Zafer Defne
Neil K. Ganju
2018
Unvegetated to vegetated marsh ratio in Plum Island Estuary and Parker River salt marsh complex, Massachusetts
1.0
Vector Digital Data Set (Polygon)
data release
DOI:10.5066/P9OW6LFU
Reston, Virginia
U.S. Geological Survey
Suggested citation: Defne, Z., and Ganju, N.K., 2018, Unvegetated to vegetated marsh ratio in Plum Island Estuary and Parker River salt marsh complex, Massachusetts: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/P9OW6LFU
https://doi.org/10.5066/P9OW6LFU
Unvegetated to vegetated marsh ratio (UVVR) in the Plum Island Estuary and Parker River (PIEPR) salt marsh complex was computed based on conceptual marsh units defined by Defne and Ganju (2018). UVVR was calculated based on U.S. Department of Agriculture National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) 1-meter resolution imagery. Through scientific efforts initiated with the Hurricane Sandy Science Plan, the U.S. Geological Survey has been expanding national assessment of coastal change hazards and forecast products to coastal wetlands, including the Plum Island Estuary and Parker River salt marsh complex, with the intent of providing Federal, State, and local managers with tools to estimate the vulnerability and ecosystem service potential of these wetlands. For this purpose, the response and resilience of coastal wetlands to physical factors need to be assessed in terms of the ensuing change to their vulnerability and ecosystem services. UVVR is planned to be an underlying parameter in the synthesis of these factors.
References:
Defne, Z., and Ganju, N.K., 2018, Conceptual marsh units for Plum Island Estuary and Parker River salt marsh complex, Massachusetts: U.S. Geological Survey data release, https://doi.org/10.5066/P9XF54QF
The purpose of this shapefile is to calculate ratio of unvegetated area to vegetated area in each marsh unit. Analysis of UVVR is planned to be a part of a comprehensive assessment to identify the factors and their weights in determining the vulnerability and resiliency of salt marshes. An unvegetated area to vegetated area ratio was defined as a potential indicator of current state of a salt marsh unit.
2018
Publication date. Vegetated and unvegetated polygons were created based on the National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) imagery acquired in 2014.
None
-70.928234635
-70.768945223
42.843340605
42.679945448
USGS Metadata Identifier
USGS:5b622a13e4b006a11f6f84c5
USGS Thesaurus
geospatial datasets
wetland ecosystems
wetland functions
coastal ecosystems
coastal processes
None
salt marsh
vegetation
marsh health
estuary
Long-Term Ecological Research
LTER
UVVR
ISO 19115 Topic Category
oceans
inlandWaters
environment
None
Parker River National Wildlife Refuge
Parker River/Essex Bay Area of Critical Environmental Concern
Great Marsh Area of Critical Environmental Concern
United States
Atlantic Ocean
Plum Island Sound
Parker River
Merrimack River
Sandy Point State Reservation
Massachusetts
None
The unvegetated to vegetated ratio for each marsh unit is defined for scientific research purposes and should not be used as a sole source of reference for any regulations and policy making. Public domain data from the U.S. Government are freely redistributable with proper metadata and source attribution. Please recognize the U.S. Geological Survey as the source of this information.
U.S. Geological Survey
Zafer Defne
Ocean Scientist
mailing and physical address
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole
MA
02543
508-548-8700 x2254
508-457-2310
zdefne@usgs.gov
https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/file/get/5b622a13e4b006a11f6f84c5?name=mu_UVVR_PIEPRp.png
Graphic that shows UVVR in marsh units of PIEPR salt marsh complex overlaying Esri basemap.
PNG
Environment as of Metadata Creation: Microsoft Windows 7 Version 6.1 (Build 7601) Service Pack 1; Esri ArcGIS 10.5.1 (Build 7333) Service Pack N/A (Build N/A)
Zafer Defne
Neil K. Ganju
2018
Conceptual marsh units for Plum Island Estuary and Parker River salt marsh complex, Massachusetts
1.0
Vector Digital Data Set (Polygon)
data release
DOI:10.5066/P9XF54QF
Reston, VA
U.S. Geological Survey
https://doi.org/10.5066/P9XF54QF
Marsh units, water and land boundary inherit their accuracy from accuracy of the source data, PIEPR marsh units. Vegetated and unvegetated polygons accuracy is based on the 1-meter resolution National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) imagery acquired in 2014, U.S. Geological Survey National Elevation Data (USGS NED) collected in 2011 and U.S. Department of Agriculture Digital Elevation Model (USDA DEM) with a processing date of 2016.
