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Monitoring the forest structure of the Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve, Peninsular Malaysia, using Remote Sensing

par Otero Fadul, Viviana
Président du jury Gilbert, Marius
Promoteur Dahdouh-Guebas, Farid ;Lucas, Richard
Publication Non publié, 2019-08-23

Thèse de doctorat

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Résumé :

Mangroves are woody plants found in the intertidal zones in tropical and subtropical latitudes. Mangrove forests provide ecosystem services such as provision of wood and fuelwood, fisheries, coastal protection, sediment trapping, carbon storage, biodiversity, aesthetic and recreational values. Since 1980, mangrove cover lost has been between 25% and 35%. Mangrove forests are threatened by anthropogenic activities such as land use conversion, human infrastructure, and climate change. Mangrove silviculture is one of the oldest reasons to pursue mangrove restoration projects. The purpose of silvicultural management has been mainly wood extraction for commercial purposes based on plantations. The Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve (MMFR), located in the West coast of Peninsular Malaysia, is one of the oldest and best documented mangrove areas under management since 1902 for charcoal and pole production.The objective of this PhD is to quantify the forest structure of the MMFR using remote sensing data. First, we described the current state of the forest structure of the MMFR using traditional forest inventory methods based on fieldwork collected between 2016 and 2017. Second, we investigated the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) imagery to retrieve structural information of the mangrove trees at MMFR. Third, we used Landsat annual time series (1988 to 2015) to detect the clear-felling events that regularly take place in the reserve as part of the local management, and to trace back and quantify the early regeneration of mangrove forest patches after clear-felling. Finally, we investigated the relationship between the location of a mangrove forest patch and early regeneration of mangroves in the MMFR after clear-felling events. In summary, this PhD project developed remote sensing products that can be used by the local management of the MMFR to guide the management and monitoring activities of the reserve. We provided a new approach to monitor the forest structure of the areas that are under exploitation using a lightweight UAV. This approach includes a protocol that can be used by the local management to ensure the proper collection and processing of the imagery. Additionally, two maps were created that indicate the year of clear-felling and the recovery time of different mangrove forests stands. These are new tools that the local management can use to monitor the replantation policy, the clear-felling planning and the monitoring of the different zones of the reserve. Moreover, the techniques presented in this PhD project can also be used in other mangrove areas that are under silvicultural management or that require monitoring for conservation purposes.