Monitoring change in mountainous dry-heath vegetation at a regional scale using multitemporal Landsat TM data

Vegetation cover-change analysis requires selection of an appropriate set of variables for measuring and characterizing change. Satellite sensors like Landsat TM offer the advantages of wide spatial coverage while providing land-cover information. This facilitates the monitoring of surface processes. This study discusses change detection in mountainous dry-heath communities in J?mtland County, Sweden, using satellite data. Landsat-5 TM and Landsat-7 ETM+ data from 1984, 1994 and 2000, respectively, were used. Different change detection methods were compared after the images had been radiometrically normalized, georeferenced and corrected for topographic effects. For detection of the classes change--no change the NDVI image differencing method was the most accurate with an overall accuracy of 94% (K = 0.87). Additional change information was extracted from an alternative method called NDVI regression analysis and vegetation change in 3 categories within mountainous dry-heath communities were detected. By applying a fuzzy set thresholding technique the overall accuracy was improved from of 65% (K = 0.45) to 74% (K = 0.59). The methods used generate a change product showing the location of changed areas in sensitive mountainous heath communities, and it also indicates the extent of the change (high, moderate and unchanged vegetation cover decrease). A total of 17% of the dry and extremely dry-heath vegetation within the study area has changed between 1984 and 2000. On average 4% of the studied heath communities have been classified as high change, i.e. have experienced "high vegetation cover decrease" during the period. The results show that the low alpine zone of the southern part of the study area shows the highest amount of "high vegetation cover decrease". The results also show that the main change occurred between 1994 and 2000.     

The effective source area of 90Sr for a stream near Chernobyl, Ukraine

Remediation of streams impacted by non-point source contaminants requires an understanding of both the areas within a watershed that are contributing contamination to streams and the pathways of contaminant migration to streams. From 1998 to 2002, we studied the migration of 90Sr in the Borschi watershed, a small (8.5 km2) catchment three km south of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, Ukraine. Fuel particles, distributed in a heterogeneous pattern across the watershed, are weathering and releasing 90Sr from the fuel matrix. Depletion of (90)Sr, evaluated in comparison to the immobile fission product europium-154, is occurring in the channel and wetland sediment. Channel sediments are uniformly depleted in 90Sr with depth. In wetland sediments, there is a zone of depletion in the top 10 cm and a zone of accumulation at depths from 10 to 25 cm. Estimates of 90Sr depletion are used to map the effective source area that has contributed (90)Sr loading to the main channel. The effective source area includes channel bottom sediments, a wetland in the central region of the watershed, and periodically flooded soils surrounding the wetland. The total depletion from the effective source area is estimated to be 36 +/- 7 x 10(10) Bq. Based on observations of stream flow rate and water quality in 1999-2001, the annual 90Sr removal rate from the watershed is estimated to be 1.4 +/-0.2 x 10(10) or 1.5% of the inventory per year. When extrapolated over a 15-year period following the Chernobyl accident, the last value is in reasonable agreement with the estimated depletion of the source area based on 90Sr/154Eu ratios. The 90Sr yearly leaching rate considering the whole watershed is 0.2% while the 90Sr leaching rate considering the effective source area is an order of magnitude higher. Most of the 90Sr release in the watershed has originated from an effective source area of 0.62 km2, or 7% of the watershed area.     

Forest cover of insular Southeast Asia mapped from recent satellite images of coarse spatial resolution

The study provides an example of mapping tropical forest cover from SPOT-Vegetation satellite images of coarse spatial resolution (1 km) for the subregion of insular Southeast Asia. A satellite image mosaic has been generated from satellite images acquired for the period 1998 to 2000. Forest cover has been mapped by unsupervised digital classification. The mapping result has then been compared to selected forest maps from the subregion, demonstrating the potential to provide basic information on forest area extent and distribution, but also on massive forest cover change in the subregional context. Forest area estimates derived from the map for the subregion have been found comparable to those compiled by FAO. The results indicate that many of the remaining tropical forests in Southeast Asia, rich in timber resources and biodiversity, may be lost in the near future if deforestation continues at present or previous rates.     