Topological errors that occurred during geoprocessing were automatically removed by the topological rules used for the analysis. The polygons are checked for correct geometry and do not overlap. Small polygons (less than 9 square meters) were assumed to be marginal and were assigned the classification from the surrounding majority value. A visual comparison between NAIP imagery was performed at randomly selected sites to verify the land and water boundaries. Marsh polygons without any vegetation were assigned a UVVR value of -1.
The results are specific to the marsh polygons definition within the boundaries of the PIEPR salt marsh complex. A detailed on-the-ground analysis of a single site may result in a different interpretation of the wetland and marsh unit boundaries.
Horizontal accuracy is inherited from the source dataset that delineates the marsh units, and can be considered to be +/-6 meters.
U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service Soils (USDA NRCS) - National Geospatial Center of Excellence
20110215
LiDAR Elevation Dataset - Bare Earth DEM - 1 Meter
Raster Digital Data Set
Fort Worth, TX
U.S. Department of Agriculture
The following 1-meter DEM files were used in analyses:
>1) lidar01m42070g8.tif
>2) lidar01m42070g7.tif
>3) lidar01m42070f7.tif
https://gdg.sc.egov.usda.gov/
https://gdg.sc.egov.usda.gov/GDGHome_DirectDownLoad.aspx
online
2012
publication date
USDA DEM
Elevation data from USDA 1-meter DEM were used in analyses. Projection was NAD 1983 UTM Zone 19N with the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88). Download date was 2017/09/01.
U.S. Geological Survey
2012
USGS National Elevation Dataset (NED) 1/9 arc-second
Raster Digital Data Set
Reston, VA
U.S. Geological Survey
The following USGS NED ned19 tiles were used in analyses:
>1) USGS NED ned19_n43x00_w071x00_ma_lftne_lot7_2011 1/9 arc-second 2012 15 x 15 minute IMG
>2) USGS NED ned19_n42x75_w071x00_ma_lftne_lot7_2011 1/9 arc-second 2012 15 x 15 minute IMG
https://ned.usgs.gov/
https://nationalmap.gov/viewer.html
online
2012
publication date
NED
Elevation data from USGS NED ned19 tiles were used in analyses. Projection was NAD 1983 UTM Zone 19N with the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88). Download date was 2017/09/01.
U.S. Geological Survey
2014
National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) Imagery 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
Remote-sensing image
Salt Lake City, Utah
USDA-FSA-APFO Aerial Photography Field Office
The following NAIP Imagery tiles were used in analyses:
>1) NAIP Imagery m_4207010_sw_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>2) NAIP Imagery m_4207018_nw_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>3) NAIP Imagery m_4207017_ne_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>4) NAIP Imagery m_4207009_se_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>5) NAIP Imagery m_4207018_ne_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>6) NAIP Imagery m_4207010_se_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>7) NAIP Imagery m_4207010_nw_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>8) NAIP Imagery m_4207010_nw_19_1_20140712_20141007 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>9) NAIP Imagery m_4207009_ne_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>10) NAIP Imagery m_4207010_ne_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>11) NAIP Imagery m_4207018_sw_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>12) NAIP Imagery m_4207017_se_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
>13) NAIP Imagery m_4207018_se_19_1_20140712_20140923 3.75 x 3.75 minute JPEG2000 from The National Map
https://nationalmap.gov/viewer.html
https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/item/51355312e4b0e1603e4fed62
online
2014
publication date
NAIP
Downloaded NAIP 1-meter resolution imagery from the USGS National Map. Projection was WGS 1984 Web Mercator Auxiliary Sphere. Download date was 2017/08/01.
