scanned for cloud cover.^{Footnote 28}

It is noted by the CSA that Canada currently does not offer value-added services as part of its offering from the Charter, as some other countries do (either supplied through the space agency or contracted out to a third-party services provider for fast-turnaround analytics and services It is acknowledged that services to the Government of Alberta would have been more helpful to them as opposed to receiving only data. This is something which is currently being addressed. The CSA is looking at ways of developing supporting services through both the Copernicus Emergency Mapping Service initiative, and through the NRCAN emergency mapping program. The Charter is also supporting the development of a processing platform which will offer a centralized scanning for all data to support validation of data usability.

Agriculture

3.2.1.1 Satellite Communications

While satellite communications are employed to help backhaul information generated from in-situ farm assets, this utilization area is considered peripheral, with broader communications issues for the agricultural community being addressed, in part, in the forthcoming remote/rural communities' section.

3.2.1.2 Imagery (Earth observation)

The use of satellite imagery, what data source is used, who uses it, and for what purpose is often a question of scale. At a global level, there is a need to monitor for food security, while at a national level, the purpose is more towards monitoring land-use, whereas the industrial level comes down to monitoring individual farmed areas to better support productivity and gauge crop health:

• According to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization [FAO], food production must increase by 70% by 2050 in order to manage the forecast rise in global population.^{Footnote 32} At the global level, initiatives such as NASA's "Earth Observations for Food Security and Agriculture Consortium (EOFSAC) utilize a range of largely NASA environment monitoring focused missions' data. Imagery from satellites such as Terra and Aqua, for instance, provides very wide area multispectral imaging at low resolutions, this is supported by other targeted missions (such as Soil Moisture Active Passive [SMAP]) and meteorology data sets.^{Footnote 33}
• At a national level, countries report (mostly commonly) seasonally on land-use for agriculture purpose in order to monitor any significant changes as well as provide, support and monitor for farming subsidies. Satellite systems commonly used include Landsat-data (as it is freely available) as well as commercial solutions such as the SPOT-series and the Rapideye constellation. Landsat for instance is used to estimate crop production, provide agricultural statistics etc. for reported to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)^{Footnote 34}; in the U.K. reporting on the EU CAP through the Rural Payments Agency reduces costs significantly: scanning a farm with a satellite costs one third as sending an inspector into the field ($180 as opposed to $490 per farm).^{Footnote 35}
• Precision agriculture is a developing area for satellite-based EO and is becoming more established as an application from aerial solutions, such as drones. Support to agriculture applications is the first market for imagery data and services from drones, Euroconsult estimates the market to be in the range of $500 million in 2016, with the potential to rise to $4.5 billion by 2025.^{Footnote 36} By contrast, the satellite imaging market for precision agriculture is currently estimated at only $30-40 million (the total data and services market for agriculture is estimated at $500-550 million in 2016.^{Footnote 37} There are few current dedicated satellite services offerings, such as the "Farmstar" service offered by Airbus.

A key factor in the future for the use of satellite-based imagery is in the emergence of new low-cost constellations, able to provide multispectral data at high resolution (at least 1m), with very high revisit, and at a lower cost. It is not expected that satellites will cannibalize the entirety of the drone imaging market – drones will always be able to offer even higher ground resolutions, and hyperspectral imaging at high resolution, rather data can be used complementarily: Satellite has the advantage of wide area coverage imaging, and frequent revisit, whereas operational costs can run high for continued data collection from drones, and over a narrower area.

3.2.1.3 Satellite Navigation

Satellite navigation systems such as the Medium Earth Orbit GNSS or GPS constellations are a core component of the rise of precision agriculture technologies. It enables users to merge real-time data gathering with accurate positioning information in order to obtain accurate and effective geospatial analysis. North America is the region leading the transition towards precision agriculture. End-users in the region procured 400,000 GPS devices integrated for agricultural activities in 2017, with forecasts of the market reaching 1.3 million units by 2025.^{Footnote 38}

Historically, constraints primarily due to lack of technical and financial means would impede farmers from applying specific strategies in regards to soil/plant treatments, crop yields, chemicals applications etc., in order to maximize their production. In most cases, a uniform production approach was taken when it came to land operations. The development of new GPS or GNSS systems integrated for agricultural activities brought to light the benefits of micro-managing fields [precision agriculture], and at the same time, hardware and service prices became more accurate, affordable and convenient for workers to handle.^{Footnote 39} Many benefits may be identified by integrating the use of satellite navigation in agricultural activities; such as fuel consumption reduction, associated reductions in atmospheric carbon dioxide emissions, as well as farmer time savings, reduced use of fertilizers and improved field/crop health. Key application areas include: tractor guidance and automatic steering, variable rate technologies, soil condition monitoring and livestock tracking as well as supporting the emerging UAV market in support of agriculture.

• Tractor guidance and automatic steering using GPS devices represent the most used application across precision agriculture – equating to 66% (or 250,000 units) of total GPS/GNSS equipment demand in 2016.^{Footnote 40} Companies such as Trimble are now developing a complete range of automated steering systems, from autopilot to assisted steering equipment, giving way to minimizing errors and overlaps made by manually orienting tractors and therefore achieving fuel and time savings, translating into a reduction in operations costs.^{Footnote 41}
• Technology coupling ground sensors and GPS data, allowing users to adjust chemical spreading in a field according to crops need, is growing in utilization; 67,000 units were procured in 2016. Such as, field sensors measuring crops' light reflectance in order to assess fertilizer or other product needs via specific agronomic algorithms and couple the information with GPS systems for efficient processing.^{Footnote 42} Other practical uses of satellite navigation coupled with ground sensors may be related to identifying the levels of salinity.
• GPS applications are supporting livestock tracking. Traditional methods do not provide quick and efficient ways to identify, locate or count the number of animals in a herd. Animals are tracked through identification numbers attached to the animals using tags.
• GPS-enabled UAVs is considered a nascent, but growing area, for GPS embedded technology in support of precision agriculture. According to the 2017 GNSS market report, U.S. corn, soybean and wheat farmers are estimated to be able to save up to $1.45 billion annually by introducing the usage of drones in their activities. The world demand for drones is expected to rise up to 70 million units in 2025, with 80% being destined for precision agriculture purposes.^{Footnote 43}

3.2.2.1 Improved land management

The use of satellite imagery enables farmers to build improved nutrient land management plans; such as how/when to spread manure, minimizing the impact of surface run-off (hydrology/elevation mapping) and helping plan the correct amount of fertilizer to use based on crop health. Satellite data is commonly used in combination with other sources, such as topographic maps, in-situ measurements (such as temperature, chemistry) in order to provide information on when and how to treat crops.

Research within OMAFRA demonstrated that the cost benefit of utilizing satellite imagery provided a ratio of 1:11-13 in terms of a dollar spent versus the return. This was based on a basic cost/benefit assessment utilizing data acquired by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) along with data specific data collected in Ontario on a number of soil variables to calculate impacts of soil issues in Ontario. Considering the budget for data procurement to support agriculture land management is $100-150k per year, this would imply a cost-savings benefit of $1.1 to $2 million/year in Ontario alone. Extrapolating these figures further would bring a total Canada cost-benefit to $14-17 million/year, or an average five-yearly saving of over $75 million to Canadian farmers. This benefit is taken as an average current minimum value, it would be expected to increase as further information is gathered, including from upcoming satellite systems.

Further benefit areas noted are far ranging, and often only need a simple analysis or map creation. Such as in being able to measure field/farm sizes and crops planted for insurance purposes. A similar mapping process helps a farmer plan and price-out costs for new fencing or identify any issues with regards to drainage. Further environmental initiatives can also be monitored, for instance, a farm may gain credits to support the planting (or leaving) of wild flowers for the development of bee populations. AAFC is involved in similar initiatives, such as with the universities of Calgary and Ottawa to support bee populations; the prairie landscape pollinator experiment assesses how proximity to a number of landscape features, including crop type, has influenced populations.

3.2.2.2 Enabling precision farming through Satnav

Crop yield data collected on-board combine harvesters, when combined with satellite navigation, can pin-point areas within a field which display lower/normal/higher yield. This information feeds land management plans in order to identify areas in which are under/over irrigated, or where too much/little fertilizer is being used. Companies such as Trimble offer prescriptive planning based on data collected highlighting high yield, soil conditions and problematic areas. A farmer is then instructed what areas to seed/treat and what to do about underperforming zones.

The Environment Management Branch within OMAFRA estimate that $10-25/acre is saved by adapting such technology through improved usage of seeds, fertilizer and irrigation depending on the crop type. The estimation is difficult to assess given the need to validate the impacts of changing seeding, fertilizer amounts etc. however it is based on the input of ~25 case studies. Note this is also comparable with the work produced Haak D.E.^{Footnote 45} cited in the opening section of this report with savings in the $8 to $22 range (in this study soybeans were at the low end of the scale, corn at the high end, again similar to the studies at OMAFRA.) To build a total savings the estimated number of farms/acres using the technology is to be collected. OMAFRA estimate that in Ontario approximately 25% of farms are using GPS-enabled combines to produce either simple base mapping or a more prescriptive approaches as provided by companies such as Trimble. However, in the Prairie Provinces this is anticipated to be much higher – Farmers Edge estimate that 50%-65% of farmers are using some kind of precision agriculture solution. One key reason for this difference is expected to be the sizes of the farms. Precision Agriculture impacts are increased by the size of the farm, remote techniques and systematic data gathering taking much less time to gather information compared to in-situ measurements. Farmers Edge estimated that precision agriculture solutions become most beneficial with farm sizes 1,500-2,000 acres plus. Therefore, where farms are larger the uptake of such solutions is expected to be a higher percentage. The average farms size over Saskatchewan (~1,800 areas), Alberta and Manitoba (~1,200 acres) is significantly higher than the other provinces^{Footnote 46} (Ontario is ~250 acres.)

Using this data as a weighting, it can be estimated that approximately 45,000 crop farms in Canada use precision agriculture solutions (40% of the total), representing a little over 50% of total farmed crop acres; around 50 million acres. This 50% uptake implies a benefit of approximately $575 million/year through cost savings brought by better farming practises.

If all farms adopted such practises this figure would be over $1 billion/year. This cost savings would be expected to expand as more farms and agribusiness adopt these solutions. Precision agriculture is considered an equipment driven market, solutions are gaining in accuracy but cost-benefit remains an issue to convince all agronomists, especially at smaller scale farms. If adoption rate however is taken at 75% for farming areas in which average size is 1,000 acres plus, and a 10% increase in other provinces – an achievable target, then total penetration comes to about two-thirds of farmed crop acres. If this can be achieved by 2027, this would imply a cost-saving of over $800 million/year across Canada.

3.2.2.3 New imagery solution supporting precision agriculture

Precision farming is supported by other technology, such as in-situ measurements, satellite imagery and/or drones. Farmers Edge for instance utilize satellite imagery (mainly from Planet) along with over 4,000 in-situ weather stations placed directly on farms to collect information. Satellite imagery is used to collect NDVI data to monitor crop production and health. The company notes that farm scales are again a factor in utilization – the larger the farm (2,000 acres plus) the more a challenge to collect in-situ data regularly, and thus the greater benefits in using the satellite solution. The alternative, crop scouting, requires individuals to go out into the fields; thus, the use of imagery allows for man-hour savings. Farmers Edge note that while an agronomist would be able to serve approximately 75k acres/year, this figure is now 250-500k through the use of satellite imagery (crop depending). Through the combined savings of man-hours, and improved farming efficiencies (targeting where to irrigate, save fertilizers etc.), Farmers Edge estimate a saving of $25-50/acre (again crop depending) in the use of combined satellite imagery and in-situ weather station data. Knowing how many farms are adapting such solutions is again difficult to judge, other companies such as Monsanto Climate Corp., also offer services. Considering that Farmers Edge solutions are operational in farms totalling approximately 6.25 million acres in Canada, this implies a cost saving of $150 to $300 million/year. Also noting that the 6.25 million acres represents less than 7% of the total crop land in Canada. Therefore, even assuming other competitive solutions, there is plenty of room for satellite imagery utilization to grow.

