This indicator represents the amount of overall acres of forested wetlands currently present in the South Atlantic geography.
Reason for Selection
Overall acreage of existing forested wetlands provides an indicator of whether forested wetlands being inundated by sea level rise are being replaced or restored somewhere else. It is also well monitored and resonates with a diversity of audiences.
Input Data
– 2016 National Land Cover Database (NLCD)
Mapping Steps
Any pixels identified as “woody wetlands” in the 2016 NLCD were considered existing forested wetland.
Final indicator values
Indicator values were assigned as follows:
1 = Forested wetland
Disclaimer: Comparing with Older Indicator Versions
There are numerous problems with using South Atlantic indicators for change analysis. Please consult Blueprint staff if you would like to do this (email hilary_morris@fws.gov).
Literature Cited
Homer, Collin G., Dewitz, Jon A., Jin, Suming, Xian, George, Costello, C., Danielson, Patrick, Gass, L., Funk, M., Wickham, J., Stehman, S., Auch, Roger F., Riitters, K. H., Conterminous United States land cover change patterns 2001–2016 from the 2016 National Land Cover Database: ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, v. 162, p. 184–199, at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isprsjprs.2020.02.019