the hands of the coastal resource managers, who have to deal with these risks on an
annual basis, and have been incorporated into their GIS system.” An evolving
technology has been made operational for coastal management.
Gebelein (Chapter 8) draws attention to the vulnerability of the transitional
ecosystems along coasts where human impact may be the most profound. The clear
contribution of remote sensing is the digital and coherent record of change since the
launch of first resource satellite, ERTS (Earth Resources Technology Satellite, renamed
Landsat) in 1972. The challenge is knowing where the required imagery is archived (if
at all!), how to derive meaningful information with clear confidence boundaries, and
how to identify and assess the change using the satellite information combined with
other image or non-image data. Looking at the Global Land Cover Facility at the
University of Maryland as a case study, the author examines applications using a
variety of high volume data sets. Several benchmark studies involving both image and
derived information types are cited. URL’s for many data archives are listed with a
summary of the relevant data products. Geographic Information System (GIS) data
from the World Resources Institute are reviewed as an important source for assessing
environmental change and variability. As an example, the 2004 Reefs at Risk in the
Caribbean (Burke et al., 2004) includes “…reef locations, threats from anthropogenic
activities, river mouths, bathymetry, ports, oil/gas wells, airports marine protected
areas, population densities, soil type, dive centers, and watershed boundaries.”
Amalgamation of such diverse but geocoded data sets is now a major tool for coastal
management decisions. However, the author notes that there are inherent error sources
due to geometric rectification procedures, radiometery of different sensor systems,
stability of space versus aerial platforms and atmospheric attenuation. An ongoing
research issue is the attenuation of the underwater signal through the water column,
both downward and upward, and the impact on the spectral information of submerged
targets. The author’s balanced assessment of data integration issues is critical reading
before application of such information to management problems.
4. Management Applications
The last third of the book is devoted to management applications. In this section:
• the spaceborne systems that can address coastal management issues are
examined (Whitehouse and Hutt , Chapter 9)
• the practical integration of remote sensing data into existing field programs is
explored (Phinn et al., Chapter 10)
• problems and solutions concerning the integration of remote sensing and
management of tropical coral reefs in developing nations are presented
(Newman et al., Chapter 11)
• the management-level concerns of data synthesis are discussed (Robinson
et al., Chapter 12)
Whitehouse and Hutt (Chapter 9) note that “…spaceborne sensors have helped us
to realize that the aquatic environment is not as homogeneous as once believed.” This
has to be balanced against the reality of effective revisit time, reception and processing
time, and ordering time when planning a response to a marine disaster, such as an oil
spill. The authors provide a series of tables with each satellite available for coastal
management identified with relevant characteristics (revisit time etc.). For each of a
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annual basis, and have been incorporated into their GIS system.” An evolving
technology has been made operational for coastal management.
Gebelein (Chapter 8) draws attention to the vulnerability of the transitional
ecosystems along coasts where human impact may be the most profound. The clear
contribution of remote sensing is the digital and coherent record of change since the
launch of first resource satellite, ERTS (Earth Resources Technology Satellite, renamed
Landsat) in 1972. The challenge is knowing where the required imagery is archived (if
at all!), how to derive meaningful information with clear confidence boundaries, and
how to identify and assess the change using the satellite information combined with
other image or non-image data. Looking at the Global Land Cover Facility at the
University of Maryland as a case study, the author examines applications using a
variety of high volume data sets. Several benchmark studies involving both image and
derived information types are cited. URL’s for many data archives are listed with a
summary of the relevant data products. Geographic Information System (GIS) data
from the World Resources Institute are reviewed as an important source for assessing
environmental change and variability. As an example, the 2004 Reefs at Risk in the
Caribbean (Burke et al., 2004) includes “…reef locations, threats from anthropogenic
activities, river mouths, bathymetry, ports, oil/gas wells, airports marine protected
areas, population densities, soil type, dive centers, and watershed boundaries.”
Amalgamation of such diverse but geocoded data sets is now a major tool for coastal
management decisions. However, the author notes that there are inherent error sources
due to geometric rectification procedures, radiometery of different sensor systems,
stability of space versus aerial platforms and atmospheric attenuation. An ongoing
research issue is the attenuation of the underwater signal through the water column,
both downward and upward, and the impact on the spectral information of submerged
targets. The author’s balanced assessment of data integration issues is critical reading
before application of such information to management problems.
4. Management Applications
The last third of the book is devoted to management applications. In this section:
• the spaceborne systems that can address coastal management issues are
examined (Whitehouse and Hutt , Chapter 9)
• the practical integration of remote sensing data into existing field programs is
explored (Phinn et al., Chapter 10)
• problems and solutions concerning the integration of remote sensing and
management of tropical coral reefs in developing nations are presented
(Newman et al., Chapter 11)
• the management-level concerns of data synthesis are discussed (Robinson
et al., Chapter 12)
Whitehouse and Hutt (Chapter 9) note that “…spaceborne sensors have helped us
to realize that the aquatic environment is not as homogeneous as once believed.” This
has to be balanced against the reality of effective revisit time, reception and processing
time, and ordering time when planning a response to a marine disaster, such as an oil
spill. The authors provide a series of tables with each satellite available for coastal
management identified with relevant characteristics (revisit time etc.). For each of a
312
LeDrew and Richardson