Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
of GIS have grown beyond simple data management, storage, and mapping.
Today, a more sophisticated means of analysis is being utilized by combining
various mathematical and computer generated models with spatial data within the
GIS. Simulation models are useful tools for analysis of watershed processes and
their interactions, and for development and assessment of watershed management
scenarios (He
2003
). Schreier and Brown (
2001
) used GIS for analysis of buffer
zones, which were delineated and classified from digital aerial photos, which
allowed the identification of the type, width and continuity of the buffer zone.
Kelsey et al. (
2004
) used GIS techniques to calculate several “distance or proxim-
ity” land-use variables to examine land-use effects on fecal coliform densities.
In October 2005, NRCS entered into a five year memorandum with the Geo-
graphic Information Science and Applied Geography (GISAG) Research Center
of the Department of Geography and Planning at the University of Toledo as part
of the Western Lake Erie Basin Water Resources Protection Plan. The University of
Toledo assisted NRCS in implementing the Maumee Watershed project, including
sub watershed rapid resource assessments, watershed and area planning, on farm
conservation planning and delivery of conservation technical assistance and con-
servation cost-share programs authorized by the 2002 Farm Bill. The tasks gener-
ally consisted of: annually determining land cover and crop rotations via remote
sensing techniques; combining Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan data layers to establish
Maumee Watershed Project Area GIS data layers for the project; and establishing
and maintaining a Maumee Watershed Project GIS Website to provide educational
and informational outreach to share data and information with other project
partners, resource managers, and the general public.
Crop type classification for the Maumee River project is being carried out using
multitemporal Landsat 5 satellite imagery for each year of the agreement. Images
were gathered from several time periods during the growing season to differentiate
between the different crops types, in particular corn, soybeans, wheat and pasture.
Once collected, the images underwent cloud screening and then were stacked in
Erdas IMAGINE remote sensing software package. Training sets of crop type had
been collected using a driving survey of the watershed and located with Global
Positioning System (GPS) readings. These training sets were used to create spectral
signatures in Erdas and then a supervised classification was performed using the
Maximum Likelihood classifier.
8.2 Maumee River Basin
The Maumee River basin covers over 4.9 million acres across Ohio, Michigan and
Indiana. The Maumee River, the most prominent watershed in the basin, begins in
Fort Wayne, Indiana, and extends more than 130 miles to Lake Erie, 105 miles of
which are located in Ohio (Fig.
8.1
). The Maumee River has the largest drainage
area of any Great Lakes river with 8,316 square miles and drains some of the richest
farmland in Ohio. The project area for this study will only include the drainage into
