Mapping wetland characteristics using temporally dense Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 data: A case study in the St. Lucia wetlands,South Africa

Wetlands have been determined as one of the most valuable ecosystems on Earth and are currently being lost at alarming rates. Large-scale monitoring of wetlands is of high importance, but also challenging. The Sentinel-1 and -2 satellite missions for the first time provide radar and optical data at high spatial and temporal detail, and with this a unique opportunity for more accurate wetland mapping from space arises. Recent studies already used Sentinel-1 and -2 data to map specific wetland types or characteristics, but for comprehensive wetland characterisations the potential of the data has not been researched yet. The aim of our research was to study the use of the high-resolution and temporally dense Sentinel-1 and -2 data for wetland mapping in multiple levels of characterisation. The use of the data was assessed by applying Random Forests for multiple classification levels including general wetland delineation, wetland vegetation types and surface water dynamics. The results for the St. Lucia wetlands in South Africa showed that combining Sentinel-1 and -2 led to significantly higher classification accuracies than for using the systems separately. Accuracies were relatively poor for classifications in high-vegetated wetlands, as subcanopy flooding could not be detected with Sentinel-1’s C-band sensors operating in VV/VH mode. When excluding high-vegetated areas, overall accuracies were reached of 88.5% for general wetland delineation, 90.7% for mapping wetland vegetation types and 87.1% for mapping surface water dynamics. Sentinel-2 was particularly of value for general wetland delineation, while Sentinel-1 showed more value for mapping wetland vegetation types. Overlaid maps of all classification levels obtained overall accuracies of 69.1% and 76.4% for classifying ten and seven wetland classes respectively.     

一种基于TM影像的湿地信息提取方法及其变化检测

近年来,有着"地球之肾"之称的湿地,其对于生态环境的特殊性和重要性受到全世界的极大关注,湿地研究己成为当前国际上的热门领域。本文结合缨帽变换及决策树分类法提出了一种新的湿地提取方法。首先对原始影像进行缨帽变换,提取其湿度分量,利用湿度分量进行分级提取,区分湿地与陆地。接下来在深入分析研究区影像光谱特征规律的基础上,建立了湿地信息提取决策树模型,用于区分不同类型湿地。最后,对两个时相的湿地分布影像进行了变化检测,提取出了湿地的变化范围。     

Deep neural network for complex open-water wetland mapping using high-resolution WorldView-3 and airborne LiDAR data

Wetland inventory maps are essential information for the conservation and management of natural wetland areas. The classification framework is crucial for successful mapping of complex wetlands, including the model selection, input variables and training procedures. In this context, deep neural network (DNN) is a powerful technique for remote sensing image classification, but this model application for wetland mapping has not been discussed in the previous literature, especially using commercial WorldView-3 data. This study developed a new framework for wetland mapping using DNN algorithm and WorldView-3 image in the Millrace Flats Wildlife Management Area, Iowa, USA. The study area has several wetlands with a variety of shapes and sizes, and the minimum mapping unit was defined as 20 m² (0.002 ha). A set of potential variables was derived from WorldView-3 and auxiliary LiDAR data, and a feature selection procedure using principal components analysis (PCA) was used to identify the most important variables for wetland classification. Furthermore, traditional machine learning methods (support vector machine, random forest and k-nearest neighbor) were also implemented for the comparison of results. In general, the results show that DNN achieved satisfactory results in the study area (overall accuracy = 93.33 %), and we observed a high spatial overlap between reference and classified wetland polygons (Jaccard index ∼0.8). Our results confirm that PCA-based feature selection was effective in the optimization of DNN performance, and vegetation and textural indices were the most informative variables. In addition, the comparison of results indicated that DNN classification achieved relatively similar accuracies to other methods. The total classification errors vary from 0.104 to 0.111 among the methods, and the overlapped areas between reference and classified polygons range between 87.93 and 93.33 %. Finally, the findings of this study have three main implications. First, the integration of DNN model and WorldView-3 image is useful for wetland mapping at 1.2-m, but DNN results did not outperform other methods in this study area. Second, the feature selection was important for model performance, and the combination of most relevant input parameters contributes to the success of all tested models. Third, the spatial resolution of WorldView-3 is appropriate to preserve the shape and extent of small wetlands, while the application of medium resolution image (30-m) has a negative impact on the accurate delineation of these areas. Since commercial satellite data are becoming more affordable for remote sensing users, this study provides a framework that can be utilized to integrate very high-resolution imagery and deep learning in the classification of complex wetland areas.     