Thirty years of land-cover change in Bolivia

Land-cover change in eastern lowland Bolivia was documented using Landsat images from five epochs for all landscapes situated below the montane tree line at approximately 3000 m, including humid forest, inundated forest, seasonally dry forest, and cloud forest, as well as scrublands and grasslands. Deforestation in eastern Bolivia in 2004 covered 45,411 km2, representing approximately 9% of the original forest cover, with an additional conversion of 9042 km2 of scrub and savanna habitats representing 17% of total historical land-cover change. Annual rates of land-cover change increased from approximately 400 km2 y(-1) in the 1960s to approximately 2900 km2 y(-1) in the last epoch spanning 2001 to 2004. This study provides Bolivia with a spatially explicit information resource to monitor future land-cover change, a prerequisite for proposed mechanisms to compensate countries for reducing carbon emissions as a result of deforestation. A comparison of the most recent epoch with previous periods shows that policies enacted in the late 1990s to promote forest conservation had no observable impact on reducing deforestation and that deforestation actually increased in some protected areas. The rate of land-cover change continues to increase linearly nationwide, but is growing faster in the Santa Cruz department because of the expansion of mechanized agriculture and cattle farms.     

Efficient retrieval of vegetation leaf area index and canopy clumping factor from satellite data to support pollutant deposition assessments

Canopy leaf area index (LAI) is an important structural parameter of the vegetation controlling pollutant uptake by terrestrial ecosystems. This paper presents a computationally efficient algorithm for retrieval of vegetation LAI and canopy clumping factor from satellite data using observed Simple Ratios (SR) of near-infrared to red reflectance. The method employs numerical inversion of a physics-based analytical canopy radiative transfer model that simulates the bi-directional reflectance distribution function (BRDF). The algorithm is independent of ecosystem type. The method is applied to 1-km resolution AVHRR satellite images to retrieve a geo-referenced data set of monthly LAI values for the conterminous USA. Satellite-based LAI estimates are compared against independent ground LAI measurements over a range of ecosystem types. Verification results suggest that the new algorithm represents a viable approach to LAI retrieval at continental scale, and can facilitate spatially explicit studies of regional pollutant deposition and trace gas exchange.     

Perceptions of coastline changes in river deltas: southeast Mediterranean coast of Turkey

This paper describes a methodology that relies upon digital processing of remotely sensed satellite images to detect coastline changes in Cukurova Deltas, south east Mediterranean coast of Turkey. Two winter images of Landsat MSS and ETM+, acquired in 1972 and 2002, were clustered into 'water' and 'non-water' classes using the ISODATA algorithm prior to pixel-based comparison of land and water areas in two dates. The results of the study showed that significant changes occurred especially around river mouths, in the form of accretion and erosion. More than half of the total erosion along the sea coast, 153 of 347 ha, was detected to have occurred at the mouth of river Seyhan. The amount of accretion in Ceyhan delta was calculated as 203 ha. Importance of landscape-level characterisation and monitoring that provide a basis for more detailed research and finer change detection was also highlighted.     

人工湿地数学模型模拟与应用

人工湿地生态系统具有投资低、出水水质好、抗冲击力强、增加绿地面积和操作简单等优点,在国外得到了较好应用.综述了人工湿地净化技术及湿地模型的研究进展,重点介绍了国外已经成功验证与应用的3种人工湿地模型的开发情况.同时应用某人工湿地的实测数据,通过对模型的验证和率定,表明模型在评估湿地功能和优化设计上的实用性.最后,对人工湿地模拟模型的应用前景及存在问题进行了评述.     

A new remote sensing index based on the pressure-state-response framework to assess regional ecological change

Ecological indicators have widespread appeal to scientists, environmental managers, and the general public. Remote sensing is unique in its capability to record variety of spatio-temporal information on land surface with complete coverage, especially with regard to larger spatial scales, which has been proven to be an effective data source to create indicators to rapidly identify regional eco-environment. In this paper, a new index, remote sensing based ecological index (RSEI) based on the pressure-state-response (PSR) framework, was applied to assess regional ecological changes in Fuzhou City of Fujian Province, southeastern China, using Landsat ETM+/OLI/TIRS images. Taking the advantages of being totally free of artificial interference in the calculation using principal components analysis (PCA) to assign weights of each variable, the RSEI can assess the regional ecological status more objectively and easily. The effectivity of the new index was validated by four approaches, including point-based, classification-based, correlation-based, and urban-rural-gradient-based comparisons. The case study showed that Fuzhou has witnessed ecological improvement during the study period, with the value of RSEI increasing from 0.663 in 2000 to 0.675 in 2016. Spatial variation analysis showed that the poor level of RSEI distributed mostly in the central urban areas, and the ecological degradation was attributed to the fast expansion of the built-up area, characterized by increasing greatly in the value of the normalized differential built up and soil index (NDBSI) in such areas.

