Water Quality Modelling Using Multivariate Statistical Analysis and Remote Sensing in South Florida

Authors

Mohammad HajigholizadehFollow

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Major/Program

Civil Engineering

First Advisor's Name

Assefa M. Melesse

First Advisor's Committee Title

Co-Committee chair

Second Advisor's Name

Hector R. Fuentes

Second Advisor's Committee Title

Co-Committee chair

Third Advisor's Name

Michael C. Sukop

Third Advisor's Committee Title

Committee member

Fourth Advisor's Name

Walter Z. Tang

Fourth Advisor's Committee Title

Committee member

Fifth Advisor's Name

Seung J. Lee

Fifth Advisor's Committee Title

Committee member

Keywords

Water quality, Multivariate statistical analysis, Remote Sensing, Pollutants, Spatiotemporal modelling, Source apportionments, Landsat, Nutrients, South Florida.

Date of Defense

11-7-2016

Abstract

The overall objective of this dissertation research is to understand the spatiotemporal dynamics of water quality parameters in different water bodies of South Florida. Two major approaches (multivariate statistical techniques and remote sensing) were used in this study. Multivariate statistical techniques include cluster analysis (CA), principal component analysis (PCA), factor analysis (FA), discriminant analysis (DA), absolute principal component score-multiple linear regression (APCS-MLR) and PMF receptor modeling techniques were used to assess the water quality and identify and quantify the potential pollution sources affecting the water quality of three major rivers of South Florida. For this purpose, a 15-year (2000–2014) data set of 12 water quality variables, and about 35,000 observations were used. Agglomerative hierarchical CA grouped 16 monitoring sites into three groups (low pollution, moderate pollution, and high pollution) based on their similarity of water quality characteristics. DA, as an important data reduction method, was used to assess the water pollution status and analysis of its spatiotemporal variation. PCA/FA identified potential pollution sources in wet and dry seasons, respectively, and the effective mechanisms, rules, and causes were explained. The APCS-MLR and PMF models apportioned their contributions to each water quality variable.

Also, the bio-physical parameters associated with the water quality of the two important water bodies of Lake Okeechobee and Florida Bay were investigated based on remotely sensed data. The principal objective of this part of the study is to monitor and assess the spatial and temporal changes of water quality using the application of integrated remote sensing, GIS data, and statistical techniques. The optical bands in the region from blue to near infrared and all the possible band ratios were used to explore the relation between the reflectance of a waterbody and observed data. The developed MLR models appeared to be promising for monitoring and predicting the spatiotemporal dynamics of optically active and inactive water quality characteristics in Lake Okeechobee and Florida Bay. It is believed that the results of this study could be very useful to local authorities for the control and management of pollution and better protection of water quality in the most important water bodies of South Florida.

Identifier

FIDC001230

Recommended Citation

Hajigholizadeh, Mohammad, "Water Quality Modelling Using Multivariate Statistical Analysis and Remote Sensing in South Florida" (2016). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 2992.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/2992