{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,31]],"date-time":"2026-03-31T08:00:12Z","timestamp":1774944012754,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":57,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"8","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,7]],"date-time":"2022-04-07T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1649289600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100000923","name":"Australian Research Council","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["IC170100023"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["IC170100023"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100000923","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Remote Sensing"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Coastal ecosystems, including saltmarsh, provide important ecosystem services, including blue carbon storage, nutrient cycling, and coastal protection. The loss or degradation of saltmarsh ecosystems may undermine their capacity to provide these services and drive carbon emission increases. The accurate mapping and monitoring of the aboveground carbon content in these ecosystems supports protection and rehabilitation activities. Previous studies have used medium resolution satellites (e.g., Landsat and Sentinel-2) to characterise saltmarsh communities; however, these platforms are not well suited to the fine-scale patchiness of the saltmarsh ecosystems found in Australia. Here we explore the potential of a very high spatial resolution (0.15 m), seven-band multispectral ArborCam airborne sensor and 3 m images captured by the PlanetScope satellite constellation for mapping and monitoring the aboveground carbon content of a saltmarsh ecosystem in Jervis Bay National Park, Australia. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) derived from an ArborCam image was calibrated to aboveground carbon content using field survey data. Strong linear relationships between the ArborCam NDVI and aboveground carbon content were found when survey data were partitioned by species. The mean aboveground carbon content derived from the calibrated ArborCam image was 1.32 Mg C ha\u22121 across the study area; however, this is likely to have been underestimated. A monthly NDVI time series derived from 12 PlanetScope images was analysed to investigate the short-term temporal variation in saltmarsh phenology, and significant intra-annual variation was found. An exploration of potential drivers for the variation found that local rainfall was a potential driver. The combination of the very high spatial resolution airborne ArborCam image and the regular 3 m capture by PlanetScope satellites was found to have potential for accurate mapping and monitoring of aboveground carbon in saltmarsh communities. Future work will focus on improving aboveground carbon estimates by including a very high spatial resolution species distribution map and investigating the influence of temporal variations in saltmarsh spectral response on these estimates.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/rs14081782","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,7]],"date-time":"2022-04-07T21:08:22Z","timestamp":1649365702000},"page":"1782","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":7,"title":["Characterising the Aboveground Carbon Content of Saltmarsh in Jervis Bay, NSW, Using ArborCam and PlanetScope"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Elizabeth","family":"Warwick-Champion","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Science, School of Geosciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia"},{"name":"Centre for CubeSats, UAV and Their Applications (CUAVA), University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia"},{"name":"Channel Coastal Observatory, National Oceanographic Centre, Southampton SO14 3ZH, UK"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2170-7008","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Kevin P.","family":"Davies","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Science, School of Geosciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia"},{"name":"Centre for CubeSats, UAV and Their Applications (CUAVA), University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7477-8697","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Paul","family":"Barber","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre for CubeSats, UAV and Their Applications (CUAVA), University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia"},{"name":"ArborCarbon, Rota Trans 1, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia"}]},{"given":"Naviin","family":"Hardy","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"ArborCarbon, Rota Trans 1, Murdoch, WA 6150, Australia"}]},{"given":"Eleanor","family":"Bruce","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Science, School of Geosciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia"},{"name":"Centre for CubeSats, UAV and Their Applications (CUAVA), University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,7]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1189","DOI":"10.1071\/MF18391","article-title":"Worth of wetlands: Revised global monetary values of coastal and inland wetland ecosystem services","volume":"70","author":"Davidson","year":"2019","journal-title":"Mar. Freshw. Res."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1","DOI":"10.1016\/j.marpol.2018.01.021","article-title":"Saltmarshes, ecosystem services, and an evolving policy landscape: A case study of Wales, UK","volume":"91","author":"McKinley","year":"2018","journal-title":"Mar. Policy"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"552","DOI":"10.1890\/110004","article-title":"A Blueprint for Blue Carbon: Toward an Improved Understanding of the Role of Vegetated Coastal Habitats in Sequestering CO2","volume":"9","author":"Mcleod","year":"2011","journal-title":"Front. Ecol. Environ."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Alongi, D.M. (2020). Carbon Balance in Salt Marsh and Mangrove Ecosystems: A Global Synthesis. J. Mar. Sci. Eng., 8.","DOI":"10.20944\/preprints202009.0236.v1"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Li, Y., Qiu, J., Li, Z., and Li, Y. (2018). Assessment of Blue Carbon Storage Loss in Coastal Wetlands under Rapid Reclamation. Sustainability, 10.","DOI":"10.3390\/su10082818"},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Pendleton, L., Donato, D.C., Murray, B.C., Crooks, S., Jenkins, W.A., Sifleet, S., Craft, C., Fourqurean, J.W., Kauffman, J.B., and Marb\u00e0, N. (2012). Estimating Global \u201cBlue Carbon\u201d Emissions from Conversion and Degradation of Vegetated Coastal Ecosystems. PLoS ONE, 7.","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0043542"},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"49","DOI":"10.31646\/wa.228","article-title":"Short Note: The Decline of Saltmarsh in Southeast Australia: Results of Recent Surveys","volume":"18","author":"Saintilan","year":"2000","journal-title":"Wetl. Aust."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"8130","DOI":"10.1038\/s41598-021-87341-5","article-title":"ENSO Feedback Drives Variations in Dieback at a Marginal Mangrove Site","volume":"11","author":"Hickey","year":"2021","journal-title":"Sci. Rep."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"91","DOI":"10.1038\/s41586-019-0951-7","article-title":"Wetland Carbon Storage Controlled by Millennial-Scale Variation in Relative Sea-Level Rise","volume":"567","author":"Rogers","year":"2019","journal-title":"Nature"},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1097","DOI":"10.1111\/gcb.13158","article-title":"Seventy Years of Continuous Encroachment Substantially Increases \u2018Blue Carbon\u2019 Capacity as Mangroves Replace Intertidal Salt Marshes","volume":"22","author":"Kelleway","year":"2016","journal-title":"Glob. Chang. Biol."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"106776","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ecss.2020.106776","article-title":"March of the Mangroves: Drivers of Encroachment into Southern Temperate Saltmarsh","volume":"240","author":"Whitt","year":"2020","journal-title":"Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"15","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ocecoaman.2012.02.009","article-title":"Including Blue Carbon in Climate Market Mechanisms","volume":"83","author":"Ullman","year":"2013","journal-title":"Ocean Coast. Manag."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1496","DOI":"10.1007\/s12237-017-0362-7","article-title":"Coastal Blue Carbon Assessment of Mangroves, Salt Marshes, and Salt Barrens in Tampa Bay, Florida, USA","volume":"41","author":"Radabaugh","year":"2018","journal-title":"Estuaries Coasts"},{"key":"ref_14","unstructured":"Daly, T. (2013). Coastal Saltmarsh, Primefact."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"379","DOI":"10.1007\/s11273-005-8827-z","article-title":"Ecology, Disturbance and Restoration of Coastal Saltmarsh in Australia: A Review","volume":"14","author":"Laegdsgaard","year":"2006","journal-title":"Wetl. Ecol. Manag."},{"key":"ref_16","unstructured":"ABARES (2013). Australia\u2019s State of the Forests Report 2013."},{"key":"ref_17","unstructured":"Russell, K. (2005). NSW Northern Rivers Estuary Habitat Mapping-Final Analysis Report."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"393","DOI":"10.1016\/S0034-4257(02)00130-X","article-title":"Remote Sensing Estimates of Boreal and Temperate Forest Woody Biomass: Carbon Pools, Sources, and Sinks","volume":"84","author":"Dong","year":"2003","journal-title":"Remote Sens. Environ."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"368","DOI":"10.1016\/j.rse.2004.07.016","article-title":"Quantifying Forest above Ground Carbon Content Using LiDAR Remote Sensing","volume":"93","author":"Patenaude","year":"2004","journal-title":"Remote Sens. Environ."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Navarro, A., Young, M., Macreadie, P.I., Nicholson, E., and Ierodiaconou, D. (2021). Mangrove and Saltmarsh Distribution Mapping and Land Cover Change Assessment for South-Eastern Australia from 1991 to 2015. Remote Sens., 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/rs13081450"},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"235","DOI":"10.1071\/MF9930235","article-title":"Remote Sensing of Australian Wetlands: An Evaluation of Landsat TM Data for Inventory and Classification","volume":"44","author":"Johnston","year":"1993","journal-title":"Mar. Freshw. Res."