DETECTION OF COAL ASH TURBIDITY IN MARINE ENVIRONMENT USING REMOTE SENSING

Power production using fossil fuels can bring significant adverse effects on the surrounding environment. In this study, detection of industrial ash turbidity from a coal-fueled power plant in marine water and its interaction with marine environment were evaluated using 3 satellite imageries. To this aim, e-Cognition v.4.0.6 software was utilized to perform detection, classification and comparison of the polluted area in the aquatic marine environment using Landsat-5 TM satellite imageries and Landsat-7 ETM + satellite imagery. Total polluted area, obtained from Landsat satellite imageries, was classified into 3 regions: highly polluted, moderately polluted and less polluted region, and their polluted field dimensions were evaluated to be 10.19 km super(2) and 7.50 km super(2) for Landsat TM imageries as well as 37.73 km super(2) for Landsat ETM+ imagery. Total suspended solids (TSS) levels were determined as 2380c213 mg.L super(-1), 361c118 mg. super(L-1)and 57c24 mg.L super(-1) for the highly, moderately and less polluted regions, respectively. This study may serve as a database for future comparisons to identify the trend of improvement or deterioration of coastal environment of Zonguldak.