Fire Mapping

Discussion

This project continues to show how GIS can be used to allieviate and determine hazards areas like the Station Fire. It address the relationship between slope and fuels to assess how vulnerable an area is to fire. To begin creating my own fire assement maps I downloaded perimeter, DEM, vegetation, and other supplimental data such as roads and county shapfiles. The DEM data was downloaded via the USGS Seamless Server, and the U.S Forest Service provided the vegetation data. Most of the supplemental data was obtained from the Census Tiger Line Shapefiles.

After downloading the data, I created the hill shade and the slope from the DEM file I downloaded. I then proceeded to convert the vegetation data into raster format and reclassify it with similar classifications as table 2 in the tutorial. Shrub, Conifer, and Mixed wood were the highest risk to fire, with Urban, agriculture, and barren land being the least suseptible to fire. This is shown in the Fuel Risk map shown in the bottom right hand corner of “Fire Assements Maps for the Station Fire and Surrounding Areas”. To create the Slope/Fuel Risk map I used the raster caluclator to add the fuel risk to the percent slope. This map shows that as the slope increase so does the risk of fire, and since the flat ground is usually asscoiated with a populated area with no trees, vegetation tends to increase with slope as well.

One problem I encoutered with this map was initally aquiring all the data, putting it in one place, and sorting through it to see what is needed. Another problem I ran into was deciding exactly what to portray through the map, the project was vague and therefore we could go in any direction we wanted. My goal was to make a map that was simple but not boring, complex but not overwhelming.Finally, one technical problem I had was getting the slope percent to work, even though I kept choosing the percent button within the interface it kept spitting up decimal numbers,I tried many different avenues but kept coming up with the same result.

Through this map and the spatial analyst of GIS we now understand the potential for fire in the Station Fire area. This map and maps like these can help address some of the potential risks that arise in certain areas. Although somewhat frustrating this lab helped me to understand the data in a completely different way.

Fuel Classifications:

Herbacious	1	Light
Shrub	2	Medium
Conifer	3	Medium
Mix	4	Heavy
Hardwood	5	Heavy
Barren, Water, Agriculture, Urban	0	Non-Fuel

Landfill Suitability Analysis

Discussion

In the debate of birth defects in relation to proximity to the landfill in Kettleman City, CA. U.S senators, Fienstein and Boxer called for a halt on the plans to expand the landfill until all the results are in on the investigations of birth defects in the area. The residents of this area demanded further study of the “ impacts of decades-long exposure to pollutants, including smog and particulates, pesticides used in fields, arsenic in the water and the hazardous wastes processed at the landfill” ( LA times article). In issues such as these GIS techniques can help to investigate.

In this week's lab we ran Suitability Analysis for potential sites for new landfills in a fictional country. A suitability analysis looks to identifying areas and locations for given land use possibilities. This analysis uses the characteristics of land, water, and soils of the country to determine the proper location for this landfill. It also considers factors such as wilderness areas,and heavily populated areas that would be considered in a real world situation.

For the issue in Kettleman City, it would be in the county's best interest to conduct a suitability analysis that interpreted the suitability of the area that the landfill would be expanded to. However, there are some underlying issues that would need attention before conducting a suitability survey of the expanded landfill. First, there is the debate that the original landfill is already causing health issues. Some argue that safety violations within the facility have occurred and therefore the facility is not fit to expand when it cannot even regulate it' s now smaller facility. The residents of the area are concerned that the birth defects that have occurred over a 22 year period are related to the proximity and exposure to the landfill and its pollutants. Officials concluded that the birth defects were not higher then expected in relation other communities. For this debate it would be good to map out birth defects across the country and their relationship to power plants, and landfills.

However, one problem with GIS and map making is that interpretation is often left up to the viewer. If you are mother who just lost their child to birth defects and then find out that a landfill is nearby it is easy to jump to conclusions and claim the landfill is the culprit. Also, GIS may show trends that are not really there and vice versus, some of these techniques are interpretive and depending on the map maker may vary. One, final problem with GIS is that it does not interpret which factors matter more, is it better to put a landfill on a slightly elevated site with non-permeable soil or is it better to put the site on flat land when the soil is more permeable? These are questions that the interpreters of the maps must answer, and unlike a simple math equation the answers are not always clear. Such as the situation with Kettleman City, birth defects are nothing to take lightly, and the proposed expansion of the landfill should be halted until all possible investigations are held. The GIS suitability analysis would be a step in the right direction in making sure that all future landfills, power plants and things of that nature are located the best possible places with the right soil, away from water tables, land elevation, slope of elevation, etc...

Finally, I think that this article on Kettleman City is a bit unreasonable. The article, as well as the residents jump to the conclusion that the landfill is the cause of bad drinking water and also cause of birth defects. It is hard to draw these conclusions without scientific proof. However, since this issue mustn't be taken lightly it would be wise to halt the expansion of the landfill until all appropriate analysis are done including a GIS suitability analysis

I am in favor of the LA city councils decision to set new rules for the dispensaries. The 1,000 foot buffer around schools will curtail the explosion of the medical dispenaries that having been popping up like weeds lately.However, this may also lead to something like the "sex offender effect" that areas with less schools, parks,and libraries will become overpopulated with theses dispensaries. In conclusion, I agree that there needs to be rules for theses dispensaries such as closing their doors after 8pm or regulating them as far away as possible, however we must take into consideration the issue that since LA county is full of schools that we may regulating these places out of site but not out of mind as these dispensaries will only be somebody else's problem. The NIMBY effect.

In favor of LA City Council decision of medical marijuana dispensaries

Lab 4- Digitizing