Funding opportunity number: L23AS00153FUNDING opportunity goals text: the purpose of this project is to continue development of efficient and effective methods for monitoring change within the natural…

Funding opportunity number: L23AS00153FUNDING opportunity goals text: the purpose of this project is to continue development of efficient and effective methods for monitoring change within the natural area to shoreline and native habitats through the use of unmanned aerial systems. As such, the main objective of the research is to develop an unmanned aerial system (UAS) based mapping system and methodology that can be used acquire 3D information about the shoreline and map various vegetation species in the site. Such a system will help the BLM to cost-effectively monitor and manage the site with minimal efforts and turnaround time after a major storm or rainfall events, and document long term change of the site habitats. The relevance of the project is to aid BLM in creating a meaningful and measurable record of change of the habitats and systems within the site. Couple with existing research this project will help establish a picture of rates of erosion and materials habitat lost from the shoreline and changes within the site. The technical approach to the project is clearly established in the proposal following the identified major steps of 1. Development of UAS based 3D and multi-spectral mapping system 2. UAS data collection 3. Development of processing methodology to derive 2D shoreline, 3D beach topography and thematic maps of various vegetation species and 4. Perform short-term and long-term change detection using recent and historical data. The roles, details and outcomes are identified and scheduled out in the proposal. Goals estimated timelines: the main objective of this research is to implement UAS based automated natural area mapping and monitoring methodology to acquire 3D information of the shoreline in the site. This methodology will help the ONA managers to cost-effectively manage the sites with minimal efforts and turnaround time after a major storm or rainfall event. The following are more specific goals of the proposed project, impact of newly constructed offshore breakwaters, contouring and planting on shoreline erosion long-term short-term 2D 3D change detection bathymetric profiles for the intracoastal waterways around the ONA to study the relationship between beach sand loss and waterbed elevations. Measures: products and delivery dates: august 31, 2024: GIS data layers of shorelines, bathymetric data of the intercoastal area around the site as .SHP files, 3D volume change detection results as maps and a report with long-term and short-term change rates. September 30, 2024: meeting with blms ONA manager and other partners to discuss results, evaluate management recommendations, and plan implementation. May 31, 2025: publication of at least one scientific journal article for further dissemination of this research.