Towards improving gully erosion assessment :Coupling object - based image analysis and spatially dynamic erosion modelling

Abstract

Thesis assesses the utility of OOA to map complex gully erosion features, using the morphometric and the spectral properties derivative from HRI (GeoEye-1); presets a method to detect changes in gully systems by conceptualizing change in the context of various stakeholders; a technique is developed for predicting gully systems, using medium resolution ASTER imagery in the absence of HRI for the whole study region; makes an attempt to relate the LISEM simulation results to the gully systems identified by OOA, to assess the gully erosion rates; provides a summary of the results obtained, and discusses the advantages and disadvantages associated with the techniques used or developed.