     

基于XGBoost的内陆河湖浊度反演与长时序分析

浊度是影响水下光场及营养盐循环的关键要素之一,浊度监测可以为河湖水质的污染防控和预警提供科学依据。以长三角示范区的典型河湖为研究区,使用实测数据构建浊度反演模型,并利用1984—2022年Landsat卫星数据分析了研究区河湖浊度的长时序动态变化。对比传统经验模型、半经验模型和机器学习模型,XGBoost机器学习模型精度最高 (R²为0.68,RMSE为4.78 NTU) 。浊度反演结果表明,近40年河流航道和淀山湖北部非渔场区域浊度上升了10%和12%,而元荡湖和大莲湖浊度下降了19%和27%,并且浊度随着建设用地面积的增加而增大;研究区浊度季节性变化显著,秋冬季平均浊度比春夏季高6 NTU,月平均浊度与月平均降水量负相关,相关系数为-0.61 (p<0.05) ,但与月平均风速没有显著的相关性。基于XGBoost的Landsat长时序浊度反演能够把握研究区浊度的时空变化趋势,明确水污染管理与治理方向,最终助力长三角一体化发展。     

Application of an ISCST3 model for predicting urban air pollution in the Izmir metropolitan area

A Gaussian atmospheric dispersion model, Industrial Source Complex Short Term (ISCST3), was used to estimate ground-level concentrations of sulphur dioxide (SO₂) emitted from source categories of industrial and domestic heating in the city of Izmir, Turkey. Predictions were estimated for the year 2000 across a study area of 80 km x 100 km. Statistical analyses were carried out to evaluate the model performance by comparing predicted and observed SO₂ concentrations at four ambient air quality monitoring stations using two main methods root mean square error (RMSE) and an index of agreement (d). The results showed that industry was found as the most air-polluting sector and industries located at outside of the metropolitan area were found to carry important risks for urban air quality. The most polluted area was found at a distance of about 1 km from a major petroleum refinery and a large petrochemical industry.     

Satellite image analysis of human caused changes in the tundra vegetation around the city of Vorkuta,north-European Russia

In this paper we present what kind of human impacted changes can be found in dwarf birch (Betula nana) dominated shrub tundra vegetation around the large industrial complex of Vorkuta in the north-European Russian tundra. Using fieldwork data and Landsat TM satellite image we could identify two impact zones: (1) Pollution zone (150-200 km2). In this zone most of the lichen species are absent. Changes in vegetation communities' species composition in all main plant groups are obvious. Willows especially are more dominant than in the unpolluted sites. (2) Slight pollution/disturbance zone (600-900 km2). Here vegetation changes are mainly similar but less so than the changes in the first zone. Particularly, the amount of herbs and grasses is increased when compared to unpolluted areas. The pollution zones are spatially connected to the main emission sources in the area. Zones spread furthest to the northeast, matching the prevailing winds during winter.     

Assessing village authenticity with satellite images: a method to identify intact cultural landscapes in Europe

The village with its characteristic zones of different land use from the center to the periphery is a basic unit of Europe's cultural landscapes. However, loss of the authentic pre-industrial village structure characterized by a fine-grained structure of arable land and wooded grasslands is a threat to both cultural heritage and biodiversity in many rural landscapes. Therefore, it is important that the extent and rate of change of such authentic villages in a landscape can be monitored. We studied to what extent loss of authenticity with increasing time after abandonment can be assessed by quantitative analysis and visual interpretation of satellite images. The study was carried out in the Bieszczady Mountains, SE Poland in 1999. Using Landsat Thematic Mapper data from 1998, both the grain size of landscape elements (size of fields) and land-cover composition (encroachment of shrub and forest) were quantitatively described 6 type villages representing different stages of deterioration of the authentic village structure. Historical maps were used to delineate the border of the villages and the former extension of forest and open land was measured. The present land use and the degree of abandonment expressed as grain size and forest encroachment were mapped using satellite data. Deterioration occurred along 2 transformation paths: abandonment and ultimately becoming forest, or intensified agriculture, respectively. To validate these results we classified 22 other villages in a 1000 km2 area by visual interpretation of the original satellite images into 1 of 4 types. We then collected historical data on human population changes over the past six decades. The classification of village authenticity was clearly related to the rate of human population decline. We address the importance of validating and applying this approach for rapid assessment of the authenticity of cultural landscapes in European regions being subject to ongoing as well as expected future change, related to expansion of the European Union. Finally, we argue that the village represents a scale at which integration of natural and social sciences is possible.     

