Developing High Resolution Baseline Coast Resource Maps Using World View 2 Imagery for a Coastal Village in Fiji

Abstract

In Fiji, like most Pacific Island countries, there have been numerous reports of degradation of coastal resources, including adverse changes in abundance and stock distribution of numerous aquatic species associated with the coastal habitat. To develop effective management plans, assessment of existing coastal resources is pertinent. High spatial resolution satellite imagery, combined with geographic information systems allow for efficient and synoptic mapping of coastal resources to provide a baseline for developing effective and improved management plans. The purpose of this study was to develop a baseline habitat map of the intertidal benthic cover in Komave Village, Coral Coast, Sigatoka, Fiji. Resource mapping was based on high resolution (2 m) WorldView-2 imagery. Ground-truthing was attained by means of on-site data logging of the intertidal resources, image capturing and GPS recording. Based on these records, the benthic cover was classified into seven classes: 'coral,' 'algae,' 'brown algae,' 'volcanic rocks,' 'sand and gravel,' 'sea grass,' and 'bare.' Ground referencing points were randomly assigned for either supervised classification training or accuracy assessment. A community participatory research approach was used to conduct interviews to assimilate information on fishing sites and coastal land use activities. This exercise explored the social-ecological approach in natural resource management and how it can become an important tool in coastal conservation practices. The coastal resource map generated through this study serves as a baseline for monitoring the status and spatial distribution of the coastal resources in Komave. Annual mapping of the resources and enrichment of maps along with iterative village consultation will enable managers to develop and gauge the effectiveness of coastal management plans. This high resolution map is particularly relevant to Fiji as it is the first of its kind for the country. This work also serves to reduce the global information gap of coastal resource status for Fiji.

Distant-Source Swells Cause Coastal Inundation on Fiji’s Coral Coast

“…Fiji, like many Pacific Island countries has reported coastal degradation over recent years. A study investigating the benthic habitat of the reef at a nearby site on the Coral Coast estimated about ∼48% of algae cover, ∼19% of sand and gravel cover, and only ∼7.5% of coral cover on the reef flat (Singh et al, 2019). It is, therefore, feasible that a developed coastal area, such as the Coral Coast, would have reduced friction coefficients compared to more pristine and less degraded coral reefs (e.g., Van Dongeren et al, 2013;Rogers et al, 2017).…”

Seagrasses and seagrass habitats in Pacific small island developing states: Potential loss of benefits via human disturbance and climate change

“…Eco-region seagrass mapping using Landsat imagery and remote sensing techniques have been used for MPA design in the Coral Triangle, which includes western PSIDS (Torres-Pulliza et al, 2013) while community-based projects and organisations, focused primarily in Melanesia (e.g. Solomon Islands, PNG, Vanuatu and Fiji), have undertaken local site-based mapping (Koshy, 2001;McKenzie et al, 2006;McKenzie et al, 2007;McKenzie and Yoshida, 2017;Roelfsema et al, 2013;Singh et al, 2019a;Chand, 2019) however documenting national seagrass habitat throughout the PSIDS is not yet achieved. Published surveys are needed to describe the extent of seagrass area cover, the extent of seasonal variation and seagrass occurrence by species.…”

Benthic Resource Baseline Mapping of Cakaunisasi and Yarawa Reef Ecosystem in the Ba Region of Fiji

“…There have been different monitoring programmes and research works in the coastal areas of Fiji; however, there have been no works that have attempted to study the magnitude of the influence from different variables, including climatic changes and anthropogenic inputs [6][7][8][9][10]. Modern natural resource sustainability plans seem to have shifted focus from concentrating on single-species management to a more inclusive and effective ecosystembased management approach [11][12][13].…”

“…Coastal aquatic resources can be more effectively mapped using the Geographic Information System (GIS). It can be used to generate high-resolution spatial distribution maps of coastal resources or benthic habitats [6,[16][17][18][19]. 'A benthic habitat is defined as an area of the seabed that is distinct from its surrounding in terms of physical, biological, and chemical variables' [13].…”

“…Maps that show high-resolution spatial distribution of coastal aquatic resources can be used as a baseline to set up MPAs, which can also be effectively monitored through regular generation of maps over time. Local knowledge integration with benthic resource maps allows for multifaceted information, which can be used by coastal mangers, as well informed baseline information for coastal resource management and MPA set-ups [6,[22][23][24][25]. Habitat maps provide visual representation of the resources and how different components are linked.…”