Authors:

Petra Schwaab

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About Paper:

Environmental and anthropogenic activities create increasing pressure on inland water quality in the Midwestern U.S. However, current harmful algal bloom (HAB) monitoring is expensive and labor-intensive. This has led to increasing interest in improving HAB monitoring using remote sensing data products. This study aims at developing a method to monitor the occurrence of HABs in reservoirs of the Wabash watershed: Freeman, Shafer, Mississinewa, and Salamonie. The objectives of this study were to (a) determine the optimal spectral index threshold to identify the cyanobacterial blooms, (b) reveal the spatiotemporal distribution of HAB using spectral indices obtained from UAV and satellite imagery, (c) compare the applicability of various remote sensing products including Landsat 8 & 9, Sentinel 2, PlanetScope and UAVs in inland waters, and (d) analyze the impact of environmental variables on the occurrence of HABs. Samples have been collected from the shore, bridges, and boats to allow for coverage of the different conditions these reservoirs may experience. Our preliminary results show that: (1) the HABs in the Wabash watershed usually bloom during June and July and occur near the inlet from agriculture and residential areas, (2) PlanetScope and UAVs, which have a higher spatial resolution, are more suitable for inland water because data from these sensors are less likely to be affected by mixed pixels, (3) Environmental variables like discharge and temperature have influence on the occurrence of HABs.

Source:

Purdue University / 2023

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Co-authors:

Petra Schwaab