Zafer Defne
Neil K. Ganju
2018
Conceptual marsh units for Plum Island Estuary and Parker River salt marsh complex, Massachusetts
Vector Digital Data Set (Polygon)
data release
DOI:10.5066/P9XF54QF
Reston, VA
U.S. Geological Survey
https://doi.org/10.5066/P9XF54QF
Online
2018
publication date
CMU_PIEPRp.shp
Used the features in [CMU_PIEPRp.shp] to calculate the mean elevation for each marsh unit. Projection was WGS 1984 Web Mercator Auxiliary Sphere.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
2017
National Wetland Inventory Massachusetts Wetlands
Vector Digital Data Set (Polygon)
Madison, WI
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
https://www.fws.gov/wetlands/data/Data-Download.html
online
2017
publication date
NWI
Downloaded wetlands data for the state of Massachusetts in Shapefile format from the NWI download page. Projection was NAD 1983 Albers. Download date was 2017/08/01.
This process step and all subsequent process steps were performed by the same person, Zafer Defne, in ArcMap (ver. 10.5.1) using tools from ArcToolbox, unless otherwise stated. For complex operations, names of specific tools used are given in CAPITAL letters (any critical parameters used are given in parentheses, separated by a semicolon, immediately after the tool name). The input and output file names are provided in [square brackets] when necessary. Units for length and area calculations are meters (m) and square meters (m2) unless otherwise stated.
Set the data frame coordinate system and projection to NAD 1983 UTM Zone 19N. Prepare elevation dataset to be clipped to the boundaries polygon. MOSAIC TO NEW RASTER(Pixel type= 32 bit float; Mosaic operator=Mean; Cellsize=1 m) all of the USGS NED tiles and USDA DEM raster to a new raster dataset with 1 m resolution [elev_mosaic.tif]. Resolution is increased from 3 m to 1 m to have a finer representation of the polygon boundaries in the horizontal during this step.
USDA DEM
NED
2018
elev_mosaic
U.S. Geological Survey
Zafer Defne
Ocean Scientist
mailing and physical address
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole
MA
02543
508-548-8700 x2254
508-457-2310
zdefne@usgs.gov
Prepare mask polygon to define analysis boundaries. In order to account for the possible influence of the surrounding terrain on the analysis, first a mask area larger than the salt marsh extent is created [UVVR_mask]. At the end of the analysis the results are clipped to the boundaries of the salt marsh area [MU_mask]. Both UVVR_mask and MU_mask are edited to decide which interior polygons are removed.
a) EXPORT features from NWI dataset after SELECT("ATTRIBUTE" LIKE 'E2%EM%' OR "ATTRIBUTE" LIKE 'E2AB3%' OR "ATTRIBUTE" LIKE 'E2EM%' OR "ATTRIBUTE" LIKE 'E2SS%' OR "ATTRIBUTE" LIKE 'E2US4%') to select from estuarine intertidal areas of 1) Emergent, 2) Scrub-shrub, 3) Rooted vascular aquatic bed, 4) Organic unconsolidated shore classes [NWI_exclusive_select.shp].
b) BUFFER(Input features=[NWI_exclusive_select.shp]; Linear unit=5 meters; Dissolve type=All) to obtain the mask polygon [buff5m.shp] and ELIMINATE POLYGON PART(Condition=Percentage; Percentage=99; Eliminate contained part only) to obtain [UVVR_mask01.shp]. Apply buffer with -5 meters to obtain [MU_mask01.shp].
c) EXPORT features from NWI dataset after SELECT("ATTRIBUTE" NOT LIKE 'E%' OR "ATTRIBUTE" LIKE '%FO')to obtain features that are not estuarine or are forested estuarine. MULTIPART TO SINGLEPART to separate individual polygons [NWI_inclusive_single.shp].
d)To exclude the voids in the NWI map during the analysis these interior polygons need to be removed from the mask. Create a rectangular polygon that covers the domain [extent.shp]. ERASE [NWI_excusive_select.shp] from [extent.shp] and MULTIPART TO SINGLEPART to get [NWI_voids_single.shp].
e) SELECT BY LOCATION from [NWI_inclusive_single.shp] that are completely within the [MU_mask01.shp], and SELECT BY LOCATION from [NWI_voids_single.shp] that are completely within the [MU_mask01.shp]. If any of additional polygons need to be removed from the mask include them in a new feature layer [erase_mask_manual.shp]. Merge all three feature sets to get polygons to be excluded [erase_inside.shp] from the final masks.
f) ERASE [erase_inside.shp] from [MU_mask01.shp] and [UVVR_mask01.shp] to obtain [MU_mask.shp] and [UVVR_mask.shp], respectively.
