ADVANCING THE USE OF REMOTE SENSING TO MEASURE WATER QUALITY AND DETECT SAV AND MARSH HABITAT IN CURRITUCK SOUND

In North Carolina (NC), there is a pressing need to understand and quantify dynamics of both salt marshes and communities of submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV), vital habitats increasingly threatened by the effects of climate change. Water quality decline threatens SAV, as these species depend on sufficient water quality for survival. The concurrent presence and absence of SAV and marsh habitat is of interest in Currituck Sound, an oligohaline NC estuary that holds significant ecological and economic value and has exhibited a marked decline in both marsh and SAV area in recent years (Audubon NC, 2021). Recent advances in remote sensing offer an opportunity to explore associated trends in water quality and marsh/SAV presence or absence using both traditional ground-based methods and innovative remote sensing tools to inform coastal management. This work has three aims: to investigate remote sensing measurement of CDOM, to investigate remote sensing identification of SAV presence/absence, and to quantify a relationship between SAV presence/absence and oligohaline marsh habitat change. By investigating these methods and relationships, this work will inform future management of coastal habitat on large spatial and temporal scales, while providing insights into the habitat dynamics of oligohaline environments.

Presentation Preference: Oral

Primary Presenter: Peggy Mullin, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (peggy.mullin1@gmail.com)

Authors:

Peggy Mullin, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill  (peggy@unc.edu)

Susan Cohen, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill  (susanac@email.unc.edu)

Troy Walton, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill  (twalt@unc.edu)