Characterization of a Typical Mediterranean Watershed Using Remote Sensing Techniques and GIS Tools

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) were used to establish an information data base to characterize a watershed in Northern Greece, analyze the distribution of the drainage network according to the different characteristics of the watershed using a drainage density index based on GIS. The drainage network was delineated from ASTER GDEM and Landsat-8 OLI data. Digital image processing was based on enhancement techniques. GIS characterized the watershed easily and efficiently. The drainage density index, based on the number of pixels, was appropriate for analyzing the distribution of the drainage network in relation to other characteristics of the watershed. The possibility of using GIS to generate buffer zones around linear and area features helped to quantify sensitive areas close to streams. The problem of cell resolution was overcome by reference to the mapping scale and other factors. Landsat-8 OLI data gave promising results, closely accurate to those from a 1:50,000 topographic maps. The number of streams and total stream lengths of all orders from ASTER GDEM data were higher than from the other sources. Geometric characteristics of the watershed derived from ASTER GDEM data were almost the same as from the 1:50,000 topographic maps. Best results were from a new band index based on Bands 2 and 5. Both techniques, GIS and Remote Sensing, are suitable for application to watershed management in the Mediterranean region.