Monitoring the extent of wetland types in the Lake Ontario St. Lawrence River coastal system in support of adaptive management

Year
2015
Topic

Aquatic Ecosystem Health

Project Description

This project aims to acquire high-resolution aerial imagery in maximum-vegetation condition for sixteen Lake Ontario and St. Lawrence River coastal wetlands, use GIS to map the vegetation types within these wetlands, and then assess similarities and differences in wetland extent from equivalent mapping products from 2012 and 2014. This work will complement the planned collection of coastal wetland aerial imagery on the Ontario side to allow the development of a lakewide, binational assessment of the current status of Lake Ontario and St. Lawrence River coastal wetlands. These data can be used to support adaptive management of lake level dynamics and can integrate into wetland vegetation community modelling of the meadow marsh extent indicator for LOSLR. Selected wetland study areas include a number of Lake Ontario Lakewide Action & Management Plan (LAMP) Priority Action Areas. This information will directly support the LAMP’s development of a nearshore management framework as required in Annex 4 of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA).

Outcome

Complete