Rural System

Rural System, Inc.
Sustained rural lands; sustained profits

The GIS Group
Serving all Units of Rural System

Staff of Rural System has been active in developing and using geographic informations systems before the process and facilities became known by that phrase or its acronym of GIS.

Primary uses will be within The Trevey and the thrust of work will be to produce unusual, highly useful products for a profit. Data are expensive; hardware declines in price, and the important issues still lie (and will do so for the future) in very practical maps. We see these as pictures of the results of the mental processes of experts. We sell these maps for use on the land.

Some of the maps are beautiful and deserve treatment (and sale) as an art form. Others show the parts of decisions and are needed by decision makers as a type of decision aid or support.

Elevations have over 20 different uses and many maps can be made from observations of the land stored in a square grid matrix (the UTM coordinates) called a digital elevation model (DEM). Whether each of the following is a new map or a simple transformation of a single data set can be debated. We propose any use that seems to bear on improving a decision. A simple two-factor map can be created such a greater than 3000 feet elevation and less than that amount. It may be shown as one map. There may be the need for two maps (perhaps to use with other data. We propose to develop ease with boolean comparators (e.g., greater than x and less than y or less than q.) Three dimensional land surface appearance can be meaningful, especially as new staff become acquainted with an area.

Other GIS layers to be developed are:

Slope

Aspect

Solar radiation

Monthly temperatures (mean, max, and minimum)

Precipitation (Other than snow)

Fog drip

Snow

Evaporation

Moisture ratio

Evapotranspiration

Runoff

Precipitation

Growing season length (with start and end dates)

Ground water surface

Surface water channels

Soil depth

Soil type

Slope (% and angle in degrees)

Aspect Type 1

Aspect Type 2

Flatland

Probable depth to bedrock

Groundwater (depth, detectable nitrogen, pH)

Well locations

Campsite locations

Trails

Trailheads

Land cover

Boundaries

Public-ownership lands

Species specific maps, probability of occurrence

Others...

Other plans are for sale of select GIS software. The primary work will be in sales of products such as those lested above. The Trevey products may consume all of the activities of the group, but others may include:

a state-wide corridor siting system to serve citizen groups
a special package of services for realtors
substantial work for The Fishery
services directed at the leagal profession and court-room presentations
a set of products and services for gardeners
a series of services for TV stations.

In October, 1980, Giles used the following notes in a Virginia tech lecture:

Geobased Information Systems for Health Systems Planning in Virginia

Abstract:

A lecture on the role of computerized goegraphic data systems in comprehensive city, county, and regional planning, particularly health components of such plans. The infromation or input component of a general systems theory is emphasized. An existing system is shown and its potential role in a Commonwealth Data Base (CDB then being proposed) discussed. Potential uses, with examples, are shown.

Introduction:

Comprehensive plans (potential components)
Denial of previous land-use emphasis and focus on a plan for a total system.
The difficulty of goal-setting for large social systems
The potential of one or more health parameters or indices as perforrr2ncc measures for goal-achievement
- Computed resident group life expectancy
- An increase in a weighted set of about 50 health dimensions per unit cost
People as the synthesizers, over time, of their sociological, economic, and ecological milieu
The need for governmental or group action, to move the system down a desired course (where people set the destination and thus course, cost-effective of time, risks, energy, money, and available human and spatial resources.)
The guidance mission, the managerial role is to so understand and manipulate the factors of the environment that the course can be predicted and modified, either to shape trends or respond to new events. The quest: health system cybernetics.

The Environmental Factors:

Classic: Marsh and wetland "vapours"; the insect vector of disease
Trauma: proximity to hospitals and treatment
Heavy metals: the zone of influence beside roads
Contaminated areas: pesticides in alfalfa grown on orchard lands and soybeans grown on cotton lands
Epidemic spreads: foci and areas of involvement
Bone weakness: soil-nutrient relations
Radiation: cumulative whole body radioactivity dose
Occupational zones: populations at risk related to radiation, asbestos, brown lung, black lung
Autopollution
Airpollution: crowding stress interactions ... and others.