基于电阻率法的人工湿地堵塞区域探测方法

人工湿地污水处理技术已经得到广泛的应用,但目前对人工湿地堵塞问题,无法对堵塞区域进行精确定位。为了解决这个问题,根据潜流人工湿地结构和堵塞区域的特点,建立了长、宽、高分别为146、119和102 cm水槽物理实验模型,利用改进的高密度电阻率测井法开展了探测和定位人工湿地堵塞区域的实验研究,并结合人工湿地堵塞模型的Visual MODFLOW(VMOD)流场模拟特征,探讨了基于电阻率法探测和定位人工湿地堵塞区域的可行性。结果表明,改进的高密度电阻率测井法在电阻率探杆的电极间距不大于5 cm,供电极距D_AB/2不超过12.5 cm的情况下,通过绘制电阻率数据的二维和三维视电阻率等值线图,能够更好地定位高阻体的空间位置和形态。可见,利用改进的高密度电阻率测井方法可以探测和定位人工湿地高阻堵塞区域,实现堵塞区域的精确定位。     

The value of coastal wetlands for hurricane protection

Coastal wetlands reduce the damaging effects of hurricanes on coastal communities. A regression model using 34 major US hurricanes since 1980 with the natural log of damage per unit gross domestic product in the hurricane swath as the dependent variable and the natural logs of wind speed and wetland area in the swath as the independent variables was highly significant and explained 60% of the variation in relative damages. A loss of 1 ha of wetland in the model corresponded to an average USD 33,000 (median = USD 5000) increase in storm damage from specific storms. Using this relationship, and taking into account the annual probability of hits by hurricanes of varying intensities, we mapped the annual value of coastal wetlands by 1 km x 1 km pixel and by state. The annual value ranged from USD 250 to USD 51,000 ha(-1) yr(-1), with a mean of USD 8240 ha(-1) yr(-1) (median = USD 3230 ha(-1) yr(-1)) significantly larger than previous estimates. Coastal wetlands in the US were estimated to currently provide USD 23.2 billion yr(-1) in storm protection services. Coastal wetlands function as valuable, selfmaintaining "horizontal levees" for storm protection, and also provide a host of other ecosystem services that vertical levees do not. Their restoration and preservation is an extremely cost-effective strategy for society.     

Modeling the impact of potential wetlands on phosphorus retention in a Swedish catchment

In southern Sweden, wetlands are constructed to remove nitrogen (N) in agricultural catchments. The possible effects of such wetlands on riverine phosphorus (P) were also estimated using input-output data from three well-monitored wetlands. This was done to formulate a simple model for removal of P that is dependent on inflow characteristics. Next, the N- and P-reducing effects of wetlands were modeled on a catchment scale (1900 km2) using the HBV-NP model and various assumptions about the wetland area and location. All three wetlands functioned as sinks for total P (tot-P) and for total suspended solids (TSS) with a removal of 10% to 31% and 28% to 50%, respectively. Mean P-removal rates of 17-49 kg ha(-1) yr(-1) were well simulated with the model. Catchment scale simulations indicated that wetlands were more efficient (in percentage of load) as traps for P than for N and that this may motivate the construction of wetlands for P removal far upstream from the catchment outlet.     

Impacts on wetlands of large-scale land-use changes by agricultural development: the Small Sanjiang Plain, China

The Small Sanjiang Plain (SSP), was formerly the largest wetland complex in China, located in the Northeastern part of Heilongjiang Province, China. Home to vast numbers of waterfowls, fish, and plants, the SSP is globally significant for biodiversity conservation. The loss and fragmentation of wetlands as a result agricultural development over 50 years has impacted wetland communities and their biodiversity. We used GIS to inventory large-scale land-use changes from 1950 to 2000, together with other statistical data. We found that 73.6% of the wetlands were lost due to agricultural development. Consequences of these land-use changes included: i) a rapid decline in waterfowl and plant species with the loss and fragmentation of natural wetlands and wetland ecosystem degradation; ii) greater variation in wetland water levels as the result of land-use changes over the years; iii) disruption of the dynamic river-floodplain connection by construction of drainage ditches and levees; and iv) a decrease in floodplain area that caused increased flooding peak flows and runoff. Here we show how these changes affect wetland biodiversity and impact important wetland species.     

Comparison of constant volume balloons, model trajectories and tracer transport during ETEX

