Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 7
Employing a Geographic Information System
for Wetlands Management in Nebraska's
Rainwater Basin
James W. Merchant and Patti R. Dappen
Abstract
Wetlands are critical components of most ecosystems, providing a broad
array of services including support for biodiversity, enhancement of water quality
and flood abatement. In spite of their ecological importance, wetlands have been
degraded and lost at alarming rates. In the Rainwater Basin (RWB) of south-central
Nebraska, an internationally significant staging area for migratory water birds, the
adoption of geographic information system (GIS) technology has been critical to
managing wetlands. Efforts to employ GIS began with assemblage of dozens of
geospatial datasets including digital elevation models, soils data, digital orthopho-
tography, historic aerial photography and land ownership data. Land use and land
cover data, which did not exist, were developed using satellite remote sensing.
Subsequently, the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE) was imple-
mented via GIS to assess how sediment was impacting wetlands. All geospatial
data, RUSLE modeling results, metadata and documentation were made available
on a WWW site designed to facilitate both data download and mapping. During the
past decade the RWB has developed an independent, robust and forward-looking
program to exploit GIS and related technologies. Many new and improved datasets,
including LiDAR data, have been developed, and increasingly sophisticated GIS-
based models have been implemented for decision support. Examples includes
models to establish priorities for wetlands management, to facilitate evaluation of
eligibility of candidate sites for enrollment in programs such as the USDAWetlands
Reserve Program, and to assess the RWB landscape's capacity to provide food
energy for migrating waterfowl.
Keywords
Wetlands
·
Geographic information system (GIS)
·
Spatial modeling
·
Soil erosion
