The combination of an experienced Federal agency and private firm with international experience helped create an unbeatable project team and methodology for a 1994-95 utility siting project. EDAW Inc. and Tennessee Valley Authority worked hand in hand to develop a utility siting methodology based on Geographic Information Systems. The siting process was used to site two lines in Georgia crossing over 100 miles of some of the most sensitive land in the Southeast. The methodology included; GIS database development, constraint modeling, land suitability modeling, corridor delineation and analysis, route evaluation and final route selection. The corner stone of this process was an accurate database based on aerial photography, DEMS, DLGS. Visibility analysis, viewshed modeling and photo-simulation eased contentious debates over significantly sensitive regions. The uniqueness of the project rests in the joint development of the siting process. Technology was shared by both sides and employees had the opportunity to benefit from the different experiences of the members of the team. both agencies have walked away with a higher level of awareness of the power of GIS to solve environmental problems.
Bruce Meighen
EDAW, Inc.
3475 Lenox Rd.
Atlanta, GA 30326
Telephone: 404-365-1110
Fax: 404-365-1129
Julia Kraft
Tennessee Valley Authority
Chattanooga, TN