Evapotranspiration Water Use Analysis of Saltcedar and Other Vegetation in the Mojave River Floodplain, 2007 and 2010
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Evapotranspiration Water Use Analysis of Saltcedar and Other Vegetation in the Mojave River Floodplain, 2007 and 2010 Mojave Water Agency Water Supply Management Study Phase 1 Report U.S. Department of the Interior Mojave Water Agency Utah State University August 2011 Bureau of Reclamation Apple Valley, California Logan, Utah Southern California Area Office Mission Statements The mission of the Department of the Interior is to protect and provide access to our Nation’s natural and cultural heritage and honor our trust responsibilities to Indian Tribes and our commitments to island communities. The mission of the Bureau of Reclamation is to manage, develop, and protect water and related resources in an environmentally and economically sound manner in the interest of the American public. Mojave Water Agency will carry out its water management mission by observing the core values of Fiscal Responsibility, Community, Innovation, Public Safety, Conservation, Service, Dependability, Integrity, Leadership and Foresight. The mission of Utah State University is to be one of the nation's premier student-centered land-grant and space-grant universities by fostering the principle that academics come first, by cultivating diversity of thought and culture, and by serving the public through learning, discovery, and engagement. Evapotranspiration Water Use Analysis of Saltcedar and Other Vegetation in the Mojave River Floodplain, 2007 and 2010 Mojave Water Agency Water Supply Management Study, Phase 1 Report Prepared by Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Utah State University Logan, UT 84322-4110 Dr. Christopher M. U. Neale, Professor Saleh Taghvaeian, Hatim Geli, and Saravanan Sivarajan, Ph.D. graduate students Ashish Masih, M.S. Post-graduate researcher Remote Sensing Services Laboratory Dr. Robert Pack, Associate Professor Lidar Assisted Stereo Scopic Imaging Service Center Bureau of Reclamation Amy Witherall, Water Resources Planner Southern California Area Office Scott O’Meara, Botanist Technical Services Center Ron Simms, Geographic Information Group Manager Mike Baker, Remote Sensing Scientist Jeff Milliken, Remote Sensing Scientist Lower Colorado Regional Office Contents Page Glossary ................................................................................................................... i Executive Summary ................................................................................................ 3 1.0 Introduction ....................................................................................................... 7 1.1 Study Purpose ............................................................................................. 7 1.2 Riparian Water Use and Evapotranspiration in the West ........................... 7 1.3 Summary of Procedures .............................................................................. 9 1.4 Subarea Delineation .................................................................................. 12 2.0 Methodology ................................................................................................... 14 2.1 Data Acquisition ....................................................................................... 14 2.1.1 Multispectral and Thermal Infrared Imagery and Lidar Data Acquisition ................................................................................................ 14 2.1.1.1 Multispectral Image Acquisition............................................. 16 2.1.1.2 Lidar Data Acquisition ............................................................ 16 2.1.1.3 Thermal Infrared Image Acquisition ...................................... 16 2.1.2 Groundwater Depth Acquisition ...................................................... 17 2.2 Data Processing ......................................................................................... 17 2.2.1 Multispectral Image Processing and Mosaics .................................. 17 2.2.2 Thermal Infrared Image Processing ................................................. 19 2.2.3 Lidar Data Processing ...................................................................... 21 2.2.4 Groundwater Data Processing.......................................................... 23 2.2.5 Area of Interest Delineation ............................................................. 27 2.3 Classification of Vegetation Resources .................................................... 29 2.4 Estimation of Spatial ET Using Energy Balance Models ......................... 31 2.4.1 SEBAL Model ................................................................................. 32 2.4.2 Two-Source Model .......................................................................... 33 2.5 Seasonal Estimates of Evapotranspiration ................................................ 35 2.6 Water Cost Methodology .......................................................................... 36 3.0 Results and Discussion ................................................................................... 37 3.1 Vegetation Classification and Change Detection ..................................... 37 3.2 Evapotranspiration model evaluation ....................................................... 44 3.3 Evapotranspiration model outputs, 2007 and 2010 ................................... 49 3.3.1 Baja subarea ..................................................................................... 49 3.3.2 Centro Subarea ................................................................................. 52 3.3.3 Alto Transition ................................................................................. 54 3.3.4 Alto Subarea..................................................................................... 56 3.4 Vegetation Re-growth between 2007 and 2010 ........................................ 58 3.4.1 Changes in vegetation composition and density .............................. 58 3.4.1.1 Saltcedar .................................................................................. 58 3.4.1.2 Total other vegetation ............................................................. 61 3.4.2 Re-treatment costs of re-sprouts and new infestations .................... 63 3.4.3 Literature review of re-growth potential .......................................... 63 3.5 Value of Water Lost to Non-Native Plant Usage ...................................... 64 4.0 Conclusions ..................................................................................................... 71 4.1 Model Analysis ......................................................................................... 71 4.2 Saltcedar Water Consumption .................................................................. 71 4.3 Comparison of Saltcedar Annual Water Consumption with Other Vegetation Classes .............................................................................. 71 4.4 Best Areas for Management Activities ..................................................... 72 4.5 Value of Water Lost .................................................................................. 72 4.6 Regrowth Summary .................................................................................. 72 5.0 References ....................................................................................................... 73 6.0 Appendix ......................................................................................................... 79 Glossary Airborne Lidar: A technique that uses a scanning laser and precise positioning navigation system to scan the surface and measure the returned energy from each intercepted point in 3-D space. Area of Interest (AOI): A polygon defining an area within which analysis is conducted. Albedo: The total reflectance of a surface in the shortwave (solar) part of the spectrum. Arundo: Common name for Arundo donax, a tall, perennial invasive grass found in damp soils, primarily along margins of streams and rivers. Also commonly known as “giant cane” or “Carrizo.” Canopy acres: Areas covered by vegetative canopies, in acres, typically delineated by polygons encompassing the outer perimeters of individual vegetation canopies. Synonymous with MDRCD “weed acres”. Canopy Texture: the spatial pattern of variability in reflectivity and the digital number homogeneity. Examples of smooth canopy textures are a pasture or sandy river bottom. Examples of a rough canopy texture are a forest canopy or an urban setting. CIMIS: The California Irrigation Management Information System, a network of automated weather stations that provide reference evapotranspiration estimates. Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS): A network of continuously operating GPS reference stations operated by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Association that provide Global Navigation Satellite System data consisting of carrier phase and code range measurements in support of three dimensional positioning, meteorology, space weather, and geophysical applications throughout the United States, its territories, and a few foreign countries. Crop coefficient: The ratio between actual evapotranspiration of a crop and reference evapotranspiration. Cut-Stump: Method for control of woody species in which the plants are mechanically cut near ground-level followed by application of herbicides to cut surfaces shortly thereafter. i Desert Scrub: Vegetation classification for areas with xeric plant growth, primarily shrubs. Plants are generally sparse but may be dense is some areas and can be seasonally variable. eCognition: