|
|
Geographic Information Systems and Geoinformation Techniques
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) represent a revolution in the way spatial data can be captured, processed, analyzed, displayed, and stored for future retrieval. Maps have always been an essential tool for planners and decision-makers, and GIS have greatly enhanced the ability to process and make easily accessible all types of geographic information By linking GIS to relational databases, for example, large sets of data can be made accessible to analysis and retrieval, allowing for the inclusion of comprehensive natural resource and socioeconomic information for planning and decision-making for sustainable development. Two technologies related to GIS are remote sensing and global positioning systems (GPS). Remote sensing techniques allow for the compilation of extraordinarily detailed images of the Earth's surface through satellite imaging, with which of up-to-date inventories of urban sprawl, natural disasters such as forest fires and floods, assessments of vegetation vigor, and of many other natural resources data can be produced. GPS are very precise instruments for locating exact coordinates on the Earth's surface, which they do by reading satellite signals. The information generated by both of these technologies can then be incorporated and processed using GIS. A GIS can be an important component of a decision-support system (as is the case for ALES or CRIS), or in fact can constitute a decision-support system on its own, as it can allow for modeling of different scenarios, and the integration of several layers of information with stakeholder requirements. A GIS allows for the essential functions of geographical analysis to be exercised and related to decision support requirements for management. Managers can use this to build models of systems and then use the models to assess the impact of each of a series of potential decisions. GIS technology can help establish cross-sectoral communication - by providing not only very powerful tools for storage and analysis of multisectoral spatial and statistical data, but also by integrating databases of different sectors in the same format, structure and map projection in the GIS system. With information that records the location of many different properties of the earth, it becomes possible, to use a GIS to relate vegetation cover to infrastructure. In land use planning, for example, a GIS can be used to find the location of vegetation types of commercial or conservation interest to be left intact, and to suggest alternative areas suitable for developing housing with minimal ecological impact, and maximal protection from natural hazards such as floods, forest fires, etc. A GIS can be useful both for solving emergency situations created by fire or flood, or for longer-term planning based on the comparison of the distribution of natural resources at different dates, which allows for the estimation of rates of change or consumption. GIS has become a cost-accessible technology (for example, free GIS software is available over the internet), and the collective experience of developed and developing countries in setting up and using GIS has become a