Aquatic habitat inventories using remote sensing

Increasing emphasis is being placed on managing aquatic resources on an integrated, basinwide basis. Traditional ground inventory methods are time-consuming and expensive, and are not easy to integrate over large areas. Remote sensing, combined with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Geographic Positioning System (GPS) technology, offers a more flexible, cost-effective method for gathering and integrating information. Digital terrain models, spectral separations, and microwaves can be used to define physical and biological features. Habitat conditions in a basin can be defined by four basic elements: climate, geomorphology, vegetation and human activities. All of these can, to different degrees, be directly inventoried by remote sensing. When used with GPS and GIS systems, remote sensing information can be merged with field data and other sources of information to create an integrated summary of resource conditions. Information can be summarized on a range of scales, from local to region-wide, and can be compared over time as a monitoring and evaluation tool.