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Sturgeon Island is an experimental marsh nourishment site.

UAV orthomosaics and derived land cover classification maps from 2020 to 2023.

2022 UAV 5-band multispectral imagery with subsequent land cover classification map.

Multi-year (2020-2023) UAV orthomosaics and high-resolution land cover classification maps have been instrumental in understand vegetation recovery post-dredge placement.

Tracking vegetation recovery post-placement is critical to understanding the emerging marsh restoration methods using thick-layer dredge placement.

Field visit prior to surveying.

Three-dimensional model of Sturgeon Island. This data will be important for gauging changes in the sediment placement as it settles.

GPS/GNSS survey equipment for measuring existing surface elevations.

Multi-year UAV surveying of sediment placement on Sturgeon Island.

Sturgeon Island UAV Mapping

Coastlines are migrating upland faster than at any point in recorded history. As dunes and coastal marshes disappear, the need for littoral adaptation increases. In recognition of this, the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) has placed increasing importance on developing sediment placement strategies for restoring deteriorating coastal wetlands. These strategies, however, are still experimental and need to be monitored to track their performance. The EMLab is assisting The Wetlands Institute and USACE in monitoring and analyzing a recent sediment placement on Sturgeon Island in the Great Sound Bay of New Jersey.

Led By: Sean Burkholder and Keith VanDerSys

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Sturgeon Island UAV Mapping

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Aerial Overview

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