A Geographic Spreadsheet Modelling Approach to Natural Resource Planning

Dean H.K. Fairbanks, Division of Water, Environment and Forestry Technology (Environments)

Many models created for managing natural resources are based on a spreadsheet approach. However, the spreadsheet-based mathematical models used by planners for resource management often tend to leave out the spatial components of the problem. The current spreadsheet models are aspatial in the sense that they are operated on spreadsheets from attributed spatial data. Unfortunately the management solutions provided by these models do not allow for a spatial management solution, or if they do, then query and display of these solutions is not incorporated into the answer. This is typically seen when planning landscapes for development versus conservation, managing biological populations and water resources, etc. In South Africa, there has been a drive to understand how to link spreadsheet-based mathematical natural resource analysis solutions to a GIS and how this can be constructed into PC-based decision support tools. This paper presents the development transition from a basic spreadsheet approach to a geographic spreadsheet approach for modelling natural resources. Examples are shown from two management disciplines: land use planning and water resources. The Land Use Planning System is based on the principle that one can change land cover/land use types to other set categories and that these other land uses have an impact both socioeconomically and environmentally on any planning decisions. The user is able to change the land use of parcels on the map, which then allows a simple spreadsheet model to calculate the effect of that change. The Afforestation Runoff Impact Modelling Scenario System (ARIMSS) works on a similar principle. By selecting catchments and by changing the forestry species and afforested area within those catchments, one can affect the water resources of the catchment and its neighbors. Again, simple spreadsheet models are used to calculate the changes and to provide visual and statistical information. Current PC-based GISs allow for powerful and flexible decision support systems to be created. These in turn allow traditional natural resources models, usually done in spreadsheets, to be transformed into geographic spreadsheet planning tools.


Baltimore-Washington GIS Testbed for Regional to Global Change Research

Dr. Timothy W. Foresman, University of Baltimore County

Recent efforts by scientists and managers to inventory, map, and model impacts from human activities on the environment have focused on land transformation/urbanization processes. Due to lack of standard GIS database calibration reference resources, it has been extremely difficult to date, to provide compelling evidence for the efficacy of any single model, algorithm or procedure which defines land transformation processes. Therefore, a set of georeferenced, spatially structured and well documented data sets, based on ArcInfo software, has been designed for the Baltimore-Washington Region as a resource for the community of environmental modelers and global change scientists. Land transformation processes are being examined from a variety of perspectives and scales using a variety of indicator parameters and mensuration variables. Tools and techniques applied to land transformation assessments range from creation of simple population satellite data. A variety of point and cell growth models have been applied to simulate the land transformation phenomenon. These activities have demonstrated the reality that urbanization and land transformation processes involve complex interacting variables. A team of scientists are expanding the efforts of the USGS Human Impacts on Land Transformation (HILT) project to build an internet accessible "collaboratory" containing quality controlled calibration and validation spatially referenced databases. The Baltimore-Washington Regional Testbed provides for the calibration, verification, and validation for multiple scalar, temporal, thematic, and spectral assessments or models. This design and documentation procedures for creating the Baltimore-Washington Regional "collaboratory" will be presented in relation to its use for regional to global environmental research and modeling applications. Key Words: Global change research, calibration/verification testbed, GIS design and metadata documentation, regional collaboratory


Implementation of Environmental Information System in the Department of Risaralda (Columbia), with the Use of ArcInfo

Myriam Cristina Escobar Saenz, Corporacion Autonoma de Risaralda-Carder

CARDER - Autonomous Regional Corporation of Risaralda - as a response to the policy established by Law 99 of 1993 determining the beginning of a new environmental way. With this aim and taking advantage of the occasion of having signed an agreement of technological interchange with the Government of Canada, it was decided to choose the river basin of the Risaralda River which occupies a 40% of the area of the department (1278 Km2). The objective of this agreement is to execute the territorial planning of the Risaralda River and to develop an environmental zonification using the Geographic Information system ArcInfo. This project has enabled us to develop a conceptual and methodological project and we expect to have definite results by the end of July of 1996. RESULTS This experience has enabled us to consolidate a process of integrality and interdiscipline in geological matters within the work group. - Training. - To generate work methodologies with the purpose of coming up with a methodological guide for an environmental zonification.




Back to Paper Presentation Abstracts