Being able to provide such services is a fairly recent occurrence, enabled by high frequency data collection brought by the Planet Dove constellation. Further applications and services areas are expected to develop. For instance, using NDVI's the point at which corn has reached certain maturity, its yield is becoming possible to estimate with a high degree of certainty. Knowing how to predict yield and maturity would also help to support the agricultural logistics/supply chain business, thus leading to further benefits. There are further benefits in exporting solutions, noting that Farmers Edge built know-how in Canada, but supply solution globally – only 25% of its business being in Canada.

A further tool being piloted is the SCAN (soil, crop, atmosphere and nitrogen) tool provided by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) recalled in the opening section of this report.^{Footnote 47} It aims to optimize nitrogen management, deficient nitrogen leads to compromised performance, whereas overuse leads to increases in costs with further potential for environmental impacts. SCAN is based on artificial intelligence techniques that are best adapted to manage imprecise and complex relationships of crops and nitrogen based on mathematical approaches. The satellite imagery acquired at a specific growth stage provides one of the information types required for the operation of SCAN, i.e., crop status. Test results have shown over three years (2013-2015) the SCAN produced average gains of $25 to $49 per hectare, depending on the year – comparable with the results reported by Farmers Edge. SCAN remains in the testing phase (mainly in Quebec, and coordinated through EO geospatial services company, Effigis) however, operations are expected to commence shortly. The applications are however based on commercial imagery (given the ground resolutions required of multispectral datasets, and therefore there is likely to be a charge (either to the government or the farmer)).

Forecasting the benefits can be a challenge for services which are just emerging. However, considering the Farmers Edge market penetration of around 7%, their anticipated growth using Planet data, and further services such as SCAN becoming operational, an estimate of 25% of crop acreage using imagery integrated solutions by 2027 is not unreasonable. This would result in a potential benefit in terms of cost savings to farmers of $650 million to $1.3 billion depending on crop type.

3.2.2.4 Supporting farming practises

AAFC produces several maps using Earth observation imagery to support farming practises nationally, however, as this data is open source finding statistics as to how it benefits Canadians can be challenging. Information collected results from users reaching back to AAFC for discussion. Some indicators to usage can be gained; the AAFC Annual Crop Inventory is amongst the top 25 downloads on the government of Canada portal, and within the top two geospatial product downloads. Further solutions provided open source by AAFC include crop condition maps (using NDVI data obtained from MODIS), and surface moisture maps (using SMAP.)

Of the cases brought to AAFC, end-users of the agricultural mapping products span federal and provincial government, commodity groups, agribusiness, research institutes and NGOs. Usage falls broadly into a few camps including: improving policy development, program delivery and reporting with benefits in improving decision making, enhancing accountability and defining new areas of research. The table below summarizes several of the end-user benefit cases, the users and the typology of benefits brought.

Several of the examples in the case study report from AAFC would be possible to quantify, particularly those related to the agribusiness or resulting in cost-savings for farmers, however it is not the mandate of AAFC to further collect information on individual cases. One area in which can be quantified is the support satellite-based agricultural maps have provided in business development of the canola crop in Canada as outlined in the case study below.

3.2.2.5 Supporting national policy and farming regulations

In addition to producing maps for third parties the federal government monitors farming activity at a national level in order to support best practice policies and monitor changes in farming activity year-over-year. For instance, it is necessary to plant and rotate three different crops in order to maintain soil nutrients. There can be a bias towards certain crops with higher short-term returns, and thus focus on just two crops – however, this can lead to land degradation and erosion in the longer term. Farms can thus be flagged which are planting less than the desired number of crops and notifications can be sent to them. Similarly, farms can be monitored as to which are spreading manure in the winter; if a mild weather spell occurs, surface snow will melt and the manure will be drained into water systems.

Such activities can also have wider implications for the environment. OMAFRA for instance are monitoring the impacts of surface run-off from farming processes on the ecology of Lake Erie. In particular the build-up of organic levels in the lake, increasing CO2 emissions and the impact this is having on local ecosystems and water quality. AAFC also has a role in supporting sustainable land management practises, such as in in supporting the maintenance of forest and wetland areas as well as identifying where they may have been turned into agricultural lands. This is achieved by monitoring land use through updated satellite imagery, and flagging areas considered at risk.

3.2.3.1 Satellite Solutions

The use of satellite solutions largely depends on the scale of the agricultural mapping required. AAFC, having the mandate to provide national mapping, rely on larger swath optical imaging sensors such as the MODIS and Landsat series. Moving to the more localised level, where monitoring of individual fields and field sizes is required, higher resolution systems are needed – though the use of commercial satellite systems offering higher resolution data sets is limited by budget constraints. At the provincial level, the main go-to satellite solutions at OMAFRA are Landsat and Sentinel-series data, both of which are freely available. Data is used to monitor areas of crop coverage at broad level classifications. For example, monitor on a seasonal basis which fields are crop covered, and thus may be susceptible to erosion.

A key area of improvement would be to better support data collection at key times and at regular intervals. For instance, to be able to monitor at the start of the growing season, in the End-March to Mid-April time frame, and directly after post-harvest. At the moment, cloud cover in Canada, and the 16-day repeat pass of Landsat make this unfeasible, and thus it is achieved through the collection of aerial data, or in-situ reporting. In this regard there is some discussion with companies such as Planet as to how its system can be developed, albeit if this is considered in the early phase.

At the federal level, AAFC is open to using further data sources but face infrastructure challenges. There is more data available but does not have the capacity to store vast volumes of it. For instance, to date it does not integrate Sentinel data into its models as it does not have the storage/processing capacity, mainly relying on Landsat and RADARSAT-2. It is more of a hardware and software issue, noting that Shared Services Canada does have software updates, though this is more generic and not tailored to the specific needs of handling geospatial imagery.

The use of satellite imagery in precision farming is more limited. However, this could change as private companies, such as Planet, are targeting the sector. Note that Planet works directly with the agriculture service providers in order to build solutions. Farmers Edge note that prior to Planet, for which it has an exclusive license in Canada, it would use freely available sources such as Landsat and Sentinel-2. However, Planet can offer the high frequency revisit (up to 2-3 times a day) that it needs to power its models and provide data to the farmers regularly. Across a growing season of 90 days for instance, Landsat will only pass a few times, and due to cloud cover perhaps only 3-4 images are useful. Planet's sub-daily collection allows for regular updates, and much improved chances of cloud free data.

3.2.3.2 Alternatives

Where more localized monitoring is required, aerial/UAV solutions offer a viable alternative. OMAFRA for instance aims to update its field ortho-imagery mapping every five years utilizes aerial data. Alberta Agriculture and Forestry similarly uses aerial ortho images; being able to create stereo imaging to better map hydrology being one important aspect (satellite stereo being expensive). Further advantages of aerial solutions are brought in localised mapping to support height changes, measured with LiDAR, or when requiring a higher spectral capacity, such as to measure biophysical crop changes; in which case aerial hyperspectral data is utilized. LiDAR is also used to map likely drainage patterns and is used in combination with satellite data to better map potential areas for soil erosion.

However, widespread use of drones is not the case. A key factor is the regulatory requirements to be able to fly drones, while operational expenditures can also ramp-up. Usage is more expected in higher return crops such as canola, peas etc. It is also not expected that farmers will directly procure drones in huge numbers, it is more likely that they would work with a services company.

Considering that satellite LiDAR is somewhat limited to a few scientific driven missions (such as NASA's ICESat) and is some way off from being operational from space it is unlikely that satellite will offer an alternative in the short-medium term. Hyperspectral sensing similarly is some way from full operations from satellite, however the German-led EnMap mission is sited as a potential future mission of note (expected to be launched in 2020) albeit if the satellite does not have a collection capacity in the shortwave-infrared to support collection on biophysical properties. Hyperspectral capabilities across the near-infrared however would offer improved insights into crop classification.

3.2.3.3 Potential blockages to future growth

Budgets and data ownership are two key areas identified as inhibitors to further usage. In the case of imagery, budgets are small for data purchases relying mainly on free datasets. Noting above, the OMAFRA budget for satellite imagery is in the range of $100-150k/year. Taking that as a starting point, this would mean a total budget range of $1 million to $1.5 million at the provincial government level to acquire commercial Earth observation solutions. This assumes a weighting of budget based on croplands across the provinces. Building the case as to what satellite imagery can do in demonstrating cost-benefit is an important issue.

A further factor is who owns the data collected through precision agriculture. When collecting data from GPS-enabled combines the yield sensor is supplied by equipment provider (such as John Deere) and integrated into a services company for data generation (such as Trimble or Monsanto) and then certain information is delivered to the end-user (the farmer or agribusiness). However, ownership of the data can be claimed by all three parties, and the data can be aggregated and used further – such as in being able to monitor yield across multiple farms and extensive areas. Such data collection could for instance be used to better forecast commodity prices and there are obvious sensitivities around this.

Air traffic management

3.3.1.1 Satellite Communications

ADS-B technology is by nature strongly linked to satellite navigation, and thus these benefits are discussed in the navigation section. The current passage will focus on the additional benefits brought by satellite communication systems to the Air Traffic Management, related or not to the ADS-B system. ADS-B transponder technology consists of transmitters and receivers equipped on aircraft. It relays real-time information about location and velocity of the transmitting airplanes. Transmissions are conveyed using the ITU-regulated 1090 MHz frequency band. Provided both parties have compatible ADS-B installations, communications may be enabled between: two aircraft in operation, an airplane and airport, or ARTCC station, or a remote ADS-B ground receiver. The ADS-B data distribution system relies on GPS/GNSS satellites as its core input, the geolocation information being processed by the carrier internal instruments before being spread by the just-introduced cutting-edge communication process.^{Footnote 51}

Despite the ease of deployment of the ADS-B technology, some regions around the globe are believed to be too difficult to access or do not allow the installation of adequate ground equipment to support communication means that were just depicted. This is the case for maritime regions, as well as remote terrestrial land. Using satellite communication assets as relays to convey flight information to the ground stands out as a logical strategy to mitigate the complications imposed by remote locations. Satellite systems equipped with ADS-B transponders are now entering the market. As an example, Aireon is implementing such technology into the payloads of the Iridium NEXT constellation, therefore providing a global coverage and similar performances to terrestrial ADS-B in terms of latency and information refresh rates. This solution will be fully operational once the remaining Iridium NEXT satellites have been launched to orbit, in mid-2018.^{Footnote 52} Given the increasing amount of aircraft that will fly around the globe in the next two decades, new large LEO constellations such as the one developed by Telesat, thanks to their worldwide coverage, have the potential to become new entrants in the Air Traffic Management industry.

On the other hand, governmental programs such as the Single European Skies ATM Research (SESAR) are currently looking for innovative approaches to enhance their aviation management system. In this European case, satellite-based communication was chosen, through a partnership with Inmarsat, Thales Alenia Space and the European Space Agency, as a way to distribute secure and high capacity cockpit transmissions, and to fulfill SESAR's long-term objectives of optimizing the European airspace by reducing emissions due to air traffic, improving flight trajectories, and minimizing in-flight time and delays.^{Footnote 53}

3.3.1.2 Imagery (Earth observation)

Although mainly a satellite application for satnav, the role of meteorology cannot be ignored. Meteorology data is used to predict best flight routes and to highlight areas expected to encounter more severe weather, or increased turbulence. Data utilized is firstly meteorology specific data from GEO and LEO, from operators such as NOAA and EUMETSAT. These agencies also provide services free of charge to support the airlines. Private weather companies can also augment this data supply to provide more tailored, continuous, services to airlines. Not all meteorology data however is homogenous. Whereas a continual supply of data can be supplied from GEO positions, there is degradation off nadir which becomes problematic above 50° latitude. At this point the utilization of LEO satellites come into effect, however they pass multiple times a day rather than provide a continuous data stream. Improved weather measurements at higher latitudes would assist in being able to open up polar air routes further.

