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HYPERSPECTRAL TECHNIQUE AS AN INDICATOR OF EUTROPHICATION AND SEDIMENT LOAD FOR DEEP RIVERS
Citation:
Cormier, S M., F A. Fulk, AND G. Senay. HYPERSPECTRAL TECHNIQUE AS AN INDICATOR OF EUTROPHICATION AND SEDIMENT LOAD FOR DEEP RIVERS. Presented at Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, Nashville, TN, November 12-16, 2000.
Impact/Purpose:
The purpose of this research project is to provide methods, tools and guidance to Regions, States and Tribes to support the TMDL program. This research will investigate new measurement methods and models to link stressors to biological responses and will use existing data and knowledge to develop strategies to determine the causes of biological impairment in rivers and streams. Research will be performed across multiple spatial scales, site, subwatershed, watershed, basin, ecoregion and regional/state.
Description:
Remote sensing techniques were used to characterize and quantify spatial and temporal variation in water quality of the Great Miami River in Ohio. An initial feasibility study was conducted in the summer of 1999 using a non-imaging hand-held spectroradiometer to ascertain the presence of remotely detectable relationships between water quality parameters and spectral reflectance data. Ratios of narrow spectral bands in the red and infrared were significantly correlated with chlorophyll, turbidity and Secchi-disk depth readings. Spectral bands selected during the feasibility study were later used to program imaging sensors. Two sensors were flown aboard a small aircraft to acquire imagery in the Great Miami River basin. On 9/8-9/99, a CASI (Compact Airborne Spectrographic Imager) sensor acquired imagery in 19 different spectral bands at a spatial resolution of 2 m, and on 9/30/99, a HyMap sensor was flown with 126 spectral bands at a spatial resolution of 5 m. A total of about 80 km of the river was imaged duirng the first mission while a 20 km reach was covered on the second flyover to repeat coverage of the urban/industrial influences around the city of Dayton, Ohio. Instream measurements of water quality data such as turbidity, chlorophyll, nutrient concentrations and Secchi-disk depth were acquired within the same day of the overflights. Spectral indices were developed that showed promising correlation with groundtruthed water quality parameters such as algal chlorophyll, turbidity and Secchi disk depth. Maps of the relative distributions of chlorophyll and turbidity were created from the hyperspectral images of the river. In addition, spectral indices were developed that distinguish emergent vegetation from submerged vegetation.