Quantification of Harvestable Seaweed using a Topographic-bathymetric Lidar System

阿卡迪亚海洋植物有限公司（ASL）是国际公认的海洋植物产品行业的领导者。

Acadian Seaplants Limited (ASL) is an internationally recognized leader in the marine plant product industry. Based in Nova Scotia, ASL harvests the seaweed (rockweed) from intertidal areas on the Atlantic and Bay of Fundy coasts. ASL currently sells their products in more than 70 countries, creating close to 600 jobs in the Maritimes and bringing more than $40 M to the local economy. ASL is dedicated to running a responsible, sustainable, seaweed industry and as such has a long history of conducting research to determine best practices. To ensure proper management of this renewable resource, they monitor harvesting and growth along its leased coastlines. Currently, this task is executed using ground transects and accurate recording of harvests, though this process is labour intensive and biased to more accessible coastlines. The use of satellite remote sensing to map the seaweed relies on data acquired at low tide when the seaweed is exposed and no clouds or fog present, thus limiting acquisition time periods. Nova Scotia Community College's Applied Geomatics Research Group (AGRG) will explore a new remote sensing technology - airborne topographic-bathymetric lidar - to assist ASL in new and innovative mapping and monitoring of the rockweed resource. Specifically, AGRG will acquire multi-year topographic-bathymetric lidar datasets for a section of ASL leased coastline in Southwest Nova Scotia at low and high tide, immediately post-harvest, and one year post-harvest to determine resource assessment, harvested biomass, and growth rates, respectively. NSCC's new sensor potentially eliminates the requirement for low tide acquisition to obtain measurements of seaweed. In addition, a hydrodynamic model for the site will be run to investigate current speeds and other dynamic features that may influence any growth rate variance within the site. The results from this innovative study will assist ASL to more efficiently monitor present resources and more precisely assess resources in new areas, and help ASL move to a more spatially integrated workflow. The Nova Scotia Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture is responsible for permitting the leases and ensuring the harvest operations are sustainable, and are financially supporting the project.