Detecting historic wetlands using radar data: A review

In Sothern Manitoba, flooding along the Red and Assiniboine River floodplains causes road closures, crop planting delays and destruction of homes. Agriculture is the dominant land-use in the region and as a result the area has been extensively drained. Studies conducted by Ducks Unlimited have determined that 70% of wetlands were lost between the 1986 and 2005. Wetlands are known for their ability to reduce flooding thus their reintroduction into Southern Manitoba demonstrates a good alternative to engineering solutions. Hanuta reconstructed and mapped land cover information of 100 townships within the Red River drainage basin dating back to 1870, before drainage for agriculture occurred. Hanuta´s work will provide a historical reference given that the ultimate goal of this project is to use polarimetric radar data to map historic wetlands in southern Manitoba. This review assesses commonly used hydrological indicators for the detection of historic wetlands and proposes an appropriate methodology for detecting the location of historic wetlands for the study site, using remotely sensed data.