Mapping asbestos-cement roofing by remote sensing: an overview of methodologies and technologies

Asbestos is a well-known carcinogenic substance, and it still represents a common problem in many countries. It was widely used during the twentieth century, thanks to its numerous physical and mechanical characteristics. Many governments banned the manufacturing, importation, processing, and distribution of asbestos-containing products and recommended action plans for the mapping and safe removal of such materials. The remote-sensing approach allows to perform analysis on large portionsof territories in a relatively short time, providing an innovative tool for managingurban and natural environments. In this chapter, an overview regarding the application of this technology for asbestos cement roofs mapping is presented. Moreover, the different types of sensors, platforms, and data processing architectures are reported and discussed, to give the readers information that we hope will be useful in designing, setting up, and implementing efficient mapping of asbestos cement roofs based on remote sensing strategies.