NPScape Landscape Analysis for Mount Rainier National Park: Housing, Population, and Roads Metrics.

摘要

Landscape Dynamics is one of the North Coast and Cascades Network’s (NCCN) primary monitoring vital signs. Between 2007 and 2011, NCCN I&M developed and updated a vital sign monitoring protocol to assess landscape change using satellite imagery (Kennedy et al 2007, Antonova et al 2012). To date, protocol implementation has focused on detecting landscape disturbances in the Network’s three largest parks: Mount Rainier (MORA), North Cascades, and Olympic National Parks. It has not yet been implemented in the Network’s smaller, historical parks. Landscape-scale questions most pertinent to the smaller parks may not be best addressed with the techniques that the Network has targeted for the larger parks, and the NPScape data could prove a useful compliment to NCCN Landscape Dynamics Monitoring. The availability of NPScape data is a relatively new opportunity for networks and parks and represents an untapped resource to assess landscape change. For this study, our overarching goal was to explore the utility of the NPScape data for supplementing the Network’s Landscape Dynamics protocol, especially for the smaller parks. Our aim for this report was two-fold: 1) to assess the NPScape data for accessibility and ease of use in analyzing and producing landscape change products, and 2) to provide landscape-scale products to park managers and planners for use in natural resource conservation assessments and plans.