Download a more detailed 1999 Canadian Coastal Conference Paper on this topic from The LMPDS Document Clearinghouse.

To allow an analysis of recession rates and land use to be conducted for the LMPDS, a Recession Rate Analysis System (RRA) was created, which is an expert system designed to undertake the priority determinations for recession rate data and to serve as a vehicle for cataloguing, monitoring and updating the entire database of related information (e.g., reach, land use, land use trend, etc.).

The RRA is a flexible and customizable system that integrates a powerful relational database management system (MS FoxPro) with a dedicated Geographic Information System mapping and visualization package (QuikMap) that will allow basic mapping and visualization of all query results.

The RRA system is a "living system" in that, a complete copy of it, with the data collected for the project was provided to USACE Detroit. This can then be used to run additional queries, and undertake additional recession rate assessments as new data becomes available, or as various data sets become revised (e.g., land use, shoreline classification).

It should be noted that the version of the RRA designed for Phase I of the LMPDS provided a basic level of functionality in order to address the query needs of the recession rate and land use analyses being conducted. While it was an excellent tool for doing this, there were some components of the program that needed further refinement. These have been addressed in Version 2.0 which was provided to USACE Detroit District in early October of 1998. Key changes in Version 2.0 include:

1. Update to the shoreline classification database as a result of the reclassification of the Lake Michigan shoreline; and

2. The addition of bluff height, slope and gully information as a result of the collection of this information.

Query capabilities of the system have been enhanced as a result of the addition of the new shoreline classification information.

Further refinement of the RRA is expected to include incorporation with ArcView and GeoMedia GIS viewers, as well as incorporation to the LMPDS models and GIS systems being developed.

A complete description of the RRA and examples of specific analyses conducted for the LMPDS are can be found in reports by VGI Vision Group International and Orca Technologies International that were submitted to USACE Detroit in 1997 and 1998.

A presentation on the background data that went into the development of the RRA can be found in the "Recession Rate - Land Use Analysis" presentation. The LMPDS Document Clearinghouse

1999 Activities and Modifications

In 1999, additional changes are being made to the system, which will be delivered as Version 4.0 to USACE Detroit. These include:

• The development of a Windows based GIS Viewer - QUIKMap for Windows - for data mapping and visualization (the original mapping system was a DOS based package);
• The development of a Great Lakes base map for the mapping system (the original system used a digital map of North America, which required users to then zoom into the Great Lakes region to view the mapping results);
• The revision of shore protection classification data in the prototype county areas to reflect the detailed inventory results of the Shore Protection mapping exercise;
• The addition (when available) of updated land use and land use trend information; and
• The inclusion of data for the U.S. shorelines of Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Niagara and St. Lawrence Rivers (being collected as part of the Lower Great Lakes Erosion Study conducted by USACE Buffalo District).
  

The development of Version 4.0 of the RRA using QUIKMap for Windows allows for easier integration and interface of the RRA with existing USACE GIS software systems and with the Flood and Erosion Prediction System being developed in ArcView for the LMPDS. For one, QUIKMap for Windows has been designed to import a range of existing GIS data formats including Arc Shape, Intergraph IGDS, MapInfo and CADD. This allows the user to supplement maps generated in an RRA query with data that may be available in other formats. The user can also create custom legends and add annotation to the resulting map display. Secondly, data contained in the RRA is contained in simple .dbf format (originally created in MS-Excel) and can easily be exported for use in other systems. For example, recession rate and shore classification data have been imported into the FEPS ArcView program developed by Baird & Associates. This allows display and visualization of RRA data along with other data products in the ArcView environment.

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