USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program & Benthic Overview

1. USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program & Benthic Overview Karl E. Brown, Vegetation Mapping Program Mgr Natural Resource Program Center Biological Resources Management Division Benthic Habitat Mapping Workshop June 3-5, 2008

2. USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program Overview Outline and Overview • Background • Approach, Process & Products • Present Program Status • Hybrid Techniques • Available Data / Website • Suggestions to the Benthic Habitat Mapping Effort

3. Background What is it? • High priority requirement of the NPS I&M Program • National (Service Wide) Program • Begins long term vegetation monitoring program • Has many short term immediate applications

4. Background NPS I&M Program • Base Cartographic • Soils • Geology • Vegetation • Bibliographies • Species lists • Air quality • Water quality

5. Background National Program Differs from other NPS vegetation mapping projects • 270 park units (full park coverage) • 4423 7.5 minute USGS quadrangles • National scope • Participation of multiple agencies • Consistency in detail and accuracy between parks • Produces digital products available on WWW • Coordination at multiple levels

6. Background Standards • NPS management policies, standards & guidelines • Federal Geographic Data Committee standards • metadata, transfer, classification etc. • Nationally consistent, hierarchical, classification scheme • National Map Accuracy Standards • Thematic accuracy >80% per class • Scale of 1:24,000 • Minimum mapping unit of 0.5 hectare

7. Data Issues Major Steps for each Park • Scoping meeting • Data review • Data acquisition • Field sampling • Classification characterization • Photo interpretation, mapping and automation • Accuracy assessment • Final product review

8. Data Issues Products from the Program • Aerial photography/ imagery (hardcopy / digital, some new DOQQs) • Field data (hardcopy and database) • Classification report (Description and Key) • Photo interp report (Description and Key) • Accuracy report • Vegetation map data (digital coverage) • All appropriate metadata

9. Data Issues FGDC National Vegetation Classification System 2006 • A. PHYSIOGNOMY • Division/Order - Tree Dominant (dominant life form) • Class - Woodland (spacing & height of dominant form) • Subclass - Evergreen Woodland (morphological & phenological similarity) • Group - Temperate Evergreen Needle-leaved (climate, latitude, growth form, leaf form) • Formation - Evergreen Needle-leaved Woodland with Rounded Crowns (mappable units) • B. FLORISTICS • Alliance (Cover Type) - Douglas Fir Woodland (dominant species) • Association (Community) - Douglas Fir / Snowberry Woodland (subdominant or associated species)

10. Standard Comparisons FGDC 1997 - standard Revised Hierarchy 1 CLASS CLASS 2 SUBCLASS SUBCLASS New mid levels 3 FORMATION GROUP FORMATION 4 FORMATION SUBGROUP DIVISION 5 FORMATION MACROGROUP GROUP 6 ALLIANCE 7 ASSOCIATION ALLIANCE 8 ASSOCIATION

11. Data Issues Present Status • Approximately 165 projects in process • 30 Parks started (1994-2000) • 29 Park projects started in 2001 • 11 Park projects started 2002-2004 • 2005 completed 11 more parks, continued 73 ongoing projects, and initiated 24 new starts • 39 Parks completed for web access • more completed soon; 62 AA stage completed • 62 FY 05; 80 FY 06; 116 FY 07; 146 FY 08 • Alaska: 6 parks complete in 2003; 3 in 2004; 3 new ongoing in 2005; 4 more completed 2006-7; 3 more starts 2006-08 • USGS partnering on funding, 3 methods, archiving contract, collaborative fire and fuels datasets, variability analysis and surface model developments

12. Program Status Status June 2007

13. Process & Products Maps and Spatial Data

14. Process & Products Accuracy Assessment • Assessment of class accuracy across the park:

15. Process & Products Metadata

16. Process & Products Reports

17. Process & Products Data Availability • All products are made available via a public internet website: http://biology.usgs.gov/npsveg/

