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A.H. Schumann and G.A. Schultz
sary. The ability of the model to describe the changes in the hydrological characteristics induced by detected land cover changes can be tested by an analysis of the
temporal development of the error of computed runoff values in relationship to
measured discharge values at a gauge if the model parameters were calibrated for a
time period before the land use change has occurred. If the errors don't show a
tendency the errors of the measured discharge series are too large in relationship to
the signal of the change in runoff or the model is not sensitive enough to represent
these changes.
The main application of hydrological models in relationship to land use changes
consist in their prognostic use. If a model is available which is able to describe the
complex changes of hydrological conditions caused by land cover changes the
planning of watershed management can be improved significantly. By utilization
of distributed models the planned land use changes could assessed in their hydrological aspects by consideration of their specific locations.
19.3 A Case Study: Land Use Change Detection by Remote
Sensing in the Sauer River Basin, Western Europe
In this study, a common research project of the Institute for Hydrology, Water
Management and Environmental Techniques of the Ruhr University Bochum and
the Federal Institute for Hydrology in Koblenz (Germany), two questions should
be answered:
- How large are the changes in land use which can be detected by remote sensing
data within a river basin during the last decades?
- If such changes in land use became evident is it possible to estimate their hydrological effects?
As test catchment the Sauer river basin was chosen, which has a drainage area of
4259 km 2 and is located in Western Europe. It covers almost all of Luxembourg in
its eastern expansion, a part of Germany, part of Belgium in the west and north and
a small part of France in the south. As the river basin is divided between four
countries the land use data are not available in a consistent manner. Especially the
available land use maps differ in scale and actuality. Only by application of remote
sensing it was possible to get a consistent set of land use maps for this river basin
as a whole. Remote sensing data were also essential to estimate the temporal development of land use changes in this river basin over last twenty years. To answer
the first question mentioned above land use characteristics at different points in
time were estimated.
Multi-spectral satellite data used for estimation of land use. Under consideration of the heterogeneity of the Sauer river basin in its orographic, climatic and
pedological characteristics, only satellite data with high spatial resolution could be
used to determine land use and its changes. Such satellite data for this river basin
were available from Landsat satellites. Eight Landsat scenes from the period 1975
A.H. Schumann and G.A. Schultz
sary. The ability of the model to describe the changes in the hydrological characteristics induced by detected land cover changes can be tested by an analysis of the
temporal development of the error of computed runoff values in relationship to
measured discharge values at a gauge if the model parameters were calibrated for a
time period before the land use change has occurred. If the errors don't show a
tendency the errors of the measured discharge series are too large in relationship to
the signal of the change in runoff or the model is not sensitive enough to represent
these changes.
The main application of hydrological models in relationship to land use changes
consist in their prognostic use. If a model is available which is able to describe the
complex changes of hydrological conditions caused by land cover changes the
planning of watershed management can be improved significantly. By utilization
of distributed models the planned land use changes could assessed in their hydrological aspects by consideration of their specific locations.
19.3 A Case Study: Land Use Change Detection by Remote
Sensing in the Sauer River Basin, Western Europe
In this study, a common research project of the Institute for Hydrology, Water
Management and Environmental Techniques of the Ruhr University Bochum and
the Federal Institute for Hydrology in Koblenz (Germany), two questions should
be answered:
- How large are the changes in land use which can be detected by remote sensing
data within a river basin during the last decades?
- If such changes in land use became evident is it possible to estimate their hydrological effects?
As test catchment the Sauer river basin was chosen, which has a drainage area of
4259 km 2 and is located in Western Europe. It covers almost all of Luxembourg in
its eastern expansion, a part of Germany, part of Belgium in the west and north and
a small part of France in the south. As the river basin is divided between four
countries the land use data are not available in a consistent manner. Especially the
available land use maps differ in scale and actuality. Only by application of remote
sensing it was possible to get a consistent set of land use maps for this river basin
as a whole. Remote sensing data were also essential to estimate the temporal development of land use changes in this river basin over last twenty years. To answer
the first question mentioned above land use characteristics at different points in
time were estimated.
Multi-spectral satellite data used for estimation of land use. Under consideration of the heterogeneity of the Sauer river basin in its orographic, climatic and
pedological characteristics, only satellite data with high spatial resolution could be
used to determine land use and its changes. Such satellite data for this river basin
were available from Landsat satellites. Eight Landsat scenes from the period 1975