A further application is in ash cloud monitoring. Again, meteorology data is the first solution utilized. The impact of ash clouds on air travel came into the public spotlight following the Iceland volcanic incident of 2010. In total it was reported that an average of 25 days a year are affected by ash clouds over Canadian territory and controlled air space.^{Footnote 54} The grounding of airplanes due to this comes at a cost to the airlines and business dependant on air freight. Meteorology data allows for better routing to avoid these incurred costs. Canada also hosts one of the nine global Volcanic Ash Advisory Centres for monitoring over its jurisdiction, covering the Canadian territory, western Atlantic and polar regions.

3.3.1.3 Satellite navigation

GPS or GNSS constellations provide the core data that is used by airplanes to calculate their position and other flight relevant information. Once processed, this information has to be transmitted to ground stations and subsequent air control centers for them to perform efficient tracking of each vehicle. These exchanges of data are of prime importance since the flight safety regulations standards are stringent, as illustrated by ICAO's "Manual on Airspace Planning Methodology for the Determination of Separation Minima" which provides the mathematical guidelines to establish aircraft paths and traffic safety regulations. Risk factors, i.e. fatal accidents per flight hour, are traditionally set at a maximum of 10-8 to 10-9 by the ICAO for all aircraft separation distance and safety equations.^{Footnote 55}

The ADS-B system is now implemented and aims to replace the traditional radar-based surveillance system for identification and tracking of aircraft. Aerospace manufacturers Boeing and Airbus are implementing "ADS-B IN" and "ADS-B OUT" transponders in order to allow the spreading and transmission of essential flight tracking data, i.e. position, direction of flight, altitude, airborne velocity, climb and descent information and so on. By coupling a 1090 MHz Mode S "ES" transponder and GPS systems onboard aircraft this technology will transmit crucial flight tracking data once per second to ground installation or airplanes in the vicinity, enabling them to identify and track each aircraft trajectory with greatly improved precision and accuracy compared to conventional radar systems.^{Footnote 56} The US and European Air Navigation Control institutions, the FAA and EUROCONTROL, are requesting all commercial aircraft to comply with the ADS-B Out regulations set by these agencies by 2020.^{Footnote 57} Australia has also decided to move forward with the ADS-B system to avoid the costs associated with deployment and maintenance of conventional radar infrastructures to establish coverage of its Western airspace.^{Footnote 58}

Up to now, one of the main constraints for airplane navigation has been the minimum separation between aircraft, which is very closely linked to the technical performances of the tracking/surveillance system monitoring the airborne vehicles. As an example, the North Atlantic region, one of the busiest air traffic zone on the planet, with 43% of the global oceanic air traffic, has a minimum of 30 to 50 nautical miles of separation (longitude) between two aircraft due to the unavailability of conventional tracking means over the ocean, and radar transmission having high latency reaching the continents. As a consequence, flying paths have to be adapted accordingly and such high aircraft density zones may become bottlenecks for aerial transportation.^{Footnote 59}

The advantages brought by the ADS-B system are that aircraft separation standards may be reduced, therefore allowing more airplanes to share the same airspace simultaneously. This may result in a potential increase of number of flights, since the air traffic control centers will be able to track more precisely each airplane. The result being airplanes being able to fly closer together, and optimization of flight paths. This increases the benefits in flights over oceans and remote areas, which are more restrictive today. Flying more direct routes and having uninterrupted climbs and descents may result in less engine emissions, fuel savings, noise reduction, and could allow airlines to reduce their cost per passenger, which may lower price tickets for the end-user.

3.3.2.1 Reduction of CO2 emission per flight

Air transportation is responsible for 2% human-made global CO2 emissions per year. This translates into an IATA estimation of 859 million tons of CO2 discharged by aircraft around the world, an airplane consuming an average 4 liters of kerosene per second. Given the forecast of air traffic evolution up to 2036, these emission figures will continue to increase and might surpass other transportation means. Historically, the airline industry has not faced any sanctions nor an offsetting scheme to make amend for contributing to global pollution. This is now changing, the ICAO having adopted in 2017 the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) and other CO2 emissions reduction incentive or mandatory schemes, encouraging long-term efforts up to 2050.

3.3.2.2 Air traffic augmentation over Canada

The world's total number of air passengers is set to double by the end of 2036. Canadian air routes are forecast to follow that trend. Private aircraft manufacturers like Airbus or public institutions such as the ICAO forecast that revenues per passenger kilometer (RPK) in North America will follow the world's growth average of 4.5%. Canada, which administrates the third largest airspace in the world, has a lot to gain from augmented air traffic permitted by reduced aircraft separation enabled by space-based ADS-B. More routes shall be created, resulting in a higher number of airplanes flying in the same airspace and increased fees which can be charged. Separation reduction between aircraft results in a higher number of airplanes flying through or over Canada, translating into more airport, en-route and in-flight service fees collected by NavCanada. NavCanada sets three specific type of fees regarding air traffic flying over Canada: airport/terminal fees, en-route fees and service fees. The first concerns the payment of navigation services provided to an aircraft whilst on the ground; the second is applied every time an airplane goes through a specific airspace and is calculations may vary according to the nature of the zone considered (oceanic vs over-ground); and, thirdly specific fees apply to transit in the Gander oceanic zone.

These fees impact the financial results of NavCanada. It unveiled financials results close to $1.3 billion in revenues at year-end August 2017. Being a non-profit organization, NavCanada reinvests its profits into either infrastructure renewal, redistribution to its clients or a decrease of fares for subsequent year. Revenues also translate in tax payment to Canada, with $14 million due in 2017, and $55 million deferred tax liability owed to the government. Applying the anticipated growth in the industry, this would mean tax payments estimated at $19 million in 2027.

Revenues generated by NavCanada allow constant improvements in tracking systems/ground equipment to offer optimal service to airlines, whilst benefiting the country via tax payments.

3.3.2.3 Enabling more efficient airline routes.

New air routes opened over Northern territories result in direct profit augmentation for Canada through air traffic fees. Flights numbers published by NavCanada show increases in the number of flights through Canada's polar routes, from 1,000 in 2003 to 16,000 in 2016. This trend applies to domestic flights as well as international flights transiting over the country. All flights transiting pays mandatory en-route fees as outlined in the previous section. Altogether, the enabling of new polar routes, supported by satellite-based ADS-B technology providing continuous position updates between aircraft and ground control, will result in approximate cumulated taxes, paid by NavCanada to the government, of $400,000 by 2027.

This is corroborated by ICAO predictions, depicting South East and West Asia destinations, originating or going to North America, among the fastest growing in terms of passenger numbers. Space-based ADS-B technology will be a major enabler to open new routes over Canada's polar region, its success demonstrated by the Hudson Bay airspace opening case, where the first Canadian usage of ADS-B was made in 2010, an approximate 850,000 km2 of previous coverage gap being eradicated. Aircraft separation requirements in this zone were reduced from 80 to 5 nautical miles.

3.3.2.4 Passenger safety enhancement

Passenger safety is obviously paramount on all airline flights. The Manual on Airspace Planning Methodology for the Determination of Separation Minima specifically defines separation as the action from ATC institutions to maintain airplanes in operations at distances large enough to secure the risk of collision below a predetermined level. The methodology utilized to determine these vertical and longitudinal time or distance-based separation standards considers a collision factor labeled Target Level of Safety (TLS). This parameter, central in the separation minima calculation equations, is established proportionally to the quality of information accessible to ATC institutions and the flight pilots, given the minimum technology requirements accounted by international standards.

Following a data collection session performed with Aireon, the company states that long limited communication times occurring in remote areas such as oceanic airspaces are problematic, aircraft can fly at the wrong altitude or too close to another airplane, with corrective instructions from ATC ground stations taking too much time to reach pilots to change course.

Actual official TLS figures range between 0.02 to 0.005 fatal collisions per every million flight hours. However, information collected during the data collection process indicate current achieved TLS figures of 0.035 to 0.008. A complete space-based ADS-B implementation in the airline industry by 2020 could provide a 76% improvement towards complying to official Target Level of Safety standards. This is thanks to reduced latency in ATC transmissions, helping airlines comply to international safety laws at all times during flights.

The technology can also help better flight tracking in case of an incident and to be able to help mitigate against future accidents. For instance, Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 which disappeared over the Indian Ocean would have been able to be tracked; communications with ATC centres ceased not long after take-off, however the plane could still be tracked if fitted with an ADS-B transponder.

3.3.2.5 Airlines improved cost-efficiency

Aircraft are designed and manufactured for optimal performance and fuel efficiency. To put it into perspective, during cruise, a Boeing 747 consumes around 4 liters of kerosene per second for an average engine power use of 25% engine power. The same aircraft during a climb, will consume approximately 26 liters of kerosene per second for an engine power use of 80%. Therefore, airlines business strategies aim to minimize as much as possible the time spent climbing, favoring the most direct and vertical climb trajectories to reach cruise altitude.

However, international safety regulations and constraints often force pilots to extend climb phases following take-off, breaking down climbing sequences into multiple segments, adding extra cost to each flight due to increased fuel consumption and flying at non-optimal altitude. Studies performed by NavCanada over the Gander-Shanwick airspace concluded that reduced flight separation constraints enabled by ADS-B would allow 450 liters of fuel saved per flight, translating to a $100 million/year in cost savings once ADS-B is fully implemented in 2020. There is the possibility for this to translate into lower cost airfares for the passenger.

Better managed flights can also result in reduced flight times and further savings on fuel. Aireon stated that flying more efficient routes enabled by ADS-B technology would result in an estimated 3 minutes of time saved per travel. Considering there are over 100,000 flights a day, this translates to 5,000 flying hours/day. To the Canadian Gander airspace case, this translates to 75 flying hours/day saved by flights traveling over the region. Given the predicted air travel market expansion, this could also benefit reducing airline delays, improving airport logistics and enable improved flight scheduling. Reducing airline travel times and delays also have further benefits. Studies performed on US economic impacts related to flight delays indicate unfavorable consequences on labour productivity during business travels, negative impacts on tourism etc. Results available show that net welfare in the US could potentially increase by more than $15 billion with a 10% flight delay reduction.

3.3.2.6 Remembering the role of GNSS

The aforementioned benefits largely focus on new technology areas, however, the role of GNSS and GPS in particular should not be ignored. More than 100,000 flights take off on a daily-basis, with on average more than 9000 aircraft in the air at any moment, a trend forecast to consistently increase in the next decades. Satellite GPS technology is the key enabler of such an expansion in air travel and ATC capabilities, by supplying geolocation coordinates to every airborne passenger or freight carrier, allowing them to compute their instantaneous location around the globe, and relaying the information to ground operators orienting the traffic. Using a benchmark developed for the U.S. aviation market, efficiency benefits of GPS on Canada's commercial aviation sector translate into a GDP impact of at least $25 million annually; with the technology acting as a key enabler to the critical $81 billion national industry which carried more than 91 million passengers and delivers 1.15 billion tonnes of freight in 2017.^{Footnote 60} While other technologies are also essential to aviation, switching to space-derived navigation allowed a global standardization of ATC and lowered operational costs for guidance-providing institutions and airlines.

