Improving vegetation spatial distribution mapping in arid and on coastal dune systems using GPR in Tottori Prefecture (Japan)

In this article, desertification and dune progression over vegetation was quantified using remote sensing data. However, vegetation buried under sand blowout could not be counted using this method. Therefore, to estimate the extent of buried vegetation, a GPR campaign was conducted over the coastal sand-dune of Tottori Prefecture (Japan) in combination with a high-resolution topographic UAV-based survey of the topography. The results show that buried vegetation exists underneath sand-blowout, especially near the dune ridges, and can extend from 20 to 30 meters further than the estimate based on airborne remote sensing. Furthermore, the presence of palaeo-vegetation in palaeodune layers also provides the information on the long-term evolution of sand dunes, which can be used to reconstruct Quaternary coastal environments.