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Digital maps keep getting sharper, as ground and satellite data zero in on gas lines, fish, algae . . . By
Lynnette Hoffman
In order to restore the depleted salmon habitat in the South Fork of the Salmon River, Lonnie Johnson, an environmental engineer at the Institute of Natural Systems Engineering at Utah State University, used Geographic Information Systems software, satellite photos and state-of-the-art computer technology. Increasing sediments are diminishing the fish population in the South Fork in central Idaho, which is part of the Columbia River System. The sediments clog the gills of young salmon, suffocating them. Overall water quality of rivers also decreases since the sun can't penetrate as easily. Without sunlight, important oxygen producers, such as algae, can't grow. Water temperature also fluctuates, disrupting the fish. So Johnson needed to monitor sediment distribution and hydraulic features of the river. Monitoring rivers involves several steps. Information such as water surface elevation, water velocities and sediment types must be collected along the river. "You can bring up a picture of a pond and . . . you can zero right in on the plants and see what kind of plants they are." In addition, aerial photos and digital imagery of the river are analyzed in a computer by an expert. "You use the ground truth data [the information collected] to assist in analyzing the satellite images so you can translate what you're seeing into what's real," Johnson said. That data, known as remote sensing data, is first loaded onto a program called Imagine, which classifies the information according to a specified characteristic, such as fish populations within the river. Inaccuracies in the images are corrected, and the images are loaded into Geographic Information Systems software. Though the fate of salmon in the South Fork is still uncertain, the U.S Forest Service is now using Johnson's work to continue the project. Two programs manufactured by Environmental Systems Research Institute lead the market of GIS software -- ArcView and Arc/Info. Johnson used ArcView to organize the information he collected. Marcus Morgan, a GIS technician who worked on Johnson's project, said that ArcView is the more popular of the two, as it is more user friendly. Users with more advanced knowledge of programming can use Arc/Info to design a program that caters more directly to their needs, he said. GIS organizes the images and information into a collection of layers that are linked together by geography. The computerized information can be referenced according to geographic location. A kaleidoscope of color, so vast and diverse it more resembles a psychedelic scene from Woodstock than a map, is the final product. Each hue represents a different feature. Layers of maps hanging from a bulletin board in the INSE lab color code everything from land ownership to water-bodies, with details as fine-tuned as a concertmaster's violin. "GIS has everything in spatial locations so you can get all the data layers into one project and manipulate it easily," said Kiran Panja, also an environmental engineer at the Institute of Natural Systems Engineering. A click of the mouse on the map can take you just about anywhere. Applied Ecological Systems, a company based out of Logan, works on many projects throughout the world. It recently compiled all the available data on utilities in St. George onto GIS software. Every power line, gas line and water line is linked to the system, enabling builders and contractors to find out information as detailed as how many kilowatts of power are actually in a specific line. When planning and building subdivisions and developments, that type of information is invaluable, program manager Gar Workman said. "There's enough there that if you had a block in St. George, and decided to put in condominiums, it would show you what you'd do to surrounding traffic, waterlines, electricity, all that stuff," he said. Computerizing utilities allows city planners and managers easy access to vital information without hassles. Problems can be located, and possible solutions can be devised, without making extra trips to the site. "It has every valve, every connection, every elbow -- everything's all computerized. If they have a pipe they want to extend they can look on the computer and see right where they can tie the pipes," Workman said. For businesses and organizations that need to show employers the results of their work, the increased technology has proved instrumental. Five miles north of Heber City sits the Jordanelle reservoir, created in 1992 from water flowing out of the Provo River. Its completion provided another place for fly-fishing and recreation, but wetlands and vegetation surrounding the area were eradicated during construction. Under wetland preservation laws, the "Mosquito Ranches," as locals call them, had to be replaced. "Anytime you disturb something, it doesn't matter what it is -- a road sign -- you have to come back and develop something," Workman said. AES was hired by the state to revegetate the reservoir. In five years workers have planted 8,500 shrubs, plants and trees, and created 34 shallow ponds around the reservoir, in an attempt to create an environment as close as possible to the original. To illustrate the improvements made, AES divided the reservoir into sections and photographed them. More than 150 photographs were downloaded onto Geographic Information Systems software. "You can bring up a picture of a pond and you can look at two or three different views of it and fill the screen with it -- in fact, you can zero right in on the plants and see what kind of plants they are," Workman said. Visitors to the Jordanelle area will soon tromp along wetlands, dense trees and shrubs the way they could eight years ago, before the reservoir was built. "We're trying to make it look as natural as possible," he said. Workman hopes to have the project complete by spring. U.S. Forest Service managers also have new incentive to use computerized technology. Starting this year the U.S. Forest Service no longer receives federal aid on request. Connie McCaughey, the support services specialist who is in charge of budgeting at Wasatch-Cache National Forest, said the changes were made after an audit by the Department of Financial Health in Washington, D.C., two years ago. Results from the audit revealed that some districts couldn't account for the money they had been allocated by the federal government. District and regional forests are now required to show what the requested money will be used for and why it is necessary, and computer technology provides a means to illustrate those things. "They want to know how many miles of trail we have, and all this different criteria they base budgets on. GIS and GPS (global positioning system) give us a good way to create, collect and store that information," said Ron Vance, the outdoor recreation coordinator for Wasatch-Cache National Forest. Six years ago Wasatch-Cache National Forest was monitored by people who flew over and took pictures of the vegetation. Now satellite imagery has replaced that process, so information can be stored and manipulated much more easily. Images provided via satellite are used to determine whether current management strategies are effective. If not, the satellite images can also help forest managers create useful changes in their plans, Vance said. Genealogy record keepers may also reap the benefits of GIS. The software is becoming an intricate part of cemeteries across North America. In addition to consulting, monitoring and overseeing vegetation studies and projects, Applied Ecological Systems offers a GIS Cemetery System. The system computerizes burial and genealogy records, and allows you to locate specific plots, look at pictures of the headstones and find any related information. You could even see details such as the exact material of the headstone, without ever leaving your computer, Workman said. But along with all the advantages of advanced technology come frustrations. Collecting the data and getting it into correct format, minus inaccuracies and inconsistencies, is a hassle, according to Panja and Workman. If it's not in the right format it's virtually useless, they said. Even the newest, fastest available computers aren't quite fast enough. According to Panja and Morgan, the amount of data required to compile accurate information often fills the computer's memory. "The computers are too slow for the amount of data; we handle large amounts of data and actually end up having to reduce it," Panja said. Keeping up with the rapidly changing technology is another problem, Vance said. In particular it is difficult to find a workforce with the knowledge and skills to adequately use such technical equipment. The information is not necessarily straightforward either. Factors such as weather, or snow accumulated on the ground in the mountains can affect satellite readings, Vance said. For instance, if there is heavy cloud cover, data could be lost, and sometimes a technician will have to wait for the weather conditions to pass. Vance said the time commitment sometimes involved is a frustrating aspect of the work. But as computers become faster and faster, and the inaccuracies are
gradually eliminated, computer technology will likely increase its significance
in natural resources fields. |
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