Title: Ecological classification of rivers for
environmental assessment: demonstration, validation, and application
to regional risk assessment
across Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin.
Investigators and Collaborators: Dr. Paul W. Seelbach, University
of Michigan (UM) and Michigan Department of Natural Resources
(MDNR) seelbach@umich.edu; Dr. Michael J. Wiley, UM; Dr. David
Allan,
UM; Dr. Kevin E. Wehrly, MDNR; Dr. Troy Zorn, MDNR; Dr. Edward
Baker, MDNR; Dr. Bryan Pijanowski, Purdue University (PU); Dr.
R. Jan Stevenson (MSU); Dr. John Lyons, Wisconsin Department
of Natural Resources (WDNR); Dr. Li Wang, WDNR; Dr. Douglas Austen,
Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR); David Day, IDNR;
Ann Holtrop, IDNR; Chad Dolan, IDNR; Michelle DePhilip, The Nature
Conservancy.
Institutions: UM, School of Natural Resources and Environment
(SNRE), Ann Arbor, MI; MNDR, Institute for Fisheries Research,
Ann Arbor,
MI; MDNR Hunt Creek Fisheries Research Station, Lewiston, MI;
MDNR, Marquette Fisheries Research Station; MSU, Zoology Department,
East Lansing; WNDR, Monona Office, WI; IDNR; Springfield Office
IL; IDNR, TNC, Great Lakes Program Office, Chicago, IL.
Project Period: 3 Years; October 1, 2002 – November 30,
2006.
Project Summary:
Study Goal and Objectives: Our goal is to couple landscape-based
modeling from large, regional data sets and regional Land
Transformation Models with a valley segment ecological classification
approach
already being employed in several Midwestern states. Objectives
include completion of a GIS based river segment classification
and provision of a comprehensive status and risk assessment
of river systems across the upper Midwestern states of
Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin.
Study Approach: We will build on existing pilot work to
delineate and validate ecological valley segment units
for all river
systems in IL, MI, and WI. Using state resource agency
survey databases
we will build mathematical models for predicting riverine
site habitats and biological reference conditions from
mapped landscape
and local variables. These models will be used to extrapolate
results to unsampled river segments, producing regionwide
summaries of
current ecological status. Finally we will couple this
modeling system to a Land Transformation Model, and provide
spatially
explicit risk assessments for the river systems of the
upper Midwest
Expected Results: Our ultimate products will be: 1) a GIS
based river classification and modeling system, developed
in cooperation
with each state resource agency (and coordinated among
states) that contains a series of standard landscape maps
and a map
of ecological river. Also, associated data tables containing
attributes
linked to segments: raw data, attribute classes, and risk
assessment classes; and 2) the illustration of a landscape
based approach
to modeling, classification, and status/risk assessment
of rivers that would be transferable to other regions.
Supplemental Keywords: hydrologic regime, thermal regime,
bioassessment, fish assemblage, hierarchy, monitoring,
upper Midwest, survey
databases
Land Transformation Model output can be found at this site.
Contact: Bryan C. Pijanowski (bpijanow.at.purdue.edu)
Copyright
by Purdue University 2006
Last updated by BCP on March 3, 2007
