The use of color infrared photography for wetlands assessment

A study was undertaken of Pointe Mouillee Marsh, located on Lake Erie, to assess shoreline erosion and to inventory and evaluate adjacent land as potential replacement for areas lost to erosion, and to provide better data sources for management decisions. The results of the study were: (1) Evaluation of low altitude oblique photography was useful in determining specifications of operational mission requirements; (2) Accurate base map revisions, reflecting shoreline erosion, were made using aerial photography and a Zoom Transfer Scope; (3) An aerial land cover inventory provided data necessary for the selection of adjacent lands suitable for marshland development; (4) A detailed inventory of vegetative communities (mapped from CIR), was made for management decisions; and (5) A carefully selected and well laid-out transect was a key asset to photo interpretation and analysis of vegetation.