The USGS UMESC is using high-resolution digital aerial photography and state-of-the-art 3D mapping technologies to map and characterize Great Lakes river mouth ecosystems for the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative. There is a critical need to study and understand river mouth ecosystems—the complex zones where tributaries intersect with wetland and coastal processes to form productive freshwater estuaries—and how they link riverine (landscape) and Great Lakes deepwater systems. UMESC developed geospatial datasets of aquatic vegetation for the mouths of the Pere Marquette, Ford, and Manitowoc Rivers. These projects used 8-inch/pixel color infrared digital aerial photography and lidar where available.
http://cida.usgs.gov/glri/projects/accountability/rivermouth_ecosystems.html