Masters Thesis

Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) 3D mapping and laser bank profiling for riparian restoration monitoring

This study utilized an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and a laser-distance profiler to monitor stream channel change and restoration efforts along McGee Creek in Long Valley, California. During the mid to late half of the twentieth century, uncontrolled livestock grazing led to degradation by ground surface trampling and vegetation biodiversity loss of numerous high elevation fluvial channels and their floodplain components in the eastern Sierra Nevada. Since the early 1990s, with the support of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), recovery efforts have been emplaced to restore these channels to their pre-grazing state to satisfy conservation activists and adhere to environmental policy. Following these efforts, traditional surveying teams attempted to monitor channel changes. While most of the streams in the restoration program have shown indications of improvement as demonstrated by channel bank stability and the return of native riparian vegetation, McGee Creek has been slow to show signs of channel form and biodiversity recovery along its banks. While repeated traditional surveying methods take time, money, and careful attention to detail in the field, the logical choice to monitor channel recovery was to search for a more streamlined and economically practical process. Using a UAV and a laser rangefinder, this study demonstrates the ability to monitor channel change rapidly and repeatedly. The results of the study demonstrate that McGee Creek is indeed showing positive signs from the rehabilitation efforts.

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