gis applications in natural resource management phil hurvitz1 gis applications in natural resource...

Phil Hurvitz 1

GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

presented at

Common Ground, Common WaterSkill Standards Workshop

November 8, 2001Hood Canal Institute at Theler Wetlands

by

Phil HurvitzGIS Specialist

College of Forest ResourcesUniversity of Washington

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Overview

• Current problems in natural resource management

• Introduction to GIS

• How does GIS fit into natural resource management?

• Examples of GIS use

• GIS in Education

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Overview

• Current problems in natural resource management

• Introduction to GIS

• How does GIS fit into natural resource management?

• Examples of GIS use

• GIS in Education

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Current problems in natural resource management

• Habitat loss/endangered/exotic species

• Unsustainable resource use/extraction

• Terrestrial, aquatic, & atmospheric pollution

• Climate change

• Population growth

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Current problems in natural resource management

• Responsible management is possible only with high quality data and analysis

• Problems are complex

• Solutions to problems are complex

• Powerful tools are needed

• Capable professionals are needed

• Education is crucial to success

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Overview

• Central problems in natural resource management

• Introduction to GIS

• How does GIS fit into natural resource management?

• Examples of GIS use

• GIS in Education

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Geographic Information Systems• Integrated system for the

capture,management,manipulation,analysis, anddisplay of

spatially referenced data

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Components of a GIS

• methods

• people, and

• data,

• software,

• hardware,

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Geographic Information Systems/Science

• Convergence of several technologies maturing through the 1950s-90s• CAD/CAM• Relational database management systems• Satellite remote sensing• Global positioning system (GPS)

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Geographic Information Science

• Evolution from a technology to a science• Standardized curricula• Standardized methods• More than simply a technical tool

• Legitimizing of a discipline

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• GIS analysis• GIS treats real-world spatial features as

combinations of geometric primitives and database records

• GIS analysis and processing uses specialized applied geometric, mathematical, and relational operators on the basic features/records

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Spatial data model: points

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Spatial data model: lines

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Spatial data model: polygons

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Spatial data model: raster

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Spatial/tabular data model

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Spatial/tabular data model

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Introduction to GIS

• Spatial referencing in GIS

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Overview

• Central problems in natural resource management

• Introduction to GIS

• How does GIS fit into natural resource management?

• Examples of GIS use

• GIS in Education

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

GIS & natural resource management

• Nearly all resource management problems are spatial in nature or have a strong spatial component

• Most natural resources are tied to a particular place

• Knowledge of the properties of a place is crucial to understanding of place

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

GIS & natural resource management

• GIS is the leading integrated system for storing and analyzing space-related data

• All natural resource management organizations are using GIS• Government• Industry• NGOs

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

GIS & natural resource management

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Overview

• Central problems in natural resource management

• Introduction to GIS

• How does GIS fit into natural resource management?

• Examples of GIS use

• GIS in Education

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Examples of GIS use

• Basic ecological research

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Examples of GIS use

• Management: identification of landscape areas meeting particular complex criteria• 50-70 year old forest

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Examples of GIS use

• Management: identification of landscape areas meeting particular complex criteria• 50-70 year old forest• < 100 m to a stream

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Examples of GIS use

• Management: identification of landscape areas meeting particular complex criteria• 50-70 year old forest• < 100 m to a stream• > 50 m from a road

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Examples of GIS use

• Management: identification of landscape areas meeting particular complex criteria• 50-70 year old forest• < 100 m to a stream• > 50 m from a road• 10-20% slope

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Examples of GIS use

• Management: identification of landscape areas meeting particular complex criteria

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Overview

• Central problems in natural resource management

• Introduction to GIS

• How does GIS fit into natural resource management?

• Examples of GIS use

• GIS in Education

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

GIS in Education

• Basic skills need attention• Quantitative reasoning

• Mathematics

• Logical thinking

• Computing skills• Command of applications and Operating System

• Programming

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

GIS in Education

• Few application-oriented GIS higher educational tracks• Most GIS in Education is in geography• Natural resource programs often lack applied

GIS courses

• Applied curricula need development• Professors need to integrate GIS into

existing curricula

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Resouces

• WWW (Search for “GIS education”)

• USGS (www.usgs.gov)

• FGDC (www.fgdc.gov)• Federal Geographic Data Committee• National Spatial Data Infrastructure

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

Resouces

• ESRI (www.esri.com), leader in GIS software development

• UCGIS (www.ucgis.org)• University Consortium of GIScience

• University of Washington• wagda.lib.washington.edu• gis.washington.edu

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GIS Applications in Natural Resource Management

• Questions?

• Demonstration (time permitting)