Effects of stand attributes in evaluating even-aged loblolly pine volume with LiDAR
Abstract
The purpose of this project is to determine the practicality of using LiDAR technology
in the field as a primary tool for forest inventory. Specifically, this project uses
variables generated from Quality Level 2 (QL2) LiDAR data obtained from the state
of North Carolina Floodplain Mapping Program to investigate the overall goodness of
fit of Loblolly pine volume based on ground measurements. Seven stands in the Piedmont
and coastal regions in North Carolina were used in this study. Volume was calculated
using pre-harvest cruise data and was regressed against the LiDAR generated predictors
of height and canopy cover. The analysis was conducted on both plot level and at a
mid-sized management level, of theoretical harvest units (THUs). These LiDAR derived
variables were only moderately successful at estimating loblolly pine volume at the
plot level (R2 =0.45) and at the THU level (R2 = 0.37). When ground calculated height
was regressed against LiDAR estimated height, no bias was detected indicating that
while model fit was modest, the overall approach was correct.
Type
Master's projectPermalink
https://hdl.handle.net/10161/14081Citation
Hagan, Sarah (2017). Effects of stand attributes in evaluating even-aged loblolly pine volume with LiDAR.
Master's project, Duke University. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/14081.Collections
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