Verification of wave-induced impact on saltmarsh edges based on UAV
images and numerical model
Abstract
The lateral erosion of the salt marshes in Galveston Island wetlands was
investigated through field UAV surveys. Using a GNSS receiver on the
ground and a GNSS receiver attached to the UAV, highly accurate location
information for the UAV images was derived through PPK analysis. Based
on the collected UAV images with location information, Structure from
Motion (SfM) by GNSS-supported aerial triangulation was conducted to
generate orthomosaic images of wetlands. Drone surveys have been
conducted seven times over a year, and the boundary erosion (represented
by boundary retreat) for each period was calculated. The averaged error
was less than 2 cm for the horizontal direction in the final orthomosaic
images of wetlands. The average wave power, hypothesized to be a
significant indicator of potential wetlands erosion, was calculated by
investigating the wave climate of the survey area through a simplified
numerical model. The relationship between wave power and erosion rate
was then summarized. The average amount of erosion from 2019 DEC to 2020
MAR, where winds from north to south were dominant, was higher than from
2020 MAR to 2020 OCT. Much erosion was observed in a protruding part of
the wetland. This is caused by waves coming from many different
directions surrounding these parts. The erosion of this protrusion had a
significant influence on the average erosion rate of the survey areas.