Pontchartrain Basin Clearinghouse

Projects

Project Title:

Critical Habitat, Coastal Land Loss/Land Cover Change Analysis, NDVI Monitoring and Information Transfer

Principal Investigator(s):

Luis Martinez / Andrew Beall

Project Category:      Habitat, Barrier Island Ecology, and Threatened/ Endangered Species
Project Type:             Adaptive Management/Education/Monitoring/Planning/Research

Project Location: Pontchartrain Basin

Project Description

The Critical Habitat, Coastal Land Loss Land Cover Change Analysis was designed to identify areas of ecological significance that could be managed to conserve biological diversity. This data provides an opportunity to take a snapshot of the land use and land cover of the Pontchartrain Basin between 1982 and 2000. Results indicate that there is evidence of critical habitat loss across the Basin area, though certain areas show a notably excessive rate of critical habitat loss.  These areas include parts of each region within the entire Basin including; St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes in the Coastal Parishes region, Orleans parish in the River Parishes region, and East Baton Rouge, Livingston, and St. Tammany parishes in the Florida Parishes region. In the coastal parishes, marsh area was the particular critical habitat that was most impacted during the time period studied.  The predominant reason for the loss of the marsh habitat in this area was salt water intrusion and coastal erosion resulting in a substantial increase in area classified as water.  The barrier islands of both Plaquemines and St. Bernard parishes show the greatest evidence of this phenomenon.  Marsh was also the critical habitat most impacted over this time for the River Parish region.  This decline in marsh was also due to an increase in water from salt water intrusion and storm events, particularly in the eastern area of Orleans parish.  The greatest extent of urbanization throughout the Basin during this time period occurred in the Florida Parishes.  Specifically, this urbanization took place in the Northshore area of St. Tammany parish, and in western Livingston and East Baton Rouge parishes.  The primary habitat impacted in these areas was Upland Forest; however, both Wetland Forest and Shrub/Scrub critical habitats were also greatly affected.

 

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File size: 588kb

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