In the field phases of the European Tracer EXperiment (ETEX), an inert tracer was released for 12 h into the atmosphere and samples taken at several locations downwind. During the same time, several Constant Volume Balloons (CVB) (10 and 6 for ETEX first and second release, respectively) were launched into different altitudes and followed as far as 21–188 km, to indicate the initial dispersion directions of the tracer puff. A model simulating the CVB behaviour in hydrostatic meso-scale model forecasts is applied to ETEX data to demonstrate its capability to predict the tracer puff mean axis over long distances (−2000 km). CVB model results are first compared to air parcels trajectories and 2D (i.e. isentropic, isobaric and isodensity) trajectories. Then they are compared to the measured CVB trajectories and finally to the tracer puff trajectories. As expected, the CVB model and isodensity model trajectories are found to be identical. The 16 CVBs calculated trajectories nearly overlap the real ones over 21–188 km with mean absolute horizontal transport deviations less than 20 km (average value of 8.2 km). The corresponding relative transport deviations are less than 45% with an average value of 20.6%. Better predictions are obtained for the ETEX second release. During the 60 h following ETEX’s first release start, the simulated CVBs are mainly found in the area of the maximum surface concentrations of the released tracer, up to 2000 km. Up to 36 h after ETEX second tracer release start, the simulated CVB trajectories predict well the mean axis of the tracer puff, but failed later.     

Impact of river flow modification on wetland hydrological and morphological characters

A good number of researchers investigated the impact of flow modification on hydrological, ecological, and geomorphological conditions in a river. A few works also focused on hydrological modification on wetland with some parameters but as far the knowledge is concerned, linking river flow modification to wetland hydrological and morphological transformation following an integrated modeling approach is often lacking. The current study aimed to explore the degree of hydrological alteration in the river and its effect on downstream riparian wetlands by adopting advanced modeling approaches. After damming, maximally 67 to 95% hydrological alteration was recorded for maximum, minimum, and average discharges. Wavelet transformation analysis figured out a strong power spectrum after 2012 (damming year). Due to attenuation of flow, the active inundation area was reduced by 66.2%. After damming, 524.03 km² (48.9% of total pre-dam wetland) was completely obliterated. Hydrological strength (HS) modeling also reported areas under high HS declined by 14% after post-dam condition. Wetland hydrological security state (WSS) and HS matrix, a new approach, are used to explore wetland characteristics of inundation connectivity and hydrological security state. WSS was defined based on lateral hydrological connectivity. HS under critical and stress WWS zones deteriorated in the post-dam period. The morphological transformation was also well recognized showing an increase in area under the patch, edge, and a decrease in the area under the large core area. All these findings established a clear linkage between river flow modification and wetland transformation, and they provided a good clue for managing wetlands.

     

Modeling and Spatially Distributing Forest Net Primary Production at the Regional Scale

Abstract

Forest, agricultural, rangeland, wetland, and urban landscapes have different rates of carbon sequestration and total carbon sequestration potential under alternative management options. Changes in the proportion and spatial distribution of land use could enhance or degrade that area’s ability to sequester carbon in terrestrial ecosystems. As the ecosystems within a landscape change due to natural or anthropogenic processes, they may go from being a carbon sink to a carbon source or vice versa. Satellite image analysis has been tested for timely and accurate measurement of spatially explicit land use change and is well suited for use in inventory and monitoring of terrestrial carbon. The coupling of Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) data with a physiologically based forest productivity model (PnET-II) and historic climatic data provides an opportunity to enhance field plot-based forest inventory and monitoring methodologies. We use periodic forest inventory data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service’s Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) Program to obtain estimates of forest area and type and to generate estimates of carbon storage for evergreen, deciduous, and mixed-forest classes. The area information is used in an accuracy assessment of remotely sensed forest cover at the regional scale. The map display of modeled net primary production (NPP) shows a range of forest carbon storage potentials and their spatial relationship to other landscape features across the southern United States. This methodology addresses the potential for measuring and projecting forest carbon sequestration in the terrestrial biosphere of the southern United States.     

Modeling and spatially distributing forest net primary production at the regional scale

Forest, agricultural, rangeland, wetland, and urban landscapes have different rates of carbon sequestration and total carbon sequestration potential under alternative management options. Changes in the proportion and spatial distribution of land use could enhance or degrade that area's ability to sequester carbon in terrestrial ecosystems. As the ecosystems within a landscape change due to natural or anthropogenic processes, they may go from being a carbon sink to a carbon source or vice versa. Satellite image analysis has been tested for timely and accurate measurement of spatially explicit land use change and is well suited for use in inventory and monitoring of terrestrial carbon. The coupling of Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) data with a physiologically based forest productivity model (PnET-II) and historic climatic data provides an opportunity to enhance field plot-based forest inventory and monitoring methodologies. We use periodic forest inventory data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service's Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) Program to obtain estimates of forest area and type and to generate estimates of carbon storage for evergreen, deciduous, and mixed-forest classes. The area information is used in an accuracy assessment of remotely sensed forest cover at the regional scale. The map display of modeled net primary production (NPP) shows a range of forest carbon storage potentials and their spatial relationship to other landscape features across the southern United States. This methodology addresses the potential for measuring and projecting forest carbon sequestration in the terrestrial biosphere of the southern United States.