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"O\u2019Donnell, J.P.R., and Schalles, J.F. (2016). Examination of Abiotic Drivers and Their Influence on Spartina Alterniflora Biomass over a Twenty-Eight Year Period Using Landsat 5 TM Satellite Imagery of the Central Georgia Coast. Remote Sens., 8.","DOI":"10.3390\/rs8060477"},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"559","DOI":"10.1016\/j.rse.2006.10.007","article-title":"Mapping Mixed Vegetation Communities in Salt Marshes Using Airborne Spectral Data","volume":"107","author":"Wang","year":"2007","journal-title":"Remote Sens. Environ."},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4296","DOI":"10.1080\/01431161.2016.1211349","article-title":"Identifying Spatial Variability and Complexity in Wetland Vegetation Using an Object-Based Approach","volume":"37","author":"Owers","year":"2016","journal-title":"Int. J. Remote Sens."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"14","DOI":"10.1016\/j.rse.2017.06.023","article-title":"Structure from Motion Will Revolutionize Analyses of Tidal Wetland Landscapes","volume":"199","author":"Kalacska","year":"2017","journal-title":"Remote Sens. Environ."},{"key":"ref_26","unstructured":"Rouse, J., Haas, R.H., Schell, J.A., and Deering, D. (1973). Monitoring Vegetation Systems in the Great Plains with ERTS, Third Earth Resources Technology Satellite Symposium."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Doughty, C.L., and Cavanaugh, K.C. (2019). Mapping Coastal Wetland Biomass from High Resolution Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Imagery. Remote Sens., 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/rs11050540"},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"94","DOI":"10.2112\/08-1089.1","article-title":"Examining Tidal Inundation and Salt Marsh Vegetation Distribution Patterns Using Spatial Analysis (Botany Bay, Australia)","volume":"26","author":"Hickey","year":"2010","journal-title":"J. Coast. Res."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"10938","DOI":"10.3390\/rs70810938","article-title":"The Challenges of Remote Monitoring of Wetlands","volume":"7","author":"Gallant","year":"2015","journal-title":"Remote Sens."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"311","DOI":"10.1016\/0034-4257(87)90015-0","article-title":"The Factor of Scale in Remote Sensing","volume":"21","author":"Woodcock","year":"1987","journal-title":"Remote Sens. Environ."},{"key":"ref_31","unstructured":"Planet Labs Inc. (2021, August 15). PlanetScope. Available online: https:\/\/developers.planet.com\/docs\/data\/planetscope\/."},{"key":"ref_32","unstructured":"(2021, September 10). NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service Jervis Bay National Park, Available online: https:\/\/www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au\/visit-a-park\/parks\/jervis-bay-national-park."},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1521","DOI":"10.1071\/MF9941521","article-title":"Biomass and Above-Ground Productivity of Salt-Marsh Plants in South-Eastern Australia","volume":"45","author":"Clarke","year":"1994","journal-title":"Mar. Freshw. Res."},{"key":"ref_34","first-page":"231","article-title":"Mangrove, Saltmarsh and Peripheral Vegetation of Jervis Bay","volume":"3","author":"Clarke","year":"1993","journal-title":"Cunninghamia"},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"55","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ecss.2018.06.002","article-title":"Spatial Variation of Above-Ground Carbon Storage in Temperate Coastal Wetlands","volume":"210","author":"Owers","year":"2018","journal-title":"Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"18","DOI":"10.1016\/j.rse.2017.06.031","article-title":"Google Earth Engine: Planetary-Scale Geospatial Analysis for Everyone","volume":"202","author":"Gorelick","year":"2017","journal-title":"Remote Sens. Environ."},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"61","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ecss.2018.08.007","article-title":"Classification mapping of salt marsh vegetation by flexible monthly NDVI time-series using Landsat imagery","volume":"213","author":"Sun","year":"2018","journal-title":"Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci."},{"key":"ref_38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"6145","DOI":"10.1029\/97JD03603","article-title":"Interannual Variations in Satellite-Sensed Vegetation Index Data from 1981 to 1991","volume":"103","author":"Myneni","year":"1998","journal-title":"J. Geophys. Res. Atmos."},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"351","DOI":"10.1016\/0034-4257(94)00110-9","article-title":"Dependence of NDVI and SAVI on sun\/sensor geometry and its effect on fAPAR relationships in Alfalfa","volume":"51","author":"Epiphanio","year":"1995","journal-title":"Remote Sens. Environ."},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"161","DOI":"10.1016\/0034-4257(91)90009-U","article-title":"Potentials and limits of vegetation indices for LAI and APAR assessment","volume":"35","author":"Baret","year":"1991","journal-title":"Remote Sens. Environ."},{"key":"ref_41","unstructured":"Gollob, H.F. (1967, January 1\u20135). Cross-Validation Using Samples of Size One. Proceedings of the American Psychological Association Meeting, Washington, DC, USA."