The Center of Information Technology in the Interest of Society and UC Merced Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Graduate Group Present:
50th Earth Day | Frontiers in Technology Speaker
Agricultural Land Classification and Crop Water Use: The Importance of Ground Truthing for Calibration and Validation
Joel Kimmelshue, Ph.D., CPSS – Agricultural Scientist, LandIQ, Sacramento, CA
Friday, April 24, 2020 from 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm
Zoom link: https://ucmerced.zoom.us/j/924923181
About the Talk: In light of ever-increasing regulatory requirements (e.g. Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program (ILRP), Sustainable Groundwater Management Program (SGMA), and Central Valley Salinity Alternatives for Long-term Sustainability (CV-SALTS)) on production agricultural systems, accurate, timely, and comprehensive base layer data is required. Land IQ has developed a statewide land use mapping program for the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) that implements comprehensive ground-truthing efforts for calibrating and validating remotely sensed models for the ultimate classification of all agricultural fields in California. This amounts to approximately 380,000 individual fields, 2.0 acres and greater, with an accuracy of 97.6%. Also, water resources are limited; thus, enhanced and efficient methods to accurately estimate crop consumptive use of water are paramount. Land IQ integrates its agricultural land use mapping, other lines of evidence, and robust ground-truthing (i.e. multiple climate stations) to calibrate and validate remotely sensed crop consumptive use models. This includes a combination of high-density, specific ground measurements, and remotely sensed modeling, calibrated with those measurements. The purpose of this presentation is to introduce the importance of comprehensive ground-truthing to ensure accuracy for both the remotely sensed agricultural land use mapping and crop consumed water estimates.
About the Speaker: Dr. Kimmelshue is a founding partner and Principal Soil & Agricultural Scientist with Land IQ. He holds a Ph.D. in Soil Science with a concentration in Water Resources from North Carolina State University in addition to his certification as a Professional Soil Scientist (CPSS). He has over 22 years of consulting experience focused on practical and applied solutions for the development and management of agricultural-based soil/water/plant systems, especially irrigated systems.
Contact: Colleen Bertuccio, citris@ucmerced.edu. We look forward to seeing you online!