A receiver is required on board aircraft to acquire and perform calculations on GPS-supplied data, rather than the traditional approach of having multiple communication technologies embarked to accommodate a number of ground-based navigation services that varied depending on regional regulations and modes of operation. The current reliance on GNSS systems, and GPS in particular, for air navigation is linked to the existence and geolocation correction services provided by a space-based complementary system to GPS; the Space-Based Augmentation System (SBAS). Demanded by ATC institutions, the main objective of SBAS is to provide support to the civil aviation industry in tracking aircraft around the globe and adding precision to GPS geolocation methods by correcting diverse errors intrinsically tied to the space-based nature of GPS.

3.3.3.1 Satellite Solutions

ADS-B transponder technology consists of transmitters and receivers equipped on aircraft. It relays real-time information about position, direction of flight, altitude, airborne velocity, climb and descent information etc., of the transmitting airplanes. Transmissions are conveyed using the ITU-regulated 1090 MHz frequency band. Provided both parties have compatible ADS-B installations, communications may be enabled between: two aircraft in operation, an airplane and airport, or ARTCC station, or a remote ADS-B ground receiver. The ADS-B data distribution system relies on GPS/GNSS satellites as its core input, the geolocation information being processed by the carrier internal instruments before being disseminated.

A satellite communication relay is then used to transmit information. In remote regions this is often the only possibility. Satellite systems carrying ADS-B transponders are now entering the market: Aireon is implementing such technology into the payloads of the Iridium NEXT constellation, therefore providing a global coverage and similar performances to terrestrial ADS-B in terms of latency and information refresh rates. This solution will be fully operational once the last remaining Iridium NEXT satellite is launched into orbit, in mid-2018. As of June 2018, no official announcement has been made on another satellite constellation being equipped with ADS-B secondary payloads.

Governmental programs such as the Single European Skies ATM Research (SESAR) are currently looking for other innovative approaches to enhance their aviation management system. In this case, satellite-based communication was chosen, through a partnership with Inmarsat, Thales Alenia Space and the European Space Agency, as a way to distribute secure and high capacity cockpit transmissions, and to fulfill SESAR's long-term objectives of optimizing the European airspace, reducing emissions due to air traffic, improve flight trajectories and minimize in-flight time and delays.

3.3.3.2 Alternatives

Terrestrial ADS-B has been implemented on land, a successor to the costlier radar-based ground technologies. At present, both systems are used concurrently and provide a complementary solution to the emerging space-based ADS-B. There is no real alternative to the space-based solution where ground infrastructure doesn't exist, such as over oceans. Therefore, the satellite solutions offer the only service offering anywhere at any time.

3.3.3.3 Potential blockages to future growth

Despite the ease of deployment of the ADS-B technology, some regions around the globe are too difficult to access or do not allow the installation of the adequate ground equipment to support the communication means. However, for most regions there are less constraints. Major flight regulation institutions have adopted the implementation of the system in their future policy. US and European Air Navigation Control institutions, the FAA and EUROCONTROL, are requesting all commercial aircraft to comply with the ADS-B Out regulations set by these agencies by 2020. NavCanada has adopted the same strategy and will require all aircraft traveling from or through Canada's airspaces to follow these regulations.

Environment monitoring

3.4.1.1 Satellite Communications

Satcom is used in environment monitoring for the transmission of measurements taken by in-situ sensors (e.g.: chemical composition of oceans, salinity, ice levels, temperature, pollution, oil wellhead pressure, etc.) to receiving stations. This typically involves narrowband communication links using low data rates (such as IoT/M2M). As in-situ sensors are often located in remote areas and/or in harsh environments, satellite represent a suitable solution for relaying the information from the sensor to the ground station for the subsequent dissemination to the end-users (scientists, corporations, government departments/agencies, etc.). If the object being monitored is mobile, the information collected is combined with GPS to provide the location of the sensor. Multiple initiatives worldwide utilize satellite-based solutions for environment monitoring. Argo for instance, is an international satellite-based ocean climate monitoring system composed of approximately 4,000 drifting floats equipped with autonomous beacons. The floats measure the temperature and salinity of the oceans.

The use of satcom can result in cost savings and increased operational efficiencies compared to manual data collection. For instance, a study conducted by Pacific Data System in Australia, has shown that the integration of satcom into Queensland mines' bore water monitoring system could reduce cost from $2000/month (for data collected manually once a month) to $1250/month (for the transmission of daily measurements via satellite). The use of satellites reduces staff travelling to remote areas where the mine is located which in turn, also results in higher productivity and increased safety operations.^{Footnote 62}

Satcom and GPS technologies are also key for the monitoring of wildlife and to collect information on their migration patterns and behaviours. This information is used to protect species at risk and address environmental challenges such as climate change and biodiversity loss. CLS-Argos for instance, has tracked over 900 polar bears since 1981. This data has helped the Sea Ice Downstream Services for Arctic and Antarctic Users (SIDARUS) to demonstrate a strong correlation between the bear's location and ice patterns. Similarly, more than 100,000 sea animals have been tracked since 1978 and about 200 land mammals and 4,500 birds are tracked each month.^{Footnote 63}

3.4.1.2 Imagery (Earth observation)

The U.N.'s Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) set out 54 Essential Climate Variables (ECV) that are key for sustainable climate observations.^{Footnote 64} These 54 ECVs (as set out here ^{Footnote 65}) are divided into atmosphere, ocean and land, including application variables such as measurements/monitoring of precipitation, sea ice, temperature, leaf area, air quality, soil moisture, fires etc. Leading space agencies such as NASA, ESA/EU, JAXA etc. have launched dedicated EO satellite capacity in order to collect information related to these variables in regular and continuous manner. Solutions are often then derived from non-space agencies with a close association between the agency collected data and the researching body. For instance, measurements of air temperature are provided monthly global by the Copernicus (E.U.) Climate Change Services, and implemented through the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF); NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) provides data on soil moisture and freeze-thaw state etc.^{Footnote 66} Satellite utilization is quite varied depending on the information required to be collected. To provide an idea of the extent of the systems used, leading government programs launched 120 satellites over the last decade, the majority in support of research into environmental monitoring, for a combined satellite value of $17.5 billion.^{Footnote 67}

Further areas are growing in importance, responding to varying policy interests, such as building resilience to extreme weather and environmental events. Applications focus on predictions as to which areas may be susceptible (e.g., to flooding, strong winds, etc.), whereas the Arctic Council's Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP) aims to provide objective scientific advice to support government efforts to manage impacts on the Arctic. Public health is a further area of concern, monitoring air pollution, for instance, and the link between atmospheric constituents and respiratory disease. The EC JRC in Europe ENSEMBLE platform models atmospheric chemistry and dispersion with data utilized combining meteorology systems with wide-area scanners (such as MODIS) and limb-sounding instruments, for the purpose of assessing air quality and mitigating the impacts of pollution.^{Footnote 68}

More localized studies have also been completed under the framework of the EU-led Copernicus initiative. A study of sea ice in Finland using SAR data (RADARSAT series, Sentinel-1, and archived ERS-1) combined with in-situ ice charts, demonstrated the importance of measuring sea ice to support navigation at sea. SAR data replaces the use of helicopters to help find the best routes through the ice: saving fuel and reducing the uncertainty in the ship arrival times at ports. The study concluded that between €24m and €116m per annum of economic value is being generated in Finland and Sweden thanks to the usage of satellite data.^{Footnote 69}

While the focus of environment monitoring is foremost government-orientated, the private sector is becoming more involved to comply with environmental regulations, such as in the oil and gas industry (exploration, exploitation and clean-up) and agricultural sectors (soil erosion, water pollution) and potential impacts on ecosystems. EO solutions, combined with in-situ measurements for instance, can be used to provide audits for compliance and environmental impact analysis.

3.4.1.3 Satellite Navigation

Due to the high degree of integration between GPS and satellite communications solutions, these applications are assessed together under the satellite communications section.

3.4.2.1 Environment monitoring to support best land-use practices

Part of the role of NRCAN is to monitor natural habitats and ecosystems for change. Either through climate change, or through the more localized impacts of human activities. In this regard imagery is used to support policy decision making, and to identify areas at risk, or mitigate against areas which could become at risk.

A focus area of NRCAN is for wetlands monitoring. Wetlands act as a natural filter for what makes its way into the water system, thus the ecosystem is sensitive to surrounding changes. Changes in wetlands can be monitored by satellite imagery and areas at risk highlighted in order to provide supportive actions. What is causing the impacts can also be identified, for instance if there has been changes in surrounding infrastructure which may have altered the watershed – e.g. by causing areas to dry-up by disrupting natural irrigation channels. The objective being to be able to provide the right guidelines for wetlands production. This is monitored by measuring the ratio between moss and broadleaf vegetation using optical satellite imagery.

There is also a push from the industry-side to better manage local environments. For instance, the wetlands north of Yellowknife are mapped as to where there are peatlands, and where it is fenlands: peat burns, therefore it is important to know where these sources are in case of forest fires. The area is also a site of oil sand production, with interest here from the private sector to demonstrate how they are showing integrity by monitoring any changes in the local environment.

There are also concerns on human activities affecting the natural behaviour of wildlife. For instance, there are diminishing caribou herds in Canada – reasons which are not yet fully understood: human activity being one obvious area of suspicion. Digital Elevation Models from optical satellite data have helped build models to be able to do noise and dust modelling from industrial sites. If Caribou populations are in the area, it can halt production. In using satellite imagery to demonstrate fall-out of noise and dust, 1km "zone of implications" can be identified around mining sites for better management and wildlife protection. If caribou enter the zone, production is ceased until they exit the zone. Satellite imagery therefore supports more realistic, better regulation in which the mining industry follows to mitigate against impacts on local wildlife.

3.4.2.2 Recognising illegal shipping

The Integrated Satellite Tracking of Polluters [I-STOP] program is integrated into the Canadian Ice Services [CIS] of Environment Canada. Following pilot studies, it has been operational since 2013. Its purpose is to protect the coastal environment, sensitive to pollution, and oil pollution in particular. Illegal oil discharges from vessels off the East Coast of Canada account for the deaths of large numbers of migratory seabirds annually. Such discharges are an offense against the Migratory Birds Convention Act, the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, and the Fisheries Act. SAR data is used from RADARSAT-2 and Sentinel-1 series to monitor oil spills and identify the potential vessel causing the spill. Marine oil pollution is measured in terms of areal extent and frequency of releases. The reports of potential oil pollution are used by Government of Canada enforcement and clean up agencies in dealing with identified spills. Over 2013 to 2017 the I-STOP service identified over 200 oil anomalies, of which 39 were validated (noting in certain cases vessels are allowed to clean tanks in designated areas, or the anomalies fall out of the area of Canadian government jurisdiction). These cases can then move to legal action.^{Footnote 70}

3.4.2.3 Bringing efficiencies to the shipping industry

The CIS provides ice maps, tracks iceberg, provides data on sea and inland ice to support Safety of Life at Sea [SOLAS] and to support the shipping industry in optimizing maritime travel. Many vessels pass through Canadian waters, and as a signatory to the SOLAS convention, Canada has a responsibility to ensure safety of navigation.

In support of safe shipping, and the shipping industry the CIS provides open source ice maps in which optimal routes through sea ice can be planned. These maps, based on RADARSAT-2 and Sentinel-1 data directly lead to cost savings to the shipping industry in terms of reducing the time spent at sea, and resulting cost-savings in fuel. Depending on ice conditions vessels can take 7 to 21 days to navigate from Montreal to Baffin Island. The CIS provides ice charts in order for vessels to select the optimal route, resulting is fuel cost savings, less impact on the environment and greater shipping operations efficiencies. This topic is further discussed in the "Transport" section of this report

Utilizing ice charts provided by the CIS, and augmented by further data sources, shipping is able to be performed safer, and with greater efficiencies in Arctic and sea ice prone waters. Approximately 100-200 large vessels pass through Canadian Arctic waters each year. Whilst the number is not vast, this movement is required to support local population and industries operating in the area, particularly mining. The variation in number is mainly a result of mining activities. For instance, up to 60 vessels may be in the water to support iron ore operations.