NWI
2018
UVVR_mask
Compute vegetated and unvegetated boundaries by image processing.
a) EXTRACT BY MASK from elevation raster [elev_mosaic.tif] using [UVVR_mask.shp] polygon. Rescale the elevation raster values to the same range with 8-bit NAIP imagery (0 to 255) using min-max scaling. Perform ISO CLUSTER UNSUPERVISED CLASSIFICATION with4-bands (Near Infra Red , Blue, Green, Red from the NAIP imagery and the rescaled elevation raster with 32 classes a minimum class size of 5000 cells. RECLASSIFY the classified raster by visually comparing the NAIP imagery to obtain the unvegetated-vegetated raster [UVVc.tif].
b) Dissolve unvegetated regions smaller than a threshold value to the surrounding vegetated regions and vice versa to clean the UVV raster. For this purpose use the REGION(Number of neighbors=4; Zone grouping method=Within; Add Link field to output) to get the [UVV_region.tif], and TEST("Count" less than 9) to set a threshold value of 9 raster cells [UVV_test.tif]. Use RASTER CALCULATOR to toggle the value of the Link field in the region raster, where the test raster indicates regions with areas smaller than the threshold.
c) RASTER TO POLYGON(Simplify polygons=False) and CLIP with the final marsh complex outline [mu_diss.shp] to obtain [UVVc_filt_clip.shp].
d) REPAIR GEOMETRY and DISSOLVE(Create multipart features=False) to get filtered, clipped and dissolved unvegetated-vegetated polygons [UVVc_filt_clip_diss.shp].
e) INTERSECT the dissolved conceptual marsh units [mu_diss.shp] with unvegetated-vegetated polygons [UVVc_filt_clip.shp], REPAIR GEOMETRY, and calculate the area of unvegetated and vegetated polygons in each marsh unit. To do this ADD GEOMETRY ATTRIBUTES(Geometry properties=Area_geodesic; Area unit=Square_meters) to get [UVV_poly.shp], and DISSOLVE(Input features=UVV_poly.shp; Dissolve fields=FID_CMU, gridcode; Statistics field=gridcode.MEAN, Area_geo.SUM) and REPAIR GEOMETRY to get [UVV_poly_diss.shp]. Edit the fields to have "TYP", "APGN_M2", and "ATOT_M2" fields for type of polygon indicating vegetated or unvegetated, surface area of the polygon, and total surface area of the marsh unit, respectively.
f) Add field "UVVR" and calculate unvegetated to vegetated ratio based on "TYP", "APGN_M2" and "ATOT_M2" fields. If the vegetated area is zero for a marsh unit set the value of UVVR to -1.
g) DISSOLVE(Input features=UVV_poly_diss.shp; Dissolve fields=FID_CMU, gridcode; Statistics field=UVVR, ATOT_M2 and FLG with Statistics type= First for all) to obtain mu_UVVR_PIEPR.shp]. FLG flags anomalous marsh units based on absence of vegetation, elevation and surface area, and is set to (-1) no vegetated area; (-10) marsh unit elevation higher than the 99.8 percentile; (-100) marsh unit elevation less than 0.2 percentile; (-1000) marsh unit surface area less than 900 m2; and (0) no flag. Combination of negative values indicate combination of flags. For example, -1001 indicates no vegetated area and area less than 900m2.
h) SELECT BY ATTRIBUTES FROM [CMU_PIEPRp] where "CLASS"= 'vegetated', and join field "APGN_M2" from CMU_PIEPRp.shp on the feature dataset [mu_UVVR_PIEPR.shp].
i) Rearrange field names and change the projection for better performance of web services with online base maps. PROJECT(Input coordinate system=NAD 1983 UTM Zone 19N; Output coordinate system=WGS 1984 Web Mercator Auxiliary Sphere; Geographic transformation=WGS 1984 (ITRF00) to NAD 1983) the feature dataset to obtain the final conceptual marsh units [mu_UVVR_PIEPRp.shp].
elev_mosaic
CMU_PIEPRp
NAIP
2018
mu_UVVR_PIEPRp
Added keywords section with USGS persistent identifier as theme keyword.
