Middle Rio Grande Multitemporal Land Cover Classifications - 1935, 1962, 1987, 1999, and 2014

Riparian ecosystems are valuable to the ecological and human communities which depend on them. Over the past century, they have been subject to shifting management practices to maximize human use and ecosystem services, creating a complex relationship between water policy, management, and the natural ecosystem. This has necessitated research on the spatial and temporal dynamics of riparian vegetation change. The San Acacia Reach of the Middle Rio Grande has experienced multiple management and river flow fluctuations, resulting in threats to its riparian and aquatic ecosystems. This research uses remote sensing data, GIS, a review of management decisions, and an assessment of climate to quantify how riparian vegetation has been altered over time. This research focused on four management phases from 1935-2014, each highlighting different management practices and climate-driven river patterns, providing unique opportunities to observe a direct relationship between river management, climate, and riparian response. A land cover classification was created for each date constraining the management phases, 1935, 1962, 1987 (twice), 1999, and 2014. The 1935, 1962, and first 1987 classifications were produced by digitizing aerial imagery. The second 1987 classification, 1999, and 2014 classifications were created using a Classification and Regression Tree (CART) model. This metadata file pertains to the overall data release.