},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Girden, E.R. (1992). ANOVA: Repeated Measures, SAGE.","DOI":"10.4135\/9781412983419"},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"204","DOI":"10.1214\/aoms\/1177731915","article-title":"Significance Test for Sphericity of a Normal N-Variate Distribution","volume":"11","author":"Mauchly","year":"1940","journal-title":"Ann. Math. Stat."},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"95","DOI":"10.1007\/BF02289823","article-title":"On Methods in the Analysis of Profile Data","volume":"24","author":"Greenhouse","year":"1959","journal-title":"Psychometrika"},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"295","DOI":"10.1016\/0034-4257(88)90106-X","article-title":"A Soil-Adjusted Vegetation Index (SAVI)","volume":"25","author":"Huete","year":"1988","journal-title":"Remote Sens. Environ."},{"key":"ref_46","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1177","DOI":"10.2112\/08-1080.1","article-title":"The Effects of Tidal Inundation on the Reflectance Characteristics of Coastal Marsh Vegetation","volume":"25","author":"Kearney","year":"2009","journal-title":"J. Coast. Res."},{"key":"ref_47","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"221","DOI":"10.1038\/nature13006","article-title":"Amazon Forests Maintain Consistent Canopy Structure and Greenness during the Dry Season","volume":"506","author":"Morton","year":"2014","journal-title":"Nature"},{"key":"ref_48","unstructured":"Australian Bureau of Meteorology (2021, August 15). Climate Data Online, Available online: http:\/\/www.bom.gov.au\/climate\/data\/index.shtml."},{"key":"ref_49","unstructured":"(2021, August 15). Jervis Bay Tide Times, NSW 2540. Available online: https:\/\/tides.willyweather.com.au\/nsw\/illawarra\/jervis-bay.html."},{"key":"ref_50","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1145","DOI":"10.1007\/s13157-018-1016-7","article-title":"Climate Change Impacts on the Coastal Wetlands of Australia","volume":"39","author":"Saintilan","year":"2019","journal-title":"Wetlands"},{"key":"ref_51","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"292","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ecss.2009.08.011","article-title":"Mangrove Expansion and Rainfall Patterns in Moreton Bay, Southeast Queensland, Australia","volume":"85","author":"Dale","year":"2009","journal-title":"Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci."},{"key":"ref_52","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"84","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ecss.2013.05.010","article-title":"Allochthonous and Autochthonous Contributions to Carbon Accumulation and Carbon Store in Southeastern Australian Coastal Wetlands","volume":"128","author":"Saintilan","year":"2013","journal-title":"Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci."},{"key":"ref_53","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"217","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ecss.2006.04.016","article-title":"Multi-Seasonal Spectral Characteristics Analysis of Coastal Salt Marsh Vegetation in Shanghai, China","volume":"69","author":"Gao","year":"2006","journal-title":"Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci."},{"key":"ref_54","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"221","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1442-9993.1980.tb01246.x","article-title":"Productivity and Nutrient Content of Juncus kraussii in an Estuarine Marsh in South-Western Australia","volume":"5","author":"Congdon","year":"1980","journal-title":"Aust. J. Ecol."},{"key":"ref_55","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"139","DOI":"10.1016\/0304-3770(90)90078-Y","article-title":"Year-to-Year Variation in Peak above-Ground Biomass of Six Salt-Marsh Angiosperm Communities as Related to Rainfall Deficit and Inundation Frequency","volume":"36","author":"Olff","year":"1990","journal-title":"Aquat. Bot."},{"key":"ref_56","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1047","DOI":"10.1071\/MF18321","article-title":"Rainfall and Its Possible Hysteresis Effect on the Proportional Cover of Tropical Tidal-Wetland Mangroves and Saltmarsh\u2013Saltpans","volume":"70","author":"Duke","year":"2019","journal-title":"Mar. Freshw. Res."},{"key":"ref_57","unstructured":"Jiang, Z., Chen, Y., Li, J., and Dou, W. (2005, January 29). The Impact of Spatial Resolution on NDVI over Heterogeneous Surface. Proceedings of the 2005 IEEE International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium, Seoul, Korea."}],"container-title":["Remote Sensing"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2072-4292\/14\/8\/1782\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,10]],"date-time":"2025-10-10T22:50:04Z","timestamp":1760136604000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2072-4292\/14\/8\/1782"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,7]]},"references-count":57,"journal-issue":{"issue":"8","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,4]]}},"alternative-id":["rs14081782"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/rs14081782","relation":{},"ISSN":["2072-4292"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2072-4292","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2022,4,7]]}}}