Development of a bi-national Great Lakes coastal wetland and land use map using three-season PALSAR and landsat imagery

Methods using extensive field data and three-season Landsat TM and PALSAR imagery were developed to map wetland type and identify potential wetland stressors (i.e., adjacent land use) for the United States and Canadian Laurentian coastal Great Lakes. The mapped area included the coastline to 10 km inland to capture the region hydrologically connected to the Great Lakes. Maps were developed in cooperation with the overarching Great Lakes Consortium plan to provide a comprehensive regional baseline map suitable for coastal wetland assessment and management by agencies at the local, tribal, state, and federal levels. The goal was to provide not only land use and land cover (LULC) baseline data at moderate spatial resolution (20–30 m), but a repeatable methodology to monitor change into the future. The prime focus was on mapping wetland ecosystem types, such as emergent wetland and forested wetland, as well as to delineate wetland monocultures (Typha, Phragmites, Schoenoplectus) and differentiate peatlands (fens and bogs) from other wetland types. The overall accuracy for the coastal Great Lakes map of all five lake basins was 94%, with a range of 86% to 96% by individual lake basin (Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie and Superior)

Satellite-based assessment of nutrient status and benthic algae distribution in eastern Georgian Bay

Satellite remote sensing data were used to produce a suite of water quality and vegetation products for the eastern portion of Georgian Bay, including a time series of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) distribution maps and monthly maps of lake surface temperature and color producing agents. The overall purpose of this initiative was to summarize and synthesize environmental information on the study area that is available from existing remote sensing products developed by MTRI and to fine-tune those products for Georgian Bay conditions. Field data collected in southeastern Georgian Bay in July 2014 were used to validate these products. The data indicate that while water clarity has greatly increased in the Bay in recent decades, the expansion in SAV cover has been limited, in contrast with the nuisance growth in many other parts of the Great Lakes Basin. At the same time, the chlorophyll concentration in the Bay has declined steadily since the early 2000s

Development of a bi-national Great Lakes coastal wetland map for resource management

Mapping methods using extensive field data and three season Landsat and PALSAR imagery were developed to map wetland type and identify potential wetland stressors (i.e. adjacent land use) for the United States and Canadian Laurentian coastal Great Lakes. Mapped area included the coastline to 10 km inland to capture the region hydrologically connected to the Great Lakes. This effort represents the first comprehensive wetland delineation of the bi-national coastal Great Lakes using a consistent mapping technique. It includes detection of select invasive plant species (e.g. Typha spp., Schoenoplectus and Phragmites australis). Maps were developed in cooperation with the overarching Great Lakes Consortium plan to provide a comprehensive regional baseline map suitable for coastal wetland assessment and management by agencies at the local, tribal, state and federal levels and serve to augment previously completed Phragmites mapping funded by the USFWS and USGS Great Lakes Science Center. The project goal was to provide not only LULC baseline data at moderate resolution (20-30 m), but a repeatable methodology to monitor change into the future