ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the relationship between CoORdination of Information on the Environment (CORINE) Land Cover (CLC) and the Infrastructure for Spatial Information in the European Community (INSPIRE). The first section is a description of the data model developed for land cover (LC) data in INSPIRE, emphasizing how CLC data fits into the model. The section sets out to clarify the background of the INSPIRE data model, followed by a brief discussion of the thematic concept of “LC” in INSPIRE. The section continues with a systematic explanation of the constituent parts of the model, including the overall documentation of an LC survey, representation of geometry and temporality, LC observations, and the LC nomenclature. How CLC is handled with respect to each of these elements is explained. The section concludes with a summary of the data model applied to CLC. The second section pays particular attention to the question about LC classification and nomenclatures, explaining why INSPIRE does not set its own mandatory standard for LC classification in Europe. The section presents a short list of Pure Land Cover Components (PLCC) introduced in the INSPIRE data model and discusses how semantic translation can be used to facilitate data exchange when several classification systems are involved. The overall conclusion, drawn and explained in the third and final section of the chapter, is that CLC is fully INSPIRE-compliant.
