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Abstract
Utilizing High-Resolution IKONOS Imagery with GIS for Post Fire Assessment Analysis
Track: Forestry, Wildlife, and Fisheries Management
Author(s): Mike Smith, Clare Hess
The USDA Forest Service Burned Area Emergency Rehabilitation (BAER) program recently utilized Space Imaging's IKONOS high-resolution, orthorectified, multispectral imagery to enable the rapid determination of burn areas in a recent forest fire in the Fish Lake National Forest, Utah. USFS BAER staff were able to accurately calculate budget and resources required for forest rehabilitation using the IKONOS color-infrared imagery. Due to the use of the imagery, estimated savings of more than $30,000 were achieved by eliminating burn area overestimates as the first step in the BAER burn intensity mapping database development. The imagery-derived burn intensity GIS mapping database was integrated with existing ancillary GIS database layers, such as prefire vegetation, topography, soil type, and surface hydrology, using the ArcView GIS platform for further modeling and visualization by USFS staff. Applications for the BAER database range from habitat impact assessment for wildlife biologists, to potential soil loss determination for hydrologists and soil scientists, to 3D visualization for public education. This paper will review the opportunities for utilizing IKONOS imagery with core GIS platforms for assessing postfire damage and rehabilitation planning.
Mike Smith
U.S. Forest Service
5915 Hollis St. Bldg B
Emeryville, CA 94608
USA
E-mail: mdsmith01@fs.fed.us