18. Gunnison Gorge NCA Program Status USGS-BLM Vegetation & Invasive Plants Characterization Projects

19. Lacreek NWR Ouray NWR Program Status USGS-USFWS Vegetation Mapping Projects

20. New Models New Models • “New/other” technologies • High Resolution Remote Sensing • eCognition segmentation • Laser Rangefinder Remote GPS positioning • Sister Bureau hybrid techniques • FWS Lower cost Vegetation Map “Light” • Savings from reduced field collection • BLM / USFS vegetation cross walks ROMO/GRSA • Field Vegetation Guides – VOYA • Network strategy / plans PACN & MOJN

22. Hybrid Techniques Multiresolution Segmentation • Levels can be used to compare results of segmentation based on different scale parameters and homogeneity criterion. • Layers can be weighted. Weights determine to which degree the information is used during the process of object generation.

23. Hybrid Techniques Hybrid techniques – summary of current efforts • Mixed imagery and Sister Bureau eCog segmentation and skeleton polygon sampling (GRSA) • PI / eCog linework and model verification (MEVE) / ground reference; add attributes (field & automation savings) • Classical accuracy assessment (AA) or small park methodology (census of MMU @ GRKO, LIBI, KNRI, FOUN) • Verify eCog gradient test against completed AA (ROMO) • Machine classification and PI field sample verification (LAVO)

24. Summary & Partnerships 1 National Park / Environs – data successes • Consider areas of interest for small park methodology • Evaluate sparse vegetation sampling need and plot sizes • Fire and fuels protocols may integrate fuels stratification in sample design • Develop fuel model polygons from NVCS vegetation polygons / photos • Other fire and monitoring program data needs…

25. Summary & Partnerships 2 NPS / Environs – fire data summary • Park Fire Management team field verify / photo reference fuel model types • Evaluate LANDFIRE data potential; AA of EVT layers • How map classes improve Landfire and other models • Research partnering for a hybrid approach, as needed • Fire fuel classes / types • Fuel loadings (1/10/100 hr…) • Fire Regime Condition Class • LANDFIRE update as appropriate and as supported by partnership

26. Summary & Partnerships 3 Summary of Efforts in 2007-8 • Fund $4M ongoing projects in 25+ networks • Provide technical support and planning assistance to parks, networks, and regions • Prioritize candidate projects with VMP team • Facilitate new planning based on park and network leveraged funding using hybrid innovations; new starts in ~ 2011-12 • Action plan for creation / migration of NPS data, and USGS-NPS archiving • Develop and serve planning templates on the web and a PLOTS 3.0 database update

27. Benthic Partnerships 1 Suggestions to Benthic Efforts • Stabilize the mapping standard, even a draft for NPS Marine Parks • Work the 3 prototype parks, networks, and regional candidate areas • Evaluate candidate projects against the draft standard • Grow / update from the prototypes

29. Benthic Partnerships 2 Suggestions to Benthic Efforts • Learn the USGS business model and facilitate joint papers on standards innovations • Regional Executive partnership on Green Book budget development, and USGS-NPS archiving • Develop and serve planning templates on the web and a draft 1.0 (geo?) database container

30. Contact Information More Information • Visit the USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Website: http://biology.usgs.gov/npsveg • Karl Brown, Ph.D. • NPS I&M (Program Lead) • karl_brown@nps.gov • Mike Mulligan • USGS (Program Lead) • mike_mulligan@usgs.gov • Chris Lea • NPS I&M (Ecologist) • chris_lea@nps.gov • Theresa Singh • USGS (VMP Website) • theresa_singh@usgs.gov • Tammy Hamer • NPS I&M (Program Assistant) • tammy_hamer@partner.nps.gov

31. Thanks Karl Brown, Ph.D. • NPS I&M (Program Lead) • (970) 225-3591 • karl_brown@nps.gov • Chris Lea • NPS I&M (Ecologist) • (303) 969-2807 • chris_lea@nps.gov • Tammy Hamer • NPS I&M Program Assistant • (970) 267-7201 • tammy_hamer@partner.nps.gov