Université du Québec à Rimouski

Published purpose

Coastal areas are of paramount importance for global economic and social development. Vegetated coastal ecosystems provide numerous ecosystem services and are among the most productive habitats and efficient carbon sinks worldwide. Arctic expansion of vegetated coastal ecosystems may play an essential role in future biodiversity and carbon sequestration along the long Canadian coast, but quantitative tools are lacking. The project proposes to evaluate the potential of two hyperspectral cameras developed within the frame of the WaterSat initiative to assess three major forms of algae found in the sub-arctic marine environment: phytoplankton, fixed and floating patches of macro-algae (e.g., kelp). The work will increase the research team's capability to map environmental parameters from Earth Observation data such as algal biomass and primary productivity, as well as their temporal variability and transportation along the coast.