The Enfotec group and Fednav is responsible for Ice Monitoring and Analysis on behalf of its customers, it also operates three ice-breaker vessels of its own. It supplies ice navigation charts to its customers (mainly mine operations and their supply chain). The data supplied to the vessels is used to make the best routing decision whilst on-board. It provides solutions to approximately 25 vessels a year (mainly transporting cargo), of which around seven are winter voyages.

There has not been significant shift in the number of vessels passing through Canadian Arctic waters, and demand is not expected to shift too much due to sea ice. Enfotec sees this more along with fluctuations in the mining business. Thus, growth is likely to be more stable, with highs and lows dictated by outside forces: especially commodity prices. There will however remain a role for Fednav and government for supporting northern communities outside of the mining industry, thus increased traffic would also equate to population shifts. However, population of the north has been fairly stable, and even declined in places.

The data using satellite imagery provided by Enfotec is used to fine tune navigation. It is noted that the vessels need to pass regardless of the situation, thus while data is considered highly important, it is mostly used to bring marginal gains and comfort/early warning related to tougher ice conditions ahead.^{Footnote 71} Nevertheless, costs of running vessels are high: there is a cost of $50,000/day to run an ice-breaker and fuel costs (based on current estimates run to $24,000/day. A cargo vessel's cost is $14,000/day and $15,000/day in fuel. A 15-day voyage from Quebec City to Deception bay would cost a cargo vessel close to $500,000. These numbers can quickly add up. To run three ice-breakers for the 60-70-day season (i.e. when shipping routes are navigable during the summer) would cost over $14 million. In addition, 100 vessels on similar voyages as the example stated above would cost a total $50 million. Even marginal gains anticipated, in the 10-20% range would imply a cost saving for the shipping industry of $5-10 million during a quieter shipping season. There are also knock-on impacts to consider, such as bringing cargo faster to market, or being delivered to local population in a more efficient manner.

3.4.2.4 Improving weather forecasts through ARGO

ARGO is an operational forecast system collecting information on sea ice and ocean state from numerous ocean-faring buoys or "floats." Data is used to provide inputs into improved weather forecasting and numerical weather prediction. In particular, it provides better forecast for storm build up. Studies have demonstrated the need for a continuous operational data feed in order to assess coupling, linking the physical processes of the atmosphere and ocean in climate modelling. Research has shown that without ARGO data, ocean forecast models are degraded, and that it is an essential tool for ocean modelling.^{Footnote 72}

Data collected from the ARGO floats is transmitted through the Iridium constellation. Of the 4,000 ARGO floats in operation, 85 are operated by Canada through the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO). The operations budget to manage data collection is $30-50k/year, of which most (80%) related to commercial contracts in accessing the Iridium constellation. Considering a 4-5-year life span for each float, and a replacement cost of $20-25k per float, the total annual budget is on the range of $400k/year to support Canada's involvement in the program.

Each float provides an ocean profile up to 2km below the surface every 10 days (once descending the float drifts for approximately nine days before reaching the surface to transmit data to the satellite), providing information on ocean salinity (by measuring conductivity) and sea surface temperature. There is a push to expand the ARGO system to include data collection on other parameters, such as measuring chlorophyll and pH. This addition of sensor and data transmission could increase costs; however, it is hoped that costs can be kept stable by reducing costs of satellite data transmission.

All data is made public from the program within 24hrs of collection. Although Canada operates only 2% of the total number of floats, as a partner in the program it has access to data across the system. The Canadian (Canadian Operation Network of Coupled Environmental PredicTion Systems) (CONCEPTS) Global Ice Ocean Prediction System (GIOPS) assimilates Argo data on a weekly basis. In addition to providing inputs to weather forecast models, data is used for further research, for instance, Argo floats deployed in the Labrador Sea are an important element of an NSERC Climate Change and Atmospheric Research project entitled VITALS (Ventilation, Interactions and Transports Across the Labrador Sea). Research is attempting to answer fundamental questions about how the deep ocean exchanges carbon dioxide, oxygen, and heat with the atmosphere through the Labrador Sea. New observations and modelling will determine what controls these exchanges and how they interact with varying climate, in order to resolve the role of deep convection regions in the Carbon Cycle and Earth System. Further, scientists from the Canadian Meteorological Centre assimilated real-time Argo temperature and salinity data in experimental mode in 2013. Results indicated better prediction skill than in the operational model that is currently being run by Environment Canada for issuing weather forecasts. Increased skill levels re mainly seen at forecast times of 48 hours and longer.

3.4.2.5 Mine site rehabilitation

It is expected that satellite imagery will play a greater role in operational site management on varying scales. For instance, satellite imagery has proved effective in being able to monitor mine sites rehabilitation. Using satellite and aerial imagery to monitor returning chlorophyll levels, an area of land 200km × 200km has been rehabilitated outside of Sudbury, Ontario. The land previously had high levels of sulphur dioxide, caused by smelting processes, and thus was too poisonous for use. Lime is added to the land in order to rebalance the pH. Satellite imagery can detect where this is working and where the land is becoming safe, or where further treatment is required. Approximately 100 more sites can be supported in a similar way in order to reclaim back land to make it safe and usable.

3.4.2.6 Oil shale monitoring

Although not as yet operational, the Government of Alberta, Environment and Parks is expected to start to use more Earth observation data over the next six to twelve months to systematically monitor the oil sands for any impacts on the environment. A process is underway to define what parameters are to be tested, and which data sets are to be used; government or commercial, depending on cost/cost-benefit.

3.4.3.1 Satellite Solutions

In the case of satellite imagery, most data used is that which can be obtained freely. Either through government department data buy-in on RADARSAT-2, or through the wider use of freely available third-party data – in particular, the LANDSAT and Sentinel series'. The LANDSAT series also provides important time series data given the longevity of the system. MODIS provides further inputs for air quality monitoring.

In monitoring of habitats, such as wetlands monitoring, optical data is utilized (Landsat, MODIS, Sentinel-2). Whereas the Canadian ice services rely more in radar in order to be able to monitor ice. The CIS is one of the largest users of RADARSAT-2 scenes, nearly 14,500 were used in 2017. In addition, it used over 30,000 Sentinel-1 scenes. Having the addition of a further third-party SAR data source significantly increased the acquisition capacity and utility. Furthermore, over 80,000 image scenes were utilized from multiple sensors, including the weather satellite GOES and, MODIS, AVHRR and AMSR.

For sea ice charts, RADARSAT-2 is a major resource, and is the main tool of the CIS in building ice-charts. Enfotec however uses other datasets to build its own tailored services. This includes freely available Sentinel-1 data, and on occasions commercial data purchases. The commercial purchase is to obtain higher resolution data sets, approximately 10 images/year are acquired with the cost nominally passed on to the customer. In these cases, COSMO-Skymed and TerraSAR-X are the main sources. Enfotec note the responsiveness of TerraSAR-X ordering when they need a quick acquisition. Generally higher resolution imagery is needed when a vessel needs to totally avoid ice, rather than planning the best route through ice in which wider area coverage is a greater requirement. Given the higher resolution of RCM, the utilization of the system is anticipated – though again, for most usage, coverage is the key parameter.

The role of big data is expected to advance in the future. With increasing amounts of data being collected, ways to store and efficiently use the data will come in to question. The CIS note that RCM will bring an increased load of data, as will the expansion of the Sentinel-1 series, therefore what will be the best ways to integrate this new data supply and extract information. Automation is expected to play a greater role, as is the role of artificial intelligence in being able to provide predictive analytics.

3.4.3.2 Alternatives

The focus of organization interviews is research and development of operational services using only satellite-based assets. However, in a few specific cases there is some interest in terrestrial technologies. The CIS for instance has interest in what the U.S. government is researching on the use of Global Hawk drones to monitor ice conditions. The drones have a flight time of 8-12 hours and can return data in real-time. Drones are also used for reconnaissance purposes, such as to monitor the passing of a specific vessel or cargo, or through a particular route. However, this activity (supported through Transport Canada) is considered marginal, culminating in approximately 200-300 flying hours a year.

Also, to note, for satellite-based Earth observation, the ARGO system, despite using satellite technology for data transmission, is an in-situ alternative to using imagery. Satellite imagery is also being used to collect frequent data on environmental variables. The advantage of the ARGO system being that it can transmit in real-time. The advantage of satellite being that it has global coverage. In this regard, when it comes to research into aspects of environmental monitoring and climate change, it is not a case of using one data type or another but using information from multiple sources.

Alternatives to ARGO exist but are considered too costly or complementary. Data for instance can be collected by ships. However, the price point for data collection from a single point from a vessel is $10k, whereas float can be used repeatedly. Noting that there are over 4,000 ARGO floats in operation, to collect data from vessels would be 100 times costlier. Satellite-based imagery is a further alternative – however the systems are considered more complimentary. Whereas ARGO provides a profile, it cannot collect surface temperature; whereas a satellite can collect data at the surface, in particular sea surface temperature but cannot profile. There is also the matter of coverage: whereas ARGO can offer very accurate point data, satellite imagery may be coarse resolution, but they have a wider area coverage.

Enfotec have tried using drone technology to support sea ice data collection, though costs are high. Drones operated from the ship can provide the beyond-line-of-sight vantage point but the cost-benefit is not obvious. The cost of the drone, plus staff on-board the vessel operating the solution does equate to significant gains compared to what can be achieved from satellites.

3.4.3.3 Potential blockages to future growth

Again, government budgets remain an issue for further data use beyond free datasets, and there is limited commercial imagery procurement. The sector somewhat relies on free data outside of very specific cases.

Remote/rural communities

3.5.1.1 Satellite Communications

Satellites serve as an important option to deliver broadband services to a wide variety of locations/users in rural and remote regions throughout the world such as residences, businesses, telecom operators, schools, hospitals and government offices.^{Footnote 81} Satellite broadband capabilities are typically delivered through two architectures; fixed direct-to-home/premise (also referred to as "last mile") connections and the aggregation ("middle mile") model, wherein satellites provide backhaul and/or backbone connections to the terrestrial internet backbone for fixed (internet service providers) and mobile network operators.^{Footnote 82}

The consumer segment is the largest user of "last-mile" satellite broadband connectivity. As of 2016, an estimated 2.3 million households subscribed to satellite broadband internet services, including 1.9 million in North America. While consumer households are the final users, leading satellite broadband service providers include vertically integrated U.S. players Viasat and Hughes, Xplornet in Canada, Satellite Solutions Worldwide in Europe and NBN in Australia. These service providers, and others globally, combined to utilize an estimated 300 Gbps of satellite capacity in 2016, notably driven by the ever-expanding growth of video streaming associated with the rise of non-linear video services and consumption habits.

As of 2016, nearly 300,000 corporate (including SMEs) and government sites utilized high throughput satellites for direct-to-premise broadband access through very-small aperture terminal (VSAT) equipment, generating estimated capacity requirements (utilization) of roughly 50 Gbps globally. For the enterprise (corporate) segment, typical applications include cloud networking, enterprise-resource planning (ERP) systems, teleconferencing and more generalized internet use. In the government segment, applications include education (connectivity to schools, libraries, etc.), tele-medicine, tele-justice and a wide variety of e-government services delivered over the internet. Well over 1 million additional sites within the segment are connected by satellite, but for non-broadband applications such as ATM and retail point-of-sale connectivity, only low-data rate connectivity is required.

In terms of enabling "middle-mile" broadband infrastructure, cellular and other telecommunications network operators utilize satellite to extend the range of existing networks (cellular backhaul), to provide backbone links to the global internet, or to provide redundancy for terrestrial infrastructure. These satellite solutions are used at over 20,000, largely rural and/or remote, sites across the world, utilizing an estimated 175 Gbps of satellite capacity in 2016.

