Using ArcView GIS and Expert Systems Technology to Help Increase the Consistency and Quality of Environmental Reports: A System for the Unsophisticated User

Author: Philip Bailey
Organization: Nobility Environmental Software Systems Inc.

21280 Cedar Lake Road
Golden, CO 80401
USA

Phone: 303 526 4932
Fax: 303 526 4953
pbailey@nobility.com

Environmental reports must be prepared for all projects that might have an effect on the quality of the human environment. Due to the content and sheer number of these reports, project/environmental reporting often lacks consistency, defensibility, and comprehensiveness.

Nobility Inc. has developed a software reporting application that addresses the basic needs of this problem. Nobility ERGO is an easy-to-use reporting application that assists users to generate consistent and defensible reports for project approval. Nobility's application is a knowledge-based decision support system that captures detailed project information and inventories environmental/cultural resources that are located at/near the proposed project location. The system uses this information to identify a wide spectrum of potential environmental impacts, apply appropriate mitigation options, and generate comprehensive reports. The application provides an intuitive, step-by-step method for generating a report, complete with rationale and justification for all decisions.