Identifying potential sedimentation sources through a remote sensing and GIS analysis of landuse/landcover for the Weeks Bay watershed, Baldwin County, Alabama

The Weeks Bay watershed in Baldwin County, Alabama has experienced rapid changes in landuse/landcover (LULC) from 1990 to 2000. These changes have resulted in increased upland erosion and higher concentrations of suspended sediment within the watershed. For this research project a spatial model was developed to identify potential sources of sediment relevant to LULC and slope. Landsat satellite imagery was classified to assess LULC within the Weeks Bay watershed. The classification includes forested vegetation, herbaceous vegetation (seasonal and persistent), mixed/transitional vegetation, urban/built-up areas, sparse/residual vegetation and water, with an overall accuracy of 78%. Change detections of the classified images yielded substantial increases in urban areas (92.5%). These data were coupled with slope data in a geographic information system and a raster analysis provided a qualitative evaluation of potential sediment sources within the Weeks Bay watershed based on the change in LULC and slopes of the landscape.