While the aforementioned use cases of satellites in connecting rural and/or remote communities typically involve commercial players, governments often play a direct or indirect role in funding/enabling satellite broadband solutions. For example, government funding may take the form of subsidies to end users (consumers) to help offset costs of customer equipment or to defray monthly service costs, as affordability of satellite broadband solutions remains a key "pain point" and inhibitor of adoption. Since costs to provide telecommunications services are higher in rural and remote areas due to sparse population and wider regions for the services to cover, some forms of government intervention are necessary to share the costs with commercial entities under public framework.^{Footnote 83}

To help concretely illustrate the breadth of the satellite broadband ecosystem globally, the following section provides country-level and regional examples of current/prospective satellite utilization activities for the provision of broadband services;

• The U.S. market counts over 1.7 million satellite broadband subscribers. While the market can be considered commercially sustainable, satellite broadband has benefitted from a variety of government funding mechanisms over the past years, including the Recovery and Reinvestment Act (2009) and most recently from the "Connect America Fund", to promote the availability of advanced telecommunications services at reasonable rates to the United States public.
• Australia's government has invested upwards of $1.4 billion in two high throughput satellites, Sky Muster-1 and -2, and associated ground infrastructure (terminals, gateways) as part of its national broadband network (NBN). The satellites, designed to offer universal minimum data rates of 25 Mbps, offer a combined 135 Gbps of capacity and are expected to serve 220,000 rural households by 2020. Satellite broadband was retained as an optimal technology for connecting part of the 7% of people living in areas too remote/rural to justify investment in terrestrial technologies.
• In Brazil, satellites have seen rapidly growing utilization for broadband access. Embratel, is utilizing a 25 Gbps Ka-band HTS payload on its Star One D1 satellite to extend the 3G rural network coverage of its subsidiary, Claro. Hughes invested substantial capital in long-term Ka-band HTS capacity leases aboard Telesat's Telstar-19V (31 Gbps) and Eutelsat 65WA (24 Gbps) to offer consumer services in areas of the country un-/underserved by terrestrial broadband, already reaching 60,000 subscribers since 2016.^{Footnote 84} Concurrently, the Brazilian government invested nearly $1 billion in a 57 Gbps Ka-band HTS system called SGDC, in support of the country's Broadband Plan (PNBL).
• In Thailand, over 26,000 schools are supported by Thaicom's Ku-band HTS system, IPSTAR, allowing more than 2,000,000 students access to online learning materials and IP-based applications such as interactive distance learning through broadband internet connections (5/4 Mbps).^{Footnote 85}
• Argentina's government recently approved construction of the Arsat-3 Ka-band HTS system as part of a public-private partnership. Offering 40 Gbps of capacity, the $250 million satellite will support the country's broadband plan with its capability to serve up to 300,000 households across the country at speeds of 25 Mbps.^{Footnote 86}
• Mexico's national connectivity initiative "Mexico Conectado" offers free satellite broadband in ~30,000 sites (of more than 100,000) such as schools, health centers, libraries, community centers, parks and government buildings.^{Footnote 87} Due to the program's high utilization, the government recently invested in new Ka-band capacity, increasing the download speed to 6 Mbps at 12,500 sites.^{Footnote 88}

The adoption of high-throughput satellites (HTS) has enabled the delivery of significantly more capacity and higher data rates to end users at a reduced cost per bit as compared to regular satellites. Advances in transmission and reception technology at both ends of the communication path - including RF components, digital communication techniques, spectral efficiency, and terminal improvements - have developed to enable system operators to do even more with their input resources.^{Footnote 89} For example, while regular satellites have historically been capable of providing roughly 2 to 3 Gbps of aggregate capacity, the newest generation of active HTS systems now provide well over 200 Gbps of capacity, while HTS systems slated to launch in upcoming years are boasting capacity in the range of 500 to 1,000 Gbps. This massive upswing in capacity, a key to enabling broadband-centric applications, has been accompanied by asymmetrically lower increases in the overall costs of successive generations of satellites. This confluence of factors combines to drastically improve both the value proposition, through higher data rates and larger download caps, and affordability of satellite solutions.

While these high-throughput satellites have yet to offer global, redundant coverage, due in part to their relatively early-stage of adoption, coverage from geostationary HTS systems is expected to be ubiquitous within the next five years. Further, several high-throughput non-geostationary constellations featuring hundreds of satellites each are in planning, including those of OneWeb, Telesat and SpaceX. These constellations will all offer ubiquitous global coverage, including the poles, alongside sharply lower latency (just 50ms compared to 500-600ms in geostationary orbit), all at a competitive cost per unit of capacity.

3.5.1.2 Imagery (Earth observation)

Rural connectivity is the focus of satcom, however, EO does play a role in supporting the roll-out of terrestrial solutions. The use of satellite imagery, particularly three-dimensional digital terrain/elevation models (DTM/DEM) are used to find the best logistical routes to plan for the laying of cable, position of above ground wiring, and positioning of antennas. The usage of EO in this way is more prevalent in rural/remote areas in which there are limited cartographic solutions.

3.5.1.3 Satellite Navigation

While satellite navigation is utilized by populations, industries and governments in remote communities, this topic's scope is more narrowly defined as relating to issues of broadband internet connectivity. As such, benefits of satellite navigation to these stakeholders is assessed more broadly across other topic areas.

3.5.2.2 Support Canadian economy

Higher broadband penetration has been positively linked to GDP growth. Multiple economic studies have demonstrated that every 10% of increase in broadband penetration resulted in economic growth ranging from ~1% to 1.5% in developed countries.^{Footnote 92} These economic gains come from resulting higher productivity, lower costs, new economic opportunities, job creation, innovation, and increased trade and exports, enabled by connectivity. The launch of new HTS systems and new service packages have fostered the number of satellite broadband subscribers to grow from 22,500 in 2007 to around 200,000 today in Canada. Based on household statistics, this corresponds to 1.23% increase in broadband penetration over the last ten years. If we apply the multiplier metric for developed countries (e.g. 1.19% increase in GDP for 10 percentage point increase in fixed broadband penetration), this corresponds to $2.2 billion in GDP impact by the utilization of satellite broadband over the past ten-year period.

As highlighted in the previous section, the total number of satellite broadband subscribers is projected to double to 400,000 in 2027. Based on past growth, we assume the number of households to grow at 1.2% per year and reach ~16.1 million in 2027. As such, satellite broadband penetration is expected to grow to 2.5% of Canadian households by 2027, a net increase of 1.08%. This would correspond to an additional $2.7 billion to GDP by 2027.

Satellite broadband is not only expected to connect more households but also significantly improve the quality of service over the next decade. Economic studies (e.g. Ericsson 2013) have highlighted that doubling broadband speeds adds 0.3% to GDP growth.^{Footnote 93} As highlighted in the previous section, new satellite investments should increase satellite broadband download speeds in the future with 100 Mbps being achievable according to Xplornet. Higher speeds primarily improve productivity as more information can be transferred and stored online, which saves time for workers. Moreover, larger amounts of better quality information can be distributed than was previously possible, which can open up new creative and commercial opportunities. Finally, higher internet speeds can also create new jobs, either directly related to infrastructure upgrades (manufacturing of new satellite) or facilitate new indirect jobs (see next section).

3.5.2.3 Support Canadian Job growth

Job creation can be induced in direct or indirect forms from the creation of new satellite broadband networks. Firstly, it can create jobs directly related to the design, construction, and installation of satellite networks. Moreover, it has created hundreds of long-term jobs for customer services and support technicians, often located outside urban areas. For example, rural internet service provider Xplornet opened in 2017 a new contact centre in Cornwall, Ontario, employing over 120 people. The company currently employs over 800 people across Canada. Xplornet is headquartered in small town Woodstock, New Brunswick (population: 5,300) and has been repeatedly voted as Top Employer in Atlantic Canada.^{Footnote 94} Unfortunately, the total number of jobs directly related to providing satellite broadband services could not be derived from available public sources. Past studies on the U.S. market have linked investment in satellite broadband infrastructure to job creation at a ratio of roughly one job per $70,000 in spending, including multiplier effects. As Xplornet has invested over C$1 billion in satellite capacity over the past decade, this would tentatively correspond to 14,000 cumulative jobs (direct, indirect, induced) created over that span.

Canada's positioning within the space satellite industry provides the opportunity for the government and businesses invest in "homegrown" satellite technologies that create jobs while augmenting connectivity all across Canada. With multiple government investments of nearly $11.5 million, Advantech Satellite Networks will be able to develop new ground terminals and hubs that will enable high speed broadband access in rural and remote areas as part of a $30 million project. This repayable investment will help create more than 95 jobs in Quebec.^{Footnote 95}

Broadband can also provide equal job opportunities for people located in rural areas as job applications are increasingly processed online. Northwestel highlighted that many people in Northern Communities have not been able to upload their resumes to apply for jobs, either due to insufficient or a lack of broadband infrastructure.

Lastly, broadband can support innovation in the workplace with flexible work practices such as working from home possibilities (telecommuting). An unidentified number of employees working from home are dependent on satellite to communicate with the office. Telecommuting can not only reduce costs (e.g. office space, transportation) but also offer alternatives to urban migration.

3.5.2.4 Improving education in northern communities

Broadband allows for connected education, or tele-education to rural/remote communities. A student in rural regions can now have access to literature and teachers through satellite connectivity that they would not have otherwise. It also means that individuals, especially pupils, can learn without needing to migrate to urban centres.

3.5.2.5 Better health through tele-medicine

Digital health helps Canadians have access to better quality healthcare more efficiently, through digital solutions and services. This domain is expected to grow at a fast pace in the next few years fuelled by the widespread adoption of broadband access paired with a rapidly ageing population.

For residents in rural and remote areas of Canada, such as the Northern regions, telemedicine increases access to medical care, and ultimately improves health in these communities, which would otherwise be not available. Health Canada has a specific program called eHealth Infostructure Program or eHIP that focusses on the modernization and improvement of health care services in First Nations communities.^{Footnote 96} The program provides connectivity funding to First Nations communities who use telehealth. Nine First Nations communities dependent on satellite have received funding under the eHIP program.

Ultimately, telemedicine, and underlying broadband connectivity, is able to increase access to services, leading to healthier Canadians, while at the same time decreasing wait times and health system costs for the government. Satellite plays a key role in the provision of telemedicine and positive health outcomes, notably in rural areas. For example, Quebec's Northern region (including Nunavik), which is highly dependent on satellite technology for internet connectivity, boasts telemedicine adoption rates (per 10,000 inhabitants) that are at least 15 times higher than the urban Montreal region according to a 2015 study by McGill University's Réseau Universitaire Intégré de Santé (RUIS).^{Footnote 97}

Telehealth sessions can save significant travel cost that would have been incurred if a patient had actually travelled instead of attending a telehealth session. Cost avoidance analysis across four provinces highlights that 10,300 telehealth sessions have saved $11.7 million in travel expenses (enabled by all access technologies). Based on these indicators, the cost savings in the nine First Nations communities dependent on satellite is estimated to be at least $600,000 per year.

Looking forward, identified aggregate cost savings measures can be expected to compound over the coming decades fuelled by a confluence of factors including growing adoption of telemedicine services in rural areas, as evidenced by the McGill telemedicine study, a rapidly ageing population and improved quality/availability of satellite broadband services.

