Digitise this! A quick and easy remote sensing method to monitor the daily extent of dredge plumes

Technological advancements in remote sensing and GIS have improved natural resource managers' abilities to monitor large-scale disturbances. In a time where many processes are heading towards automation, this study has regressed to simple techniques to bridge a gap found in the advancement of t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	PloS one Vol. 7; no. 12; p. e51668
Main Authors:	Evans, Richard D, Murray, Kathy L, Field, Stuart N, Moore, James A Y, Shedrawi, George, Huntley, Barton G, Fearns, Peter, Broomhall, Mark, McKinna, Lachlan I W, Marrable, Daniel
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	United States Public Library of Science 11-12-2012 Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Subjects:	Algorithms Applied physics Automation Case studies Computer Science Confidence Deforestation Detection Digitization Earth Sciences Environmental Monitoring - methods Floods Geographic Information Systems Human performance Humans Imagery Marine conservation Methods MODIS Natural resources Neural networks Plumes Radiation measurement Radiometry - instrumentation Radiometry - methods Remote monitoring Remote sensing Remote Sensing Technology Satellite navigation systems Sediments Sensors Spectroradiometers Surface water Technology application Total suspended solids Training Western Australia Western Australia Australia Western Australia Australia
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Summary:	Technological advancements in remote sensing and GIS have improved natural resource managers' abilities to monitor large-scale disturbances. In a time where many processes are heading towards automation, this study has regressed to simple techniques to bridge a gap found in the advancement of technology. The near-daily monitoring of dredge plume extent is common practice using Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) imagery and associated algorithms to predict the total suspended solids (TSS) concentration in the surface waters originating from floods and dredge plumes. Unfortunately, these methods cannot determine the difference between dredge plume and benthic features in shallow, clear water. This case study at Barrow Island, Western Australia, uses hand digitising to demonstrate the ability of human interpretation to determine this difference with a level of confidence and compares the method to contemporary TSS methods. Hand digitising was quick, cheap and required very little training of staff to complete. Results of ANOSIM R statistics show remote sensing derived TSS provided similar spatial results if they were thresholded to at least 3 mg L(-1). However, remote sensing derived TSS consistently provided false-positive readings of shallow benthic features as Plume with a threshold up to TSS of 6 mg L(-1), and began providing false-negatives (excluding actual plume) at a threshold as low as 4 mg L(-1). Semi-automated processes that estimate plume concentration and distinguish between plumes and shallow benthic features without the arbitrary nature of human interpretation would be preferred as a plume monitoring method. However, at this stage, the hand digitising method is very useful and is more accurate at determining plume boundaries over shallow benthic features and is accessible to all levels of management with basic training.
Bibliography:	Conceived and designed the experiments: RDE KLM SNF GS PF MB. Performed the experiments: RDE KLM DM GS MB. Analyzed the data: KM RDE PF LIWM MB JAYM BGH. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: KM RDE PF LIWM MB JAYM GS BGH. Wrote the paper: RDE KLM SNF JAYM. Contributed to the first draft and to the corrections of the manuscript: KM RDE SNF PF LIWM MB JAYM DM GS BGH. Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.
ISSN:	1932-6203 1932-6203
DOI:	10.1371/journal.pone.0051668