Wetland Monitoring,Serving as an Index of Land Use Change-A Study in Samaspur Wetlands,Uttar Pradesh,India

Wetlands are among the most productive ecosystems in the world and any alterations might lead to changes in their bio-physical, socio-economic and climatic conditions. Wetland dynamics as an index of land use change were studied. Satellite remote sensing was utilized to understand the periodic and seasonal dynamics of Samaspur wetlands using Landsat and RESOURCESAT-1 temporal data. Index-based (i.e., Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI) and Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI)) classification resulted in meaningful discrimination of wetland classes. Results indicate (i) effective water spread areas have increased to optimum capacity at 1990 due to the influence of Sharda canal, (ii) expansion of the agricultural area has led to reduction of the wetland buffer area, and (iii) increase in vegetation biomass due to pesticide-fertilizer runoff and sedimentation load. We also reiterate (i) free availability of the Landsat satellite data in public domain facilitating such monitoring studies and (ii) availability and utility of SWIR band information in wetland classification exercise. The study concludes that policy-driven measures have both long and short term impacts on land use and its natural wetland ecosystems; and the characterizing the later serves as indictor of the former and perhaps vice versa.     

MAPPING VEGETATION COMMUNITIES INSIDE WETLANDS USING SENTINEL-2 IMAGERY IN IRELAND

Wetlands provide habitat for a wide variety of plant and animal species and contribute significantly to overall biodiversity in Ireland. Despite these known ecosystem services, the total wetland area in Ireland has reduced significantly over the past few decades leading to an ongoing need to protect such environments. The EU Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC) has recognised several wetlands types as “priority” habitats. This study concentrates on a subset of the priority habitats focussing on some groundwater dependent terrestrial ecosystems, (in particular calcareous fens and turloughs), as well as raised bogs. Monitoring these sites across the country by field visits is resource-intensive. Therefore, this study has evaluated remote sensing as a potentially cost-effective tool for monitoring the ecological health of the wetlands. Identification and presence of certain vegetation communities can indicate the condition of the wetland, which can be used for monitoring, for example, activities causing degradation or the progress of restoration attempts. The ecological composition of the wetlands has been analysed using open-source Sentinel-2 data. 10 bands of Sentinel-2 Level-2 data and 3 indices, Normalised Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) and Normalised Difference Water Index (NDWI) were used to create vegetation maps of each wetland using Bagged Tree (BT) ensemble classifier and graph cut segmentation also known as MAP (maximum a posteriori) estimation. The proposed methodology has been validated on five raised bogs, five turloughs, and three fens at different times during 2017 and 2018 from which three case studies are presented. An overall classification accuracy up to 87% depending on the size of the vegetation community within each wetland has been achieved which suggests that the proposed method is appropriate for wetland health monitoring.     

利用Sentinel-2A影像的面向对象特征湿地决策树分类方法

苏州市湿地众多、类型多样化、周围环境复杂,使用传统的遥感分类方法很难得到精度较高的湿地分类结果。研究了面向对象特征的湿地决策树分类方法,以苏州市澄湖地区为研究区域,使用欧空局的Sentinel-2A影像,先将研究区域分为湿地水体、植被和非植被3大类型,再分别构建鱼塘、河流、湖泊、农田和裸地等面向对象特征,据此实现湿地遥感分类。研究结果表明,该方法能够有效利用遥感影像提供的光谱特征、几何特征和纹理特征等多种丰富信息,产生较高的分类精度,总体分类精度可达80.67%,Kappa系数为77.80%。与传统的基于中低分辨率遥感影像的分类方法相比,该方法可以有效提取湿地不同地物对象的几何结构和纹理等特征,在提高湿地分类精度的同时实现对大面积湿地的快速动态监测。     

Mapping Wetland Areas Using Landsat-Derived NDVI and LSWI: A Case Study of West Songnen Plain,Northeast China

