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Track: Natural Resources and Conservation
Christopher Cogan
University of California, Santa Cruz
214 College 8 Academic
Santa Cruz, CA 95064
Telephone: 408-459-3986
Fax: 408-459-3518
The California Biodiversity Project: Application of Ecological Data Sets to Biodiversity Analysis
Defining Issue: Ecosystem health is increasingly being addressed by land managers and land use planners at a variety of spatial scales. Biodiversity is one metric by which the ecosystem can be monitored and presents opportunities for forecasting ecosystem conflicts between land use and species viability. GIS Solution: Geographic information systems are applied using multiple data types to develop a forecast model of biodiversity. Methodology: The California Biodiversity Project is using a variety of biodiversity metrics, with emphasis at the county level of analysis, to predict biodiversity conflicts over the next fifty years. By working with the county as a spatial unit, we can best collaborate with county supervisors and planners who are responsible for many land use policy decisions. This paper describes a multiscale approach for incorporating state-wide and ecoregional Gap Analysis data into a county scale biodiversity analysis. Problems of multiple spatial scales and changes in thematic
representation across data sets are discussed. Methods of local scale biodiversity analysis are also presented, and guidelines for biodiversity planning are reviewed. Much of the analysis in California pilot counties should be applicable to other areas, with Gap Analysis data a consistent component in the model. The California Biodiversity Project is being conducted by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley and Santa Cruz campuses, and is funded by the National Biological Service. Software: The project uses several software tools including C++, ARCGRID, ARCEDIT, ARCPLOT, AML, and ArcView.
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