# Land Cover Mapping in Southwestern China Using the HC-MMK Approach
## 6 Conclusions  
This paper mainly introduced the proposed HC-MMK approach and the 30 m-resolution CLC-SW2010 product. The multi-temporal native HJ-CCD images, Landsat TM images and topographical data were taken as the main input data in this study. Hierarchical classification tree construction and a five-step knowledge-based interactive quality control were the key components of this proposed approach. Based on independent accuracy assessment by a third-party group, the overall accuracy of primary and secondary categories of the CLC-SW2010 product reached 95.09% and 87.14%, respectively, and the Kappa coefficients were 0.9345 and 0.8573, respectively.  
To address critical issues for land cover mapping in mountainous areas, four key steps were taken in this study. Firstly, a combination of the native HJ-CCD images and Landsat TM images were taken as input data to construct the multi-temporal satellite images. Secondly, the satellite images with complex terrain were segmented with as much detail as possible in the image segmentation stage. Thirdly, for each mapping unit, a series of unique hierarchical classification trees were built to make the land cover classification as accurate as possible. Finally, a variety of prior geo-knowledge, including geographical rules, existing available thematic maps, verification samples and statistical information, was extensively used in the classification and quality control stage to improve the accuracy of the product.  
The proposed HC-MMK approach can be used not only in mountainous areas, but also in plains, hills and other regions, because land cover mapping in mountainous areas is more complex than other regions. Overall, this study proposed an operable land cover mapping method and produced a 30 m-resolution CLC-SW2010 product. Most importantly, it provided an important reference point for other land cover mapping studies conducted over large areas or even the entire globe in the future.  
This research was funded jointly by the Strategic Leader Science and Technology project (XDA05050105), the \"Ecology decade\" specific project of MEP&CAS (STSN-01-04), the International Cooperation Key Project of CAS (GJHE201320) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41271433, 41571373). We are especially grateful to [PERSON], [PERSON] and [PERSON] for their support and advice. We are also thankful to all the contractors, image providers and the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions.  
All authors have made major and unique contributions. [PERSON] designed the framework of this research. [PERSON] drafted the preliminary version and [PERSON] finished the final version of the manuscript. [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON] and [PERSON] took part in the field data collection. [PERSON] is in charge of satellite data collection and pre-processing. [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON] and [PERSON] completed the land cover mapping in Sichuan Province. [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON], and [PERSON] completed the land cover mapping in Tibet autonomous region. [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON] and [PERSON] completed the land cover mapping in Guizhou province and Chongqing Municipality. [PERSON], [PERSON], [PERSON] and [PERSON] completed the land cover mapping in Yunnan provinces.  
The authors declare no conflict of interest.