Telehealth does not only improve Canadian lives but also makes an important impact in international humanitarian relief efforts. For instance, doctors based in Canada have been able to support relief efforts in Syria. Through satellite video connection, doctors are able to consult with other doctors and help during surgical procedure events. Dr. Ahmad Chaker, based in Ontario is one of a number of doctors who has helped on cases involving head injuries, and other trauma-related injuries on a voluntary basis.^{Footnote 98}

3.5.3.1 Satellite Solutions

Satellite broadband service delivery is mainly centred around a few key players. Xplornet is the largest rural internet service provider utilizing satellite and fixed wireless networks. For its satellite business, they lease full capacity over Canada on Echostar-17, Echostar-19, Viasat-1, and Viasat-2. It also leases some Ka-band capacity on Anik-F2 from Telesat. The company bundles capacity, connectivity and equipment into a single service and offers satellite broadband connectivity directly to rural households. SSi Micro also delivers internet services to northern communities (Nunavut and surrounding areas). As a satellite backbone provider using fiber and microwave for last mile access, lease C-band capacity from Anik-F2 and Anik-F3 (Telesat satellites). According to SSI, the benefit of C-band is that it covers all of the Northern regions with one beam which allows for phone calls without hops and reduces latency.

The increasing availability of high throughput satellite (HTS) capacity has substantially improved the availability, cost and quality of satellite broadband across Canada. Nonetheless, a shortage of affordable satellite capacity is still often highlighted by communities located above the 60th parallel north.

A next generation of HTS systems is expected to further decrease cost and increase available throughput over Canada including the North. Telesat has announced plans for a new satellite, Telstar-20V, potentially adding 40 Gbps more capacity over Canada's North. Further, Telesat's LEO high-throughput broadband constellation of nearly 120 satellites, prospectively slated to launch in 2021, will offer low latency coverage of all Canada, with strong coverage of Northern latitudes through a polar orbit. OneWeb's proposed constellation of over 700 satellites will similarly provide blanket coverage of Canada, which is targeted as one of the operator's first markets upon its expected limited service entry in 2020.

Satellite broadband is not only expected to connect more households but also significantly improve the quality of service over the next decade. New HTS systems coming into service are expected to address further capacity shortages. New constellation projects (OneWeb, Telesat and SpaceX) to be launched, on top of additional satellite from SES (SES-17), Telesat (Telstar 19V), Hughes (Echostar-24) and Viasat (Viasat-3) will offer uniform high-speed broadband services to consumers in rural and remote areas.

3.5.3.2 Alternatives

Available alternatives to satellite solutions currently being used in the market to provide broadband connectivity are fiber, DSL, cable and wireless connectivity. These solutions are widely deployed in urban and suburban areas, and partially available in rural areas. ITU World Telecommunication indicators for 2017 show that Cable and DSL are still the dominant terrestrial networks in Canada, connecting over 7 million subscribers for cable and 4.5 million for DSL. Fiber allows the highest data rates (≥1 Gbps) to the end-user, with little or no degradation over long distances. Fiber's downsides have been construction costs, which can limit roll-outs to areas with low household or business density, and its vulnerability to cuts if not properly installed. Nevertheless, fiber penetration has grown rapidly in recent years, largely at the expense of cable and DSL, having doubled from 2015 levels to reach over 1.3 million subscribers across Canada.

While mobile (cellular) broadband networks have extended their coverage across the country, the cost (and value) of mobile data plans cannot compete with fixed terrestrial network solutions. Fixed-wireless towers are now deployed and considered by Xplornet as the most economical solution for areas with 5-30 households per square kilometre. Wireless networks benefit from a low deployment cost however a relative limited reach (up to 15 km) compared to satellite. As mentioned in the section. Satellite is expected to remain the best cost-effective option for low density areas. Xplornet showcases satellite as the most effective solution for residential locations with household's density <5 households per square kilometre. Basically, satellite is the only option and solution available for remote and rural households where fiber network deployments will not be economically feasible. In addition, satellite does not always compete with terrestrial networks but can be used complimentary as a back-up solution in case of outages. A benchmark of different access technologies is provided below.

3.5.3.3 Potential blockages to future growth

Scalability and cost are two key areas identified as inhibitors of future satellite growth. In the case of scalability, fixed wireless and fiber network are better suited to reach a greater number of users. Northern communities are pushing for fiber solutions through different projects to obtain high speed internet access. In addition, non-for-profit organizations are raising funds for fiber network expansions to rural areas. SWIFT is looking to bring connectivity across southwestern Ontario through the use of fiber optic network. With $180 million in funding from the Governments of Canada and Ontario, SWIFT is planning to roll out its service by 2022. The project once fully operational could in fact replace satellite broadband subscribers in this region.

The cost of satellite connectivity is expected to remain an inhibitor, especially in markets with lower affordability levels. UN Broadband Commission defines broadband as affordable if an entry level fixed broadband plan is available at 5% or less of average monthly income. Census data indicate that median income of Indigenous communities is significantly below the national average, while 27 communities reported median total incomes below $10,000.^{Footnote 99} Despite falling satellite bandwidth costs, Northern communities will remain reliant on government support for broadband connectivity. Service provider SSi Micro highlights the need for sustained government funding support for an open access backbone. Current commitment cycles create inefficiencies as a satellite provider only has a few years to recoup the investment.^{Footnote 100}

Finally, the availability of low-cost, low latency satellite capacity across Canada is dependent on the successful launch of future LEO constellations. These multi-billion satellite projects (Telesat LEO, SpaceX Starlink, etc.) are in the early development phase and still need to secure funding before they will materialize.

Transport/logistics

3.6.1.1 Maritime Logistics

Maritime transport occupies a crucial role in the global exchange and transport of goods. The United Nations International Maritime Organization (IMO) estimates that over 90% of the world's trade is achieved by maritime transportation and that it represents the lowest cost and most efficient option to ship massive cargos around the planet.^{Footnote 108} With over 10.5 billion tons of cargo having been conveyed by sea in 2017, and an estimated 3.2% annual growth rate in the sector until 2022, this industry has much to gain from modernization and implementation of embedded technology in its equipment. Satellite data relays over oceans, geographical locations where terrestrial networks cannot ensure proper data transmission and relay, as well as precise positioning information carried out by space navigation systems represent highly valuable assets to the industry.^{Footnote 109}

Fleet and asset tracking is one of the major concerns of operators around the globe. The Automatic Identification System (AIS), the maritime equivalent of air traffic control, is being implemented in the industry to complement the use of terrestrial naval radars in order to enhance vessel monitoring capabilities. This ship-embedded system relies on satellites to detect each ship position, trajectory, velocity and AIS signature (differentiating a vessel from others surrounding it), the data being relayed to coast line authorities and terrestrial networks to support controlling, monitoring and tracking activities. By IMO regulations, ships carrying more than 300 tons in international travel and vessels carrying more than 500 tons of cargo in local waters must carry AIS devices onboard. Space utilization to ensure data transmissions is essential because, due to the Earth's curvature, even if equipped with AIS systems a ship's information cannot be transmitted by terrestrial means at a range of more than 74 km from shore, implying that AIS traffic data would only be receivable by close-by ships or local coastal zones. This problem is solved by the global coverage offered by space assets, ultimately enabling constant communication links between sea and relevant ground stations. Institutions such as the European Space Agency (ESA) are currently supporting the development of satellite AIS systems; in this case through its Advanced Research in Telecommunications Systems (ARTES) program.^{Footnote 110}

In terms of benefits, the monitoring and tracking activities enabled by IoT systems implementation in ships, supported by space assets, may enhance and assist in solving matters related to: mitigation of logistic issues, monitoring containers and overseeing material performance. As a result, the integration of such technology could lead to substantial cost-savings for fleet owners. McKinsey projects that the installation of IoT devices on each maritime container to relay positioning and other relevant data could lead to an improved rate of utilization of cargo equipment by 10 to 25%, resulting in a $13 billion cost-cut on spending made on containers.^{Footnote 111} Another example of practical use of the IoT could be the integration of temperature, humidity and air composition sensors to monitor refrigerated or organic shipments stored in containers in order to diminish the costs related to in-transit damage. Here again, satellite assets would be utilized to establish communication links between cargo ships and the receiving or inspecting parties related to the exchange of goods, enabling sound management and efficient decision making. Furthermore, there is a global accelerating trend in investments towards maritime domain awareness systems, through timely information sharing and coordination of responses between the participants, to support defense and security matters, resulting in improved public safety.

3.6.1.2 Land Transport

The trucking industry occupies a pivotal role in the distribution of goods over land. Goods which often arrive on land through ships in multi- or intermodal transportation networks. The trucking industry serves the economy by conveying substantial quantities of raw materials, products in the making and ready-to-deliver goods. The global trucking market is forecasted to expand at a moderate compound annual growth rate of 3.1% until 2024. This represents an augmentation towards a global market of 3.7 million vehicles sales (medium and heavy capacity) by 2024, the majority consisting of heavy commercial vehicles (HCV).^{Footnote 112} However, recent studies tend to be slightly pessimistic towards the long-term future of the industry and invoke truck technological improvements to compensate for the predicted reduction of sales in the near future.^{Footnote 113}

Truck modernisation is now the leading path undertaken by original equipment manufacturers (OEMs). As seen in the agriculture section, digitalization has been growing and implemented significantly into tractors. The same trend is now taking place in the truck transportation industry, with manufacturers now implementing telematics, sensors and computerization solutions in their products which, in other terms, implementing brand new IoT technology into the vehicles. Such systems will be designed to track location and mileage, alert in case of door opening, monitor temperature and humidity inside the cabin, optimise routes, ensure an optimal capacity utilization, to name a few. Simply, the implementation of telematics and IT software, with interconnected devices, is set to enable an optimization of truck traffic, improve drivers working conditions, save fuel and increase trucks useful life by monitoring the wear on the mechanical components.^{Footnote 114}

The utilization of space assets comes into play for the transmissions of this emerging quantity of data between different actors of the land transportation value chain. GPS/GNSS systems feed drivers with precise geolocation information to support and optimize their routes and driving conditions whilst satellite communication applications enables fleet owners to monitor and track their assets, stay in constant contact with their employees even if they are situated in remote locations outside of the reach of terrestrial communications network infrastructure. Australia is a model example of the adoption of such practices, the country facing many geographical challenges and relying on trucking as a pivotal part of their economy.^{Footnote 115}

The land transport industry ensures a constant need for satellite geolocation information and data transmission due to its mobile nature and the necessity to deliver goods in geographically challenging areas impeding the installation of terrestrial networks for the new and growing telematics needs of the different players in the trucking business.

3.6.1.3 Consumer Land Utilization

GPS, not only for truck transportation purposes, but also for individual consumer purposes, is rising in importance and utilization year-after-year. Today, most consumer land IoT utilizations are interlinked and made through mobile devices such as smart phones, via the use of specifically designed applications with geolocation being the most used space-derived data for this market.

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is used daily by millions of smartphones owners in order to identify their geolocation or to identify their target destination, translating into optimized routes and time savings for consumers. Dozens of sports/fitness applications like Strava and Runtastic or wearable products such as Fitbit, Apple Watch or other equipment offered by Garmin to enhance sport data collection, use GPS information as core input to offer consumers a whole range of information (i.e. distance, moving time, calories consumed, average speed, elevation, heart rate) about their daily activities. In addition, still relying on geolocation data, new applications such as Uber were born through the interconnection between drivers' and clients' phones by using a space-supplied geolocation to identify the most efficient routes and vehicles for each specific consumer needs.

Such new ventures have brought a new flow of revenues in countries allowing their use, illustrated by Uber declaring having created 160 000 jobs in the US as of 2017.^{Footnote 116} As demonstrated, benefits associated to the bonding of space utilization and IoT derived applications for individuals are numerous: jobs creation, improved productivity via time savings, better travelling efficiency, enhance social benefits such as health and individual well-being etc. Expanded access to GPS information is having high global economic impacts with regards to transportation, that add up to more than $10 billion annually, according to recent studies.^{Footnote 117}

3.6.2.1 Improving maritime container utilisation

Comprising 90% of the world goods transit, the maritime industry is a key market for IoT by bringing greater efficiencies to maritime transportation logistics. The constant moving nature of asset tracking makes it ideal for machine communication solutions. On average, a shipping container is at sea only 20% of its lifetime, the remainder in storage or land-based transportation. However, ports are becoming busier with increased maritime trade, and logistics companies are looking at how to build greater efficiencies into the supply chain whilst maintaining distribution deadlines.

