Identifying the relationships between water quality and land cover changes in the Tseng-Wen reservoir watershed of Taiwan.
The effects on water quality of land use and land cover changes, which are associated with human activities and natural factors, are poorly identified. Fine resolution satellite imagery provides opportunities for land cover monitoring and assessment.  The multiple satellite images after typhoon events collected from 2001 to 2010 covering land areas and land cover conditions are evaluated by the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). The relationship between land cover and observed water quality, such as suspended solids (SS) and nitrate-nitrogens (NO(3)-N), are explored in the study area. Results show that the long-term variations in water quality are explained by NDVI data in the reservoir buffer zones. Suspended solid and nitrate concentrations are related to average NDVI values on multiple spatial scales. Annual NO(3)-N concentrations are positively correlated with an average NDVI with a 1 km reservoir buffer area, and the SS after typhoon events associated with landslides are negatively correlated with the average NDVI in the entire watershed. This study provides an approach for assessing the influences of land cover on variations in water quality.
Department of Geomatics, National Cheng-Kung University, Tainan City 701, Taiwan. honejaychu@gmail.com
Hone-Jay
HJ
Chu
Chun-Yu
CY
Liu
Chi-Kuei
CK
Wang
D057919:Biological Oxygen Demand Analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005618:Fresh Water; D009566:Nitrates / Q000032:analysis; D010100:Oxygen / Q000032:analysis; D010758:Phosphorus / Q000032:analysis; D017215:Satellite Communications; D013624:Taiwan; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis; D060753:Water Quality; D014881:Water Supply / Q000032:analysis*
D009566:Nitrates; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D010758:Phosphorus; D010100:Oxygen