Increasing interest in wetlands for environmental management requires an understanding of the location, spatial extent, and configuration of the resource. The National Wetlands Inventory is the most commonly used data source for this information. However, its accuracy is limited in some contexts, such as agricultural and forested wetlands. An large number of studies have mapped wetlands worldwide from the perspective of land use and land cover change. However, information on the actual wetland planting areas annually is limited, which greatly impacts ongoing research. In this case study of the West Songnen Plain, we developed a simple algorithm for the quick mapping of wetlands by utilizing their unique physical features, such as annual display of phenological land-cover change of exposed soils, shallow flooding water, and plants from multi-temporal Landsat images. Temporal variations of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) and Land Surface Water Index (LSWI) derived from Landsat images in 2010 for wetlands at different growth stages were analyzed. Results show that during the ante-tillering phase, the NDVI value (above zero) is lower than the LSWI value of paddies because of flooding of shallow water; during the reproductive and ripening phases, the NDVI value is higher than the LSWI value (above zero); and during the post-harvest wetland planting phase, the NDVI value is still higher than the LSWI value, but the LSWI value is negative. Wetland areas can be detected using one or two images in the optimum time window. The algorithm based on the difference of NDVI and LSWI values derived from Landsat images was used to extract the actual wetland planting area. Validated alongside statistical data, the algorithm showed high accuracy. Therefore, this algorithm highlights the unique features of wetlands and can help in mapping the actual wetland area annually on a regional scale. Results further indicate that the new method has a classification accuracy of 92 %. In comparison, two traditional methods based on Landsat-7/ETM registered accuracy rates of only 83 % and 87 % respectively.     

Study of coastal wetland classification based on decision rules using ALOS AVNIR-2 images and ancillary geospatial data

Wetlands play irreplaceable key roles in ecological and environmental procedures. To make effective conservation and management, it is essential to understand the wetlands’ distribution and changes. In this study, an approach based on decision rules algorithm in conjunction with maximum likelihood classification is proposed for coastal wetland mapping using multi-temporal remotely sensed imagery and ancillary geospatial data. As a case study, Multi-temporal Advanced Visible and Near Infrared Radiometer type 2 images acquired by Japanese Advanced Land Observation Satellite are analysed to investigate the seasonal change pattern of coastal wetlands in Washington State, USA. Geospatial data, including Digital Elevation Model and spatial neighbourhood knowledge, are further integrated to characterize wetland features and discriminate classes within a certain elevation ranges. The final result is a refined coastal wetland map with 15 land cover categories. Preliminary evaluation of the final result shows that the proposed approach is effective in coastal wetland mapping.     

Wetland classification in Newfoundland and Labrador using multi-source SAR and optical data integration

A vast portion of Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) is covered by wetland areas. Notably, it is the only province in Atlantic Canada that does not have a wetland inventory system. Wetlands are important areas of research because they play a pivotal role in ecological conservation and impact human activities in the province. Therefore, classifying wetland types and monitoring their changes are crucial tasks recommended for the province. In this study, wetlands in five pilot sites, distributed across NL, were classified using the integration of aerial imagery, Synthetic Aperture Radar, and optical satellite data. First, each study area was segmented using the object-based method, and then various spectral and polarimetric features were evaluated to select the best features for identifying wetland classes using the Random Forest algorithm. The accuracies of the classifications were assessed by the parameters obtained from confusion matrices, and the overall accuracies varied between 81% and 91%. Moreover, the average producer and user accuracies for wetland classes, considering all pilot sites, were 71% and 72%, respectively. Since the proposed methodology demonstrated high accuracies for wetland classification in different study areas with various ecological characteristics, the application of future classifications in other areas of interest is promising.     

Methane emission modelling using MODIS thermal and optical data: A case study on Gujarat

Wetlands are one of the most important sources of atmospheric methane (CH₄) contributing about 22% to the global methane budget. But to improve estimates of CH₄ emission at regional and global scales there is a need to observe the sources such as wetlands frequently and develop process-based models. In this regard, wetland inventory using satellite remote sensing data has conventionally been carried out by analysis of optical data. Due to thermal inertia differences emittive thermal channels data has shown promise to provide highly critical information about wetlands such as water spread, aquatic vegetation and mud flats etc. Thermal channels data of MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) sensor with a spatial resolution of 1km and swath of 2330 km is emerging as the key source of remote sensing data for global/ regional wetland estimation and assessment of green house gas emission. In the present study MODIS thermal channels (31 and 32) and optical channels (1,2, and 3) data have been used for evaluating methane emission from wetlands in Gujarat. An empirical model based on temperature and productivity has been used to investigate the response of methane emission from different sources. Model has the potential to estimate country level methane emission based on satellite remote sensing in conjunction with collateral data/information. In this study. MODIS data of two dates pertaining to Gujarat have been analyzed and results compared with respect to methane emission.     