According to McKinsey^{Footnote 118}, by inserting IoT into the process; implementing tracking devices in each container and relaying travel, utilization and location data via satellites to shipping companies control centers shall improve container utilization up to 25% by 2025 - this shift has an economic impact of $17 billion in cost savings brought in to the logistics business (i.e. greater utilization of containers resulting in more materials moved globally). This translates into a $170 million positive impact on the Canadian maritime industry by 2025. With 18 major ports and 310 million tons of cargo handled annually, resulting in a total GDP of $25 billion, Canada's maritime installations generate high economic benefits to the country and would potentially accelerate its annual growth rate of 2.1% if such technology was embedded within the infrastructure.

In addition, monitoring cargo may reveal other benefits in terms of safeguarding the quality of the maritime delivery service provided. Humidity, temperature, pressure sensors may be placed inside containers, and alert crews when fragile cargo such as fresh food or electronics have reached critical states in order for workers to mitigate damage during transport. Research estimates show that up to 50% of travel-related damage to goods may be avoided with the use of IoT sensors monitoring freight status, and transmitting information to control stations via satellites. This can lead to an estimated $130 million in cost savings due to damaged goods from 2025. Opportunities enabled by such a technology involve for example the change of a ship's trajectory in order to make a stop or reach a nearby shore to keep perishable goods fresh; accelerate a vessel's speed to get to a destination earlier than planned after noting significant damage or risk of losing part of the goods and/or send orders to the crew for them to modify cargo conditions, i.e. room temperature, pressure and humidity, or even rearrange the way goods are placed in the containers. Losses in the package-delivery business is also a concern, with 0.5% to 3% of total goods in transit lost depending on the region. Implementing IoT chips to monitor packages could prevent a good deal of this loss.

3.6.2.2 Reducing trucks fuel consumption

At year-end 2016, Transport Canada reported that over 66,000 Canadian businesses had for primary activity trucking transportation. An activity to which space-based IoT involving GPS and telecom applications have the potential to greatly reduce fuel consumption, a major cost driver and environmental impact issue that the industry faces. The use of "telematics", by which the trucking industry labels all embedded sensors in trucks sending data to control centers, may apply in a variety of ways to help companies reduce operating costs.

Sensors may be installed in trucks' engines to measure the speed at which the driver chooses to operate. Above 88 kph, a truck starts to lose kilometer per liter (kpl) fuel efficiency at a rate of 0.04 kpl per kph. Therefore, a truck traveling at 98 kph will lose 0.4 km per liter of fuel consumed which, over the lifetime of the truck, can accumulate significant costs. Sensors that transmit the speed at which the truck is being driven may send alarms to the control center for it to notify the driver. In 2016, over 1 million medium and heavy trucks were in operation in Canada, with an average distance travelled per year of 52,000km. By assuming that drivers are over speeding 10% of the time in operation, by an average 10 kph, this would lead to a cost of $2 billion per year of misused fuel. According to the Euroconsult estimated "space" share of the global IoT market, equivalent to 2%, the value of fuel savings attributable to satellite technology through improved monitoring capabilities is approximately $50 million per year. Following the same approach, embedded chips measuring tyre pressure may also help better fuel efficiency. In the same way, alerts may be sent to drivers and company's responsible personnel to enable the application of corrective actions.

On the other hand, GPS trackers implemented in trucks may enable fleet owners to possess a real-time knowledge of the exact location of their assets. Therefore, by getting updates on traffic congestions and potential weather blockages on roads, responsible personnel may provide accurate guidance to their drivers to send them on optimal routes in order to reduce driving time and accelerate deliveries. Besides, efficient routing may reduce the engine idling time of trucks during operations, with certain companies indicating an idling time of up to 50% during their fleet operations, translating into large fuel consumption figures without return on investment. The American Trucking Association estimates that 4 billion gallons of fuel were consumed by idling engines in 2016, translating into a staggering $14 billion total cost for trucking companies and, in addition to fuel costs, the association states that an engine idling one hour per day during a full year results in 64 000 miles in engine wear, adding maintenance costs to fleet owners.

3.6.2.3 Optimization of daily routing activities for Canadians

GPS-based applications for individuals continues to witness strong growth, enabled by even more capable GPS-embedded handheld devices. It is estimated that there are over 40 million "location-based service" GPS devices in Canada alone. Confirming these claims is the augmenting rate of Canadian smartphone users, peaking at 76% in 2017 as per StatsCan estimations (statistics made on Canadian population aged over 15 years old). Canadian smartphone users now total 23.4 million using space-based geolocation data as a core input in multiple "apps", such as car routing, map functions, geo-marketing, geo-tagging etc. As such, more than 23 million Canadians are benefiting from satellite GPS applications to optimize routing. This can also have further benefits, such as more optimised car travel, added securities brought by prevention of getting lost, or being able to signal locations to third parties and so on.

3.6.2.4 Improving vessel monitoring in Canadian waters

Space-based assets play a major role in monitoring maritime activity through Automatic Identification System [AIS] technology. Embedded devices relay to satellites a ship's AIS signature, which provides data on a vessel's identity, direction and velocity. The AIS system is used by authorities to reduce collision between vessels at-sea, especially in dense traffic areas, it aids search and rescue, helps monitor fishing fleets etc. and when combined with SAR imagery to identify alien vessels (i.e. those not carrying an AIS transponder) or illegal activity (such as bilge discharge tanks in protected areas.)

Solutions such as those provided by exactEarth enable maritime companies to receive information to track their vessels, give support to crews in cases of emergency and allow managers to better visualize the environmental conditions in which their vessels are operating. The company's satellite constellation, exactView, enables it to provide consistent tracking of 165,000 ships in any location worldwide and to compile more than 7 million of AIS transmissions in a daily basis.

The Canadian government is able to monitor all vessels passing through Canadian controlled waters using AIS technology; for security, safety at sea purposes, as well as supporting commercial interests, such as fishing.

The fishing industry is an important part of Canada's activities, generating $6 billion to the country's economy as well as occupying the second place in Canadian food exports, reaching more than 140 countries around the world, as per 2015 figures published by the government. According to UN reports elaborated by the FAO, illegal fishing represents more than 15% of global catches. Therefore, economics benefits to Canada's fishing industry may be endangered by illegal practices taking place in other regions of the globe. Space-based assets have a great role to play in mitigating effects of IUU, by leveraging their utilization for AIS technology in order to detect, track and monitor fishing vessel activities and operations. Satellite-supported process to fight against these trends include the utilization of EO imagery made on specific maritime location and subtracting/superposing the result obtained with an AIS map of the same area, in order to identify unregistered vessels.

3.6.2.5 Support Canadian jobs creation

Peer-to-peer ridesharing companies, such as Uber, Lyft etc. are essentially a taxi services enabled by GPS-embedded smart devices. In the Uber case, satellite navigation is leveraged to detect the closest drivers from a user location, enabling the creation of a connection between driver and user in order for the service to be delivered. The latest figures published by the company (2016) indicated that 22 000 Canadians drivers were officially operating under Uber's name, whilst the company claimed to have created 160,000 new jobs in the US in 2017. Euroconsult estimates that GPS-supported Uber will generate up to 24,500 part-time equivalent jobs in Canada in 2027. Drivers are considered independent and self-employed workers, they are therefore entitled to pay taxes to the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) as well as Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) to the government.

According to Uber's estimates and public sources, a driver makes on average slightly more than $20 per hour, after subtracting the company's cut and other related corporate fees ("Safe Ride"). By combining the company's available data of total number of rides divided by the total amount generated by drivers, the average fare per trip is a little $11. By building assumptions around total hours worked, this leads to an estimated total revenue of Uber drivers in Canada of $360 million in 2018, of which an estimated $54 million is collected in tax revenues.

3.6.2.6 Health/Fitness improvement of Canadians

Health and fitness applications for general users are in full expansion, a 330% growth rate having been recorded over the last three years: 29% of the population between 18 to 29 years use such apps. The majority platforms used to access these applications are smartphones. By being GPS-embedded, users are able to track how far they have run, cycled etc. and what average speeds, at what inclines and so on.

In a recent May 2018 survey, where more than 300,000 health and fitness related applications, of which a third are based/rely on GPS technology, were downloaded by Canadian smartphone users during that month.^{Footnote 119} Strava, Runastic, Nike+ Run Club are examples of trending mobile apps used on a daily basis by Canadians. Not only do these new platforms allow consumers to measure physical performance and give a progress overview over time, but they are also launching a social aspect that brings up motivation and encourages people to exercise in groups. Fitbit, the US most popular health and fitness application, has recorded more than 85 trillion steps for 167 billion minutes of exercise since its creation. Results from the third quarter of 2017 indicated the company selling 3.6 million portable devices, which utilize satellite navigation to aid fitness and overall health.

3.6.3.1 Satellite Solutions

The global nature of the IoT technology and the vast amount of data to gather in real-time across the globe demands the support of satellite constellations located LEO, such as for AIS or new IoT focused constellations. In addition, GNSS acts as an enabler for a multitude of applications, in which GPS is the main solution utilized in Canada.

Canadian commercial space companies have also started to launch precursor space-based systems supporting IoT demand. exactEarth has established a partnership with Iridium to host more than 60 AIS systems providing real-time ship tracking solutions on the Iridium Next constellation payloads. The company selected the VHF frequency band to perform its transmissions and claims to provide very accurate positioning by offering global average revisit times of less than a minute. Helioswire and Kepler communications are working on launching satellite constellations supporting the IoT industry, aiming to lower the associated cost structure by using small satellite technology and democratize its access worldwide. International competition is picking up, the US company Orbcomm is now offering IoT and M2M remote coverage across the globe to enable tracking and monitoring of assets.

On the other hand, less expensive IoT-derived technology using satellite solutions are being developed and tested by leading space agencies. An example is the Maritime Piracy Prevention (MAPP), a European-led initiative aiming at launching new low-cost space-derived methods to reduce worldwide piracy by improving maritime domain awareness and ship tracking. Economic viability is at the heart of this new system that leverages EO imagery and tiny trackers installed on ships to identify any potential out-of-the-ordinary behaviour of civil vessels.

3.6.3.2 Alternatives

Terrestrial infrastructures such as the 4G and the upcoming 5G communication networks are already well developed and the preferred solution in urban areas. The more remote the area, including open oceans, the greater potential for satellites due to the costs to build up a terrestrial infrastructure. Some key exceptions here however exist. If the IoT solution is tied to GPS then this is difficult to replicate through terrestrial means. Uber for instance requires geolocation data enabled by GPS for it to function – albeit if communication between devices is largely based on terrestrial technology.

3.6.3.3 Potential blockages to future growth

Space-based IoT technology has been emerging in recent years but remains far from being a mature business. At large, there is no real international norm regarding IoT utilization. The International Telecommunication Union [ITU] and the IEEE Standards Association, are working towards standardizing communications and hardware. Governments are now starting to implement national regulations, like the US Internet of Things Cybersecurity Improvement Act that was introduced to Congress in August 2017. The lack of clear policy framework may inhibit the development of technological systems, due to the uncertainty regarding which technology and network architecture that might be legally constrained in a near future by international bodies.

Hacking is also a concern, the IoT devices are relatively simple constructs coupled to global connectivity whilst they can carry important information. The lack of clear regulatory framework may inhibit the development of technological systems, due to the uncertainty regarding which technology and network architecture that might be legally constrained in the future.