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GIS Development Structure
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The objective of this task is to assess the status and objectives of the USACE Great Lakes Coastal Zone GIS and provide recommendations for successful future expansion, as well as how information and data generated in the LMPDS can be incorporated and made consistent. Recommendations are to include strategies to facilitate broad and diverse GIS access and data distribution and design specifications for a GIS configuration that provides maximum efficiency for storage, management and analysis of a wide variety of data types and volumes. The contractors performing this work - PlanGraphics and GRW Engineering - completed a systems needs and requirement analysis to evaluate: - the extent, capacity and shortcomings of the existing USACE GIS including hardware, software and data;
- USACE Staff capacities, technical and administrative controls over available datasets and training needs to support the "target system"; and
- the magnitude and extent of data sets that will need to be incorporated in the future GIS.
They have also completed a systems design and configuration plan, including: - database configurations to incorporate shoreline digital orthophotography, terrain data, parcel mapping, coastal geomorphology and structure development data;
- guidelines for the conversion of existing Intergraph MGE-Informix format data to a Oracle-reference base and to incorporate data delivery via Intergraph GeoMedia and ESRI's ArcView;
- an evaluation of GIS software and hardware requirements; and
- a long-range implementation plan.
Review drafts of the above two items were submitted to USACE Detroit in late August 1998. A final report, entitled, "Requirements for Coastal Zone GIS Operations at the Hydraulics and Hydrology Branch" was prepared and submitted on January 11, 1999. Copies of this full report can be requested from Roger Gauthier, Detroit District USACE. An Executive Summary is presented below. Requirements for Coastal Zone GIS Operations at the Hydraulics and Hydrology Branch Plan Graphics and GRW Consulting Report, January 11, 1999 |
Executive Summary
At present, GIS Activity within the H & H Branch of the Detroit District, USACE, is focused on a support role for other units within the District and for the IJC. This support role takes the form of: 1) collecting and maintaining essential data about the shoreline of the US portion of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence River System, and 2) providing cartographic support through the production of high quality maps and illustrative graphics. While quite valuable to the District and the citizens, this role does not fully capitalize on the District's investment in staff, systems, or data. Nor does it fully meet the needs of the Branch, cooperating agencies, or the IJC for data and analysis of the coastal zone. This study recommends: | | | | | Restructuring the existing Coastal Zone database to better fit the needs of Branch and District users, participants in the Lake Michigan Potential Damages Study (LMPDS), and other potential users. This will involve moving to more accessible data management technology, pulling data now in isolated files together into an integrated database, and documenting the contents so that potential users can clearly tell what is available and how to use it;
| | | | | | | | | Integrating the significant investments in raster images of aerial photographs, Digital Raster Graphics, and other images into the Coastal Zone Database. This will allow easy retrieval and utilization of this data, initially by Branch staff but ultimately by the general public through an NSDI Clearinghouse node.
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Based on recommendations in the above report, Detroit District initiated a series of data conversion activities. In 2000,previous recession rate and shore classification mapping was converted from QuikMap format to ArcView format. In addition, reaches in the five prototype counties were renumbered using more recent and detailed mapping information. Similar work will continue throughout 2001 and 2002 to produce county-by-county ArcView projects. Click to return to the GIS Analyses Home Page.
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