Seabed Substrate Classification Charts for Vancouver Harbour and Vicinity

Presentation Abstract

As part of the World Class Tanker Safety initiative of the Government of Canada, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Pacific region science division has been tasked with predicting species distributions and habitat suitability along northern shipping routes. Bottom substrate charts are key tools in developing habitat charts. They are important to stakeholders within DFO, Parks Canada, and Environment Canada as they are used to identify areas of potentially high biodiversity, increased oil spill susceptibility, or heightened importance to an ecosystem. Science staff at the Pacific Biological Station (PBS), and Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) have been developing a seabed classification model that analyses Multi-beam Echo Sounder (MBES) backscatter derivatives and bathymetry derivatives. This Iso-Cluster model has been enhanced with sediment grab data and ROV observations to further refine the algorithm. Additionally, a new tool using Random Forests (RF) machine learning has been developed and applied that may provide an objective and automated approach for predicting seafloor bottom types.

The CHS has previously collected backscatter data from MBES bathymetric surveys conducted in and around Vancouver harbour from 2000-2012. While this data has traditionally been secondary to navigational chart production, more recently, CHS has received increasing requests for seabed classification products. With recent developments to MBES hardware and software, combined with the newly developed processing models, CHS is poised to provide better support for a seabed substrate charting project with Port Metro Vancouver. CHS will process this existing data using the ISO-Cluster model and present unsupervised initial bottom substrate maps.

Session Title

Protection, remediation and restoration

Conference Track

Protection, Remediation, & Restoration

Conference Name

Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2016 : Vancouver, B.C.)

Document Type

Event

Location

2016SSEC

Type of Presentation

Poster

Genre/Form

presentations (communicative events)

Contributing Repository

Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.

Subjects – Topical (LCSH)

Ocean bottom ecology--Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.); Backscattering

Subjects – Names (LCNAF)

Canada. Department of Fisheries and Oceans. Pacific Region

Geographic Coverage

Salish Sea (B.C. and Wash.)

Comments

Multi-Beam Echo Sounder

Backscattter

ISO-Cluster

Seabed

Substrate Classification

Rights

This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.

Type

Text

Language

English

Format

application/pdf

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Seabed Substrate Classification Charts for Vancouver Harbour and Vicinity

2016SSEC

As part of the World Class Tanker Safety initiative of the Government of Canada, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) Pacific region science division has been tasked with predicting species distributions and habitat suitability along northern shipping routes. Bottom substrate charts are key tools in developing habitat charts. They are important to stakeholders within DFO, Parks Canada, and Environment Canada as they are used to identify areas of potentially high biodiversity, increased oil spill susceptibility, or heightened importance to an ecosystem. Science staff at the Pacific Biological Station (PBS), and Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) have been developing a seabed classification model that analyses Multi-beam Echo Sounder (MBES) backscatter derivatives and bathymetry derivatives. This Iso-Cluster model has been enhanced with sediment grab data and ROV observations to further refine the algorithm. Additionally, a new tool using Random Forests (RF) machine learning has been developed and applied that may provide an objective and automated approach for predicting seafloor bottom types.

The CHS has previously collected backscatter data from MBES bathymetric surveys conducted in and around Vancouver harbour from 2000-2012. While this data has traditionally been secondary to navigational chart production, more recently, CHS has received increasing requests for seabed classification products. With recent developments to MBES hardware and software, combined with the newly developed processing models, CHS is poised to provide better support for a seabed substrate charting project with Port Metro Vancouver. CHS will process this existing data using the ISO-Cluster model and present unsupervised initial bottom substrate maps.