A Preliminary Analysis of Anthropogenic and Natural Impacts on a Volcanic Lake Ecosystem in Southern Italy by UAV-Based Monitoring

Domenica Mirauda (), Maria Giuseppina Padula, Enza Mirauda, Claudio Paternò, Fiorenzo D’Onofrio and Domenico Loguercio
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Domenica Mirauda: School of Engineering, Basilicata University, Viale Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Maria Giuseppina Padula: Direzione Generale per le Politiche Agricole, Alimentari e Forestali, Regione Basilicata, Via Vincenzo Verrastro 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Enza Mirauda: Consultant of Environmental Engineering Services Ltd., Via Varco d’Izzo 28, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Claudio Paternò: Consultant of Environmental Engineering Services Ltd., Via Varco d’Izzo 28, 85100 Potenza, Italy
Fiorenzo D’Onofrio: Consultant of Consorzio di Bonifica della Basilicata, Via Annunziatella 64, 75100 Matera, Italy
Domenico Loguercio: School of Engineering, Basilicata University, Viale Ateneo Lucano 10, 85100 Potenza, Italy

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 20, issue 1, 1-15

Abstract: Lakes play an important role in providing various ecosystem services. However, stressors such as climate change, land use, or land-cover change threaten the ecological functions of lakes. National and international legislations address these threats and establish consistent, long-term monitoring schemes. Remote sensing techniques based on the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) have recently been demonstrated to provide accurate and low-cost spatio-temporal views for the assessment of the ecological status of aquatic ecosystems and the identification of areas at risk of contamination. Few studies have been carried out so far on the employment of these tools in the monitoring of lakes. Therefore, high-resolution UAV surveys were used to analyse and evaluate natural and anthropogenic impacts on the habitat status of a volcanic lake in a protected area. Five UAV flights took place during a year-long cycle (November 2020 to November 2021) in a volcanic lake located in southern Italy. For each flight performance, an orthomosaic of georeferenced RGB images was obtained, and the different features of interest were monitored and quantified using automated processing in a GIS environment. The UAV images made it possible not only to estimate the flooded shores but also to detect the impact of human-made structures and infrastructures on the lagoon environment. It has been possible to observe how the rapid changes in lake-water level have led to the submersion of about 90.000 m 2 of terrain in winter, causing the fragmentation and degradation of habitats, while the connectivity of the natural ecosystem has been threatened by the presence of the road around the lake. The proposed methodology is rather simple and easily replicable by decision makers and local administrators and can be useful for choosing the best restoration interventions.

Keywords: volcanic lake; UAV monitoring; highly detailed spatial data; flooded shores; lake-water level; anthropogenic stressors (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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