Before and After: A Multiscale Remote Sensing Assessment of the Sinop Dam, Mato Grosso, Brazil

Abstract

Hydroelectric dams are a major threat to rivers in the Amazon. They are known to decrease river connectivity, alter aquatic habitats, and emit greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane. Multiscale remotely sensed data can be used to assess and monitor hydroelectric dams over time. We analyzed the Sinop dam on the Teles Pires river from high spatial resolution satellite imagery to determine the extent of land cover inundated by its reservoir, and subsequent methane emissions from TROPOMI S-5P data. For two case study areas, we generated 3D reconstructions of important endemic fish habitats from unmanned aerial vehicle photographs. We found the reservoir flooded 189 km2 (low water) to 215 km2 (high water) beyond the extent of the Teles Pires river, with 13–30 m tall forest (131.4 Mg/ha average AGB) the predominant flooded class. We further found the reservoir to be a source of methane enhancement in the region. The 3D model showed the shallow habitat had high complexity important for ichthyofauna diversity. The distinctive habitats of rheophile fishes, and of the unique species assemblage found in the tributaries have been permanently modified following inundation. Lastly, we illustrate immersive visualization options for both the satellite imagery and 3D products.

Assessment of UAS Photogrammetry and Planet Imagery for Monitoring Water Levels around Railway Tracks

“…The elevated objects were refined into classes representing trees, wetland grasses, gravel, metal (e.g., rails), wood (e.g., railway ties), and soil by selecting a representative set of training samples. We trained and applied a nearest neighbor or Bayes classifier based on object level mean and standard deviation values of the digital numbers (from the RGB orthomosaics) from each band following [25]. Finally, because the main objective was to compare surface water across sites and time periods, we simplified the detailed classes to produce three final classes: water (including aquatic vegetation), vegetation (not including aquatic species), and infrastructure/manmade structures.…”

Dieta y reproducción del pez abotoado, Pterodoras granulosus (Siluriformes, Doradidae): una especie invasora en el curso medio-alto del río Teles Pires, Amazonía Sur, Brasil

“…Cabe destacar que esta especie es observada actualmente por los pescadores de la región, pero antes de 2019 (formación del embalse de la UHE-Sinop) no había informes de su existencia. Esta situación puede haber sido causada por la destrucción de barreras naturales (por ejemplo, la cascada Sete Quedas) que impedían la dispersión de especies que estaban restringidas a la parte baja de la cuenca (Lucanus et al, 2021).…”