Citation:

SEMMENS, D. J. AND D. C. GOODRICH. PLANNING CHANGE: CASE STUDIES ILLUSTRATING THE BENEFITS OF GIS AND LAND-USE DATA IN ENVIRONMENTAL PLANNING. Presented at International Conference on Hydrological Perspectives for Sustainable Development, Roorkee, INDIA, February 23 - 25, 2005.

Impact/Purpose:

The primary objectives of this research are to:

Develop methodologies so that landscape indicator values generated from different sensors on different dates (but in the same areas) are comparable; differences in metric values result from landscape changes and not differences in the sensors;

Quantify relationships between landscape metrics generated from wall-to-wall spatial data and (1) specific parameters related to water resource conditions in different environmental settings across the US, including but not limited to nutrients, sediment, and benthic communities, and (2) multi-species habitat suitability;

Develop and validate multivariate models based on quantification studies;

Develop GIS/model assessment protocols and tools to characterize risk of nutrient and sediment TMDL exceedence;

Complete an initial draft (potentially web based) of a national landscape condition assessment.

This research directly supports long-term goals established in ORDs multiyear plans related to GPRA Goal 2 (Water) and GPRA Goal 4 (Healthy Communities and Ecosystems), although funding for this task comes from Goal 4. Relative to the GRPA Goal 2 multiyear plan, this research is intended to "provide tools to assess and diagnose impairment in aquatic systems and the sources of associated stressors." Relative to the Goal 4 Multiyear Plan this research is intended to (1) provide states and tribes with an ability to assess the condition of waterbodies in a scientifically defensible and representative way, while allowing for aggregation and assessment of trends at multiple scales, (2) assist Federal, State and Local managers in diagnosing the probable cause and forecasting future conditions in a scientifically defensible manner to protect and restore ecosystems, and (3) provide Federal, State and Local managers with a scientifically defensible way to assess current and future ecological conditions, and probable causes of impairments, and a way to evaluate alternative future management scenarios.

Description:

A well-established protocol for planning environmentally sustainable development has yet to be agreed upon. Experiences from two highly-studied basins in the United States illustrate some early attempts, their successes, and the obstacles that continue to impede widespread adoption of environmental planning. The first, located in a heavily-populated humid region, has emphasized improvements to water quality and aquatic habitat to sustain the quality of life enjoyed by residents in the face of large projected population growth. Analyses are concentrating on detailed characterization of surface waters, and evaluation of the costs and benefits of various development strategies in terms of their impacts on water quality. The second, located in a semi-arid region, is focused on achieving sustainable yield from finite groundwater resources, and in doing so preserving perennial flow in one of the regions last free-flowing desert rivers. Analyses have concentrated on detailed characterization of the regional groundwater system, and evaluating the costs and benefits of alternative strategies for reducing current water-table declines. In both cases, GIS and remotely-sensed land use data is playing, or has played, a central role in facilitating scientific analyses and environmental decision-making.

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