20200806
U.S. Geological Survey
VeeAnn A. Cross
Marine Geologist
Mailing and Physical
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole
MA
02543-1598
508-548-8700 x2251
508-457-2310
vatnipp@usgs.gov
Vector
G-polygon
1230
WGS 1984 Web Mercator Auxiliary Sphere (ESRI Full Name: WGS_1984_Web_Mercator_Auxiliary_Sphere)
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
coordinate pair
0.6096
0.6096
Meter
D_WGS_1984
WGS_1984
6378137.0
298.257223563
mu_UVVR_PIEPRp
Attribute information associated with the UVVR in marsh units of PIEPR salt marsh complex.
U.S. Geological Survey
FID
Internal feature number.
Esri
Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.
Shape
Feature geometry.
Esri
Coordinates defining the features.
FID_CMU
Sequential whole number that represents the identification number for each conceptual marsh units. These numbers are duplicated when a marsh unit has both vegetated and unvegetated sub-polygons.
USGS
0
1229
none
ATOT_M2
Total surface area of a marsh unit in square meters
USGS
0.699117
814996.616952
square meters
AVEG_M2
Surface area of vegetated part of a marsh unit in square meters
USGS
0.0
782582.767657
square meters
UVVR
Ratio of unvegetated surface area to vegetated surface area. Originally UVVR ranges from zero (completely vegetated) to infinity (completely unvegetated), however it is assigned the value of -1 when completely unvegetated.
USGS
-1.0
30.2723296573
None
FLG
Marsh unit flag indicating anomalous marsh units based on absence of vegetation, elevation and surface area. FLG values indicate: (-1) no vegetated area; (-10) marsh unit elevation higher than the 99.8 percentile; (-100) marsh unit elevation less than 0.2 percentile; (-1000) marsh unit surface area less than 900 m2; and (0) no flag. Combination of negative values indicate combination of flags. For example, -1001 indicates no vegetated area and area less than 900m2.
USGS
-1010
0
None
In this dataset, the salt marsh complex PIEPR has been delineated to conceptual salt marsh units to facilitate unit by unit evaluation of response and resiliency of marsh system to physical and biogeochemical drivers. Each unit is also analyzed based on the vegetated and unvegetated surface area coverage, the ratio of which can be an independent measure of marsh health for microtidal marshes on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the United States. UVVR is calculated as the ratio of unvegetated area to vegetated area in a marsh unit. Decimal values in the attribute table are a result of double precision calculations while significant digits are considered in defining the attribute measurement resolutions. Therefore, the smallest unit increment for area values and UVVR is assumed to be 1 meter and a 0.001, respectively.
USGS
U.S. Geological Survey - ScienceBase
mailing and physical address
Denver Federal Center, Building 810, Mail Stop 302
Denver
CO
80225
1-888-275-8747
sciencebase@usgs.gov
mu_UVVR_PIEPRp
Neither the U.S. Government, the Department of the Interior, nor the USGS, nor any of their employees, contractors, or subcontractors, make any warranty, express or implied, nor assume any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, nor represent that its use would not infringe on privately owned rights. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the USGS in the use of these data or related materials. Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Not for navigational use.
Shapefile
ArcGIS 10.5.1
This zipped file contains a polygon shapefile and its components, a style layer descriptor file, metadata in xml, txt and html formats and a browse image.
https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/file/get/5b622a13e4b006a11f6f84c5
https://doi.org/10.5066/P9OW6LFU
The first link in network resources is to download data directly. The second link points to a landing page with metadata and data.
WMS
https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalogMaps/mapping/ows/5b622a13e4b006a11f6f84c5?service=wms&request=getcapabilities&version=1.3.0
The link in network resources points to the Web Mapping Services (WMS) end point.
WFS
https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalogMaps/mapping/ows/5b622a13e4b006a11f6f84c5?service=wfs&request=getcapabilities&version=1.0.0
The link in network resources points to the Web Feature Service (WFS) end point.
None. No fees are applicable for obtaining the data set.
20200806
U.S. Geological Survey
Zafer Defne
Ocean Scientist
mailing and physical address
384 Woods Hole Road
Woods Hole
MA
02543
508-548-8700 x2254
508-457-2310
zdefne@usgs.gov
FGDC Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata
FGDC-STD-001-1998