A Strategy for Estimating Nutrient Concentrations Using Remote Sensing Datasets and Hydrological Modeling

Watershed Under Study

Water bodies in the Southeastern USA are subjected to loads of pollutants resulting from urban development, agriculture, and other human activities. Impairment of rivers in the region is related mainly to sediment and nutrient loads. Monitoring of water quality in the region’s water bodies, however, does not take place in a frequent basis due to costs associated with water quality surveys.

The Upper Tombigbee watershed is located in the states of Alabama and Mississippi in the Southern USA (Figure 1). The watershed drains approximately 13900 square kilometers and it is a main contributor of flow to the Mobile River, with an approximate average stream flow of 169 m³/s.

Figure 1.

Watershed under study. Upper Tombigbee watershed, located in the northern Mississippi-Alabama region (USA)