潮汐和植被物候影响下的潮间带湿地遥感提取

潮间带湿地具有重要的生态和经济价值,但受到全球变化影响,发生大面积退化甚至丧失.掌握潮间带湿地的时空分布特征,对海岸带资源的科学管理具有重要意义.由于受到多云多雨天气和潮汐动态淹没的影响,单时相遥感数据难以获取完整的潮间带湿地信息.因此,本研究开发了一种基于时序遥感指数的潮间带湿地分类算法,并以福建省亚热带海岸带为例,...     

Combined use of LiDAR data and multispectral earth observation imagery for wetland habitat mapping

Although wetlands play a key role in controlling flooding and nonpoint source pollution, sequestering carbon and providing an abundance of ecological services, the inventory and characterization of wetland habitats are most often limited to small areas. This explains why the understanding of their ecological functioning is still insufficient for a reliable functional assessment on areas larger than a few hectares. While LiDAR data and multispectral Earth Observation (EO) images are often used separately to map wetland habitats, their combined use is currently being assessed for different habitat types. The aim of this study is to evaluate the combination of multispectral and multiseasonal imagery and LiDAR data to precisely map the distribution of wetland habitats. The image classification was performed combining an object-based approach and decision-tree modeling. Four multispectral images with high (SPOT-5) and very high spatial resolution (Quickbird, KOMPSAT-2, aerial photographs) were classified separately. Another classification was then applied integrating summer and winter multispectral image data and three layers derived from LiDAR data: vegetation height, microtopography and intensity return. The comparison of classification results shows that some habitats are better identified on the winter image and others on the summer image (overall accuracies = 58.5 and 57.6%). They also point out that classification accuracy is highly improved (overall accuracy = 86.5%) when combining LiDAR data and multispectral images. Moreover, this study highlights the advantage of integrating vegetation height, microtopography and intensity parameters in the classification process. This article demonstrates that information provided by the synergetic use of multispectral images and LiDAR data can help in wetland functional assessment     

Comparison and assessment of NDVI time series for seasonal wetland classification

Satellite-based wetland mapping faces challenges due to the high spatial heterogeneity and dynamic characteristics of seasonal wetlands. Although normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) time series (NTS) shows great potential in land cover mapping and crop classification, the effectiveness of various NTS with different spatial and temporal resolution has not been evaluated for seasonal wetland classification. To address this issue, we conducted comparisons of those NTS, including the moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer (MODIS) NTS with 500?m resolution, NTS fused with MODIS and Landsat data (MOD_LC8-NTS), and HJ-1 NDVI compositions (HJ-1-NTS) with finer resolution, for wetland classification of Poyang Lake. Results showed the following: (1) the NTS with finer resolution was more effective in the classification of seasonal wetlands than that of the MODIS-NTS with 500-m resolution and (2) generally, the HJ-1-NTS performed better than that of the fused NTS, with an overall accuracy of 88.12% for HJ-1-NTS and 83.09% for the MOD_LC8-NTS. Future work should focus on the construction of satellite image time series oriented to highly dynamic characteristics of seasonal wetlands. This study will provide useful guidance for seasonal wetland classification, and benefit the improvements of spatiotemporal fusion models.     

Sentinel-2影像多特征优选的黄河三角洲湿地信息提取

以北方典型河口湿地—黄河三角洲湿地为研究区,采用在特征选择和分类提取等方面具有明显优势的随机森林算法,对研究区内的湿地信息进行提取。首先基于多时相、光谱信息丰富的Sentinel-2数据生成4类不同的特征变量,包括光谱特征、植被指数和水体指数、红边指数、纹理特征;再根据以上特征构建6种不同的提取方案,对黄河三角洲湿地信息进行提取并验证不同方案的提取精度,旨在选择最佳方案改善湿地信息提取的效果。结果表明:(1)有效地使用多种特征变量是提高湿地信息提取的关键,就不同特征对湿地信息提取的贡献率而言,红边指数植被指数和水体指数光谱特征纹理特征;(2)基于随机森林算法优选的特征变量提取效果最佳,总体精度高达90.93%,Kappa系数为0.90,表明随机森林算法可以有效地进行特征选择,在特征变量数据挖掘的同时,仍能保证湿地信息提取的精度,提高运行效率。本研究为湿地信息提取在数据源选择、特征选择和方法选择方面提供了一种新思路、方法和技术手段。     

The Lost Natural Wetlands of Punjab (India): An Inventory

Wetlands play a vital role in maintaining groundwater levels in an area. This is true for Punjab that was bestowed with several natural wetlands in the flood plains of its rivers. These natural wetlands have never been mapped and their existence has not been acknowledged. The large scale agricultural development in the state has made it India's leading food producing state. This development was done at the cost of certain ecologically sensitive parts, mainly the flood plains thus leading to the demise of wetlands. This paper is an attempt to retrace the lost wetlands that were existed in the flood plains of the three major rivers: Satluj, Beas and Ravi in the present day Punjab at the beginning of 20th century. A majority of these wetlands have not been documented so far and do not even have names. The purpose is to emphasize their elimination in addition to establishing a baseline dataset that can be a tool for wetland planning and management.     

环渤海滨海湿地时空格局变化遥感监测与分析

基于多期Landsat TM 等遥感数据, 采用目视解译和实地样点采集相互支撑的方法, 完成了环渤海 地区2000 年、2005 年及2008 年湿地提取和分类; 运用单一类型变化率模型、区域动态度模型和动态转移矩 阵, 揭示了环渤海湿地的时空格局、变化特点和驱动机制。研究显示环渤海地区的8 类湿地中, 属于人工湿 地类型的盐场和水库坑塘面积比例大且近8 年增长速度也最快, 年均分别增加205.52 km2 和146.10 km2, 滩 地和海涂减少最明显; 环渤海地区的三大流域中, 黄河流域湿地变化最显     

基于多波段全极化SAR影像的湿地分类

作为湿地类型较多、分布广泛的国家,中国的城市发展进程在一定程度上对我国丰富的湿地资源形成了很大的威胁,部分湿地遭到破坏。合成孔径雷达(Synthetic Aperture Radar,SAR)作为一种主动式微波遥感,其全天时全天候的特性十分适合湿地的监测工作。然而现在利用SAR进行湿地分类的研究尚未成熟,未能充分使用多个波段的信息分析,本文提出一种利用星载C波段以及机载p波段湿地分类的方法,有效地改善了分类的效果,提高了分类的精度。     

面向对象方法的时间序列MODIS数据湿地信息提取——以洞庭湖流域为例

以洞庭湖流域为研究区,对大范围湿地信息遥感提取方法进行了研究。先基于时间序列MODIS EVI及物候特征参数,通过J-M(Jeffries-Matusita distance)距离分析,构建了MODIS(250 m)最佳时序组合分类数据;其次,通过Johnson指数确定了最佳分割尺度,采用面向对象的遥感分类方法(Random tree分类器)提取了洞庭湖流域的湿地信息,并验证该方法的适用性。研究结果表明,基于时序数据与面向对象的Random tree分类的总体精度和Kappa系数分别为78.84%和0.71,较之基于像元的相同算法的总体分类精度和Kappa系数分别提高了5.79%和0.04。同时,基于面向对象方法的湿地整体的用户精度与生产者精度较基于像元方法分别提高了4.56%和6.21%,可有效提高大区域湿地信息提取的精度。     

Characterizing wetland dynamics: a post-classification change detection analysis of the East Kolkata Wetlands using open source satellite data

The East Kolkata Wetlands is a unique resource recovery system. The Ramsar Convention recognized it as a ‘Wetland of International Importance’ in August 2002. However, the long-term resource exploitation and land use changes in the dynamic ecosystem have resulted in non-linear environmental responses. This is an attempt using open source remote sensing datasets to capture the spatio-temporal transformation of the wetland resulting from various anthropogenic activities. Landsat MSS and TM imageries of 1973, 1980, 1989, 2001 and 2010 were classified using Maximum Likelihood Classifier to monitor the wetland change; however, to study wetland dynamics, the post-classification wetland change detection maps have been generated for two temporal phases, i.e. 1973–1989 and 1989–2010. This study finds that the area under wetlands has reduced comprehensively in the past 40 years due to the conversion of wetlands into various other uses such as urban expansion of the Kolkata metropolitan city.