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Track: Natural Resources and Conservation
Laura Arnold
ACRT, Inc. Environmental Services
PO Box 401
Cuyahoga Falls, OH 44221
Telephone: 1-800-622-2562
Fax: 330-945-7200
E-mail: ldeyoung@acrtinc.com
Using GIS for Riparian Corridor Protection Plans
Defining Issue: Riparian corridor protection plans require definition of the riparian area; characterization of the natural resources within the corridor; identification of high-quality areas; and recommendations for establishing buffer zones, limiting development, and reestablishing ecosystems. A system is required to prioritize for land acquisition and purchase of conservation easements. GIS Solution: Land and cover types in the corridor are evaluated using GIS in an application created to provide an objective evaluation of natural environmental conditions in developed and undeveloped land areas. Methodology: The Riparian Corridor Protection Plan begins with the identification of land cover types through remote sensing procedures. Recent aerial photography is interpreted with magnifying stereoscopes. A variety of cover types are identified and field checked. Each individual cover type area is digitized as a polygon and is analyzed for a variety of characteristics or metrics, depending upon whether
the polygon is a developed land use or an undeveloped land area. Once field checked and entered into the GIS database, composites are computed as a means of categorizing cover type areas to establish both overall and relative ecological condition. Software: ArcView was used in the application of this natural features inventory and analysis.
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