(page 2 missing)

Uses and Applications

Regression analyses of cancer and related phenomena (factoring out personal versus contnunlty control phenomena)
Displays of home of all entrants to a trep1~ment center over time (a zone of influence display)
Determination of gaps and justification for efforts directed at the people unserved by present systems
Sub-region specific cost-computations of care delivery as a function of local characteristics of the population and distance, road, gasolln3, cost, and stressors for each type of disease (weighted by risk level, recovery probability, and perceived social Importance.)
Isolation of areas where genetic medicine is appropriately applied.
Isolation of areas for targeted educational and behavioral modiflcatloi programs
Improved allocation of funds based on geographic needs (gasoline, roads, disease incidence, available resources, needed resources, not on a regional basis, per Se, but on a disease or problem or population basis.
Correlations of energy (e.g. solar maps) with life expectancy; of radiation levels with infant mortality; of cancer with technology zones.

The Need:

A total health system with clearly articulated goals (objectives): see Dynaplan chapter or

with a solid data base - the union of the present Va. Dept. of Health data base with the CDB (moving away, as quickly as possible, from disease and health-problem atlases, to decision-making capabilities and aids)

with computer models (using data) that

describe and explain
predict
write readable reports for decision makers e.g. Dynaplan
allow allocation of limited state or regional resources where probabilities of change are greatest
that separate decision variables (e.g. smoking) from ecological variables (e.g. background levels of lead or radiation)
that adjust for (or standardize) populations living under different conditions (e.g., minimum temperatures; mountains vs flat lands)
Location is Everything

that optimize the complex allocation strategy to achieve a well-articulated goal-set

with feedback at all levels to test, check, correct, improve, update, fire, reward, and transfer new system components into a vital, ctynamic system hungry for continual, adaptive Improvement

with feedforward, providing guidance so the system is wrong today, wrong In some future day, but most right over the longrun. This is a design concept that by many techniques keeps the system related to the furure and inevitable, rapid human population changes.

A special human health-related set of applications (suggestions prepared in 1985)

Septic Field Suitability
Crowding-Disease Relations
Regional Maps - health districts, coverage areas, disease emphases, vaccination progress, school children needs
Hospital and emergency unit Service Areas
Health-Transportation Relations
Trauma-To-Care Probability Maps
Noise-Health Maps
Accident frequency maps
Air Pollution/Capita
Water Quality Maps
Mental Health-Environmental Factor Studies
Future Maps (Projections of Trends and Interactions disease as a function of crowding, then predicted crowding, then new disease data)

Notes

Notes from prepared presentation for 2003

See ESRI site for related GIS work.

See Ecostats.com for software and shape viewer.

Ideas and assistance may be available from Doug Johnson (Illinois).

Technology in Virginia

See Penn State, riparian forestry, via the Forestry Department.

See EPA maps on demand

See Tiger map server, US Census

See NOAA web site

North Carolina has a GIS CD ROM

Heuber, Va. Dept Cons may have data on Mossy Creek in Augusta County

UVA Library has GIS data/maps

Cathy Smith (?State Forestry) has data on forest stands

Raven maps and images, PO Box 850, Medford Oregon

New policies suggested for data sharing:
"The data distribution policy developed by the Open Data Consortium will enable local governments to move responsively in handling public requests for spatial data and will reduce barriers to interagency data sharing," said Kathy Covert, associate strategist for the Federal Geographic Data Committee Secretariat. "This framework will help advance the National Spatial Data Infrastructure vision for a National Map and a Geospatial One-Stop portal to map data."

The model policy is available at the ODC Web site (http://www.opendataconsortium.org) along with documentation of the collaborative work process, additional data studies, data policy documents used by other agencies and links to useful geodata information. Methods to promote free distribution of geospatial data are offered in the document "10 Ways to Support GIS Without Selling Data."

The ODC hopes to move into a second phase as soon as adequate funding is secured. The second phase will focus on educating the GIS community about its findings and on funding GIS operations by changing government accounting practices to allocate some of the benefits of using geospatial data back to GIS operations departments.

"We expect support from government and private companies, because this is a win-win-win policy recommendation," added Joffe. "It serves local government, private data service providers and, most importantly, the general public."

Tele Atlas www.na.teleatlas.com has acquired many data sets for US and Europe and has a USDA access due to a recently acquired (2004 blanket purchase order agreement)

Other applications and "maps" or map layers.

1. Bear Habitat Probability
2. Bear! Wildlife Encounters
3. Potential Wolf (or other furbearers) Areas
4. Hunter Zones and Units
5. Game Poaching Levels
6. Fish Law Enforcement Problems
7. Large Animal Species (200 maps)
8. Lepidoptera (Butterfly/Moth)
9. Total Species or Richness
10. Game Species Richness
11. Trapping Areas
12. Winter Range Dynamics
13. Human Activity
14. Roads (multiple types)
15. Trails (horse, foot, bike, snowmobile)
16. Elevation
17. Slope Steepness
18. Aspect
19. Aspect Transformed (type I and II) 20. Land Form
21. Slope Position
22. Solar Radiation (monthly)
23. Radiation in the Growing Season
24. Precipitation (monthly max,min, and mean)
25. Degree Days
26. Temperature (monthly max,min, and mean)
27. Evapotranspiration (monthly)
28. Moisture Index
29. Streams
30. Ponds, Lakes and Waterholes
31. Wetlands, Marshes, and Seeps
32. Watershed Boundaries
33. Beaver Activity
34. Gas, Utility, and Powerlines
35. Historic Sites
36. Burial Sites
37. Permanent Water and Baseflow
38. Waterfowl Areas
39. Ancient Forests and Designated Wild or Natural Areas
40. Fish-Watching Zones
41. Bird Watching Areas (general)
42. Avi (sport area and potential areas)
43. Research Areas and Picture Points
44. Noise Zones
45. Viewscapes ('to' and 'from' series)
46. Air Pollution Zones
47. Government Boundaries (county, political, etc.)
48. Census Bureau Enumeration Zones (and related census data)
49. Topographic Map Boundaries
50. Location (world, US, vicinity)
51. Dust Zones
52. Range Types
53. Forest Stands
54. Alpha Units
55. Pseudo-soil Type
56. Hopkins Bioclimatic Zones
57. Bioregions
58. Kuchler' s Potential Natural Vegetation
59. Current Cover and Vegetation (Landsat)
60. Solid Waste Disposal Sites and Potentials
61. Bailey Ecoregions
62. Seismic Activity
63. Lunar Forces
64. Springs and Caves
65. Broad Landuse Classes
66. Key Angling Sites
67. State and Federal Ownership at Boundaries
68. Flood Zones
69. Ungulate Winter Range with Key Areas
70. Fire History
71. Fire Probability
72. Fire and Soil Erosion Relations
73. Fire Attack Rates
74. Fire Control Access
75. Prescribed Burning Areas and Schedules
76. Smoke and Wind Patterns
77. Smoke and Inversions
78. Smoke and Probable Patterns
79. Individual Plant Species (1000)
80. Groundwater
81. Groundwater Toxic Sources
82. Groundwater Radiation Levels
83. Geomagnetism
84. Lightning Strikes (occurrence and related acres and control effort)
85. Campsites (with trails)
86. Heliports and Emergency Rescue Pathways
87. Wildlife Law Enforcement Patrol Routes and Zones
88. Cliffs, Slides, and Talus
89. Geological Strata
90. Erosion (3 types)
91. Humus Layer Depth
92. Probable Depth to Bedrock
93. Croplands
94. Structures and Scheduled Maintenance
95. Emergency and Rescue Centers
96. Recreation Areas (dispersed)
97. Probable Financial Net Gains
98. Production Risk Levels
99. Grazing Plan elements
100. Range Condition and Trend Classes
101. Potential Losses from Fires
102. Ski and Snow sled Routes
103. Potential Utility Corridors (underground)
104. Deer Management (50)
105. Riparian Vegetation
106. Wild Turkey and Grouse (20) 107. Area reconnaissance notes 108. Areas suiatble for use for rubber-tired tractors (wood ahrvests) 109. Logistic regression - probability of higher than a standard max temperature; lower than a minimum 110. Relative forest productivity index (Stage, 1963, 69, 76) 111. Daylight hours based topographic shadow 112. Relative suitability for deer based enery costs of living in a map cell (Rayburn's thesis)

See African-American student Kevin Wheatley who studied GPS and GIS for accuracy of area determinations (2003) at Tech (McNair scholar)

See Post ing GPS coordinates (either UTM or Lat/Long) on the Terrain Navigator series of digitized topo maps (MAPTECH, 655 Portsmouth Ave, Greenland, HN 03840 Tel: 800-627-7236 www.maptech.com)

Dr. John McGee, Geospatial Extension Specialist in the Department of Forestry, 231-2428, 210-E Cheatham Hall may be a consultant.

Official state lands database is now online (2003) at http://www.dcr.state.va.us./dnh/conslandindex.htm. For information contact Steve Carter-Lovejoy@dcr.state.va.us

Tom Holcomb 303-442-8800 of CommunityViz - GIS software about $300 for a "seat" with educational discounts

Perhaps you will share ideas with me
about some of the topic(s) above at
RHGiles@RuralSystem.com.

Maybe we can work together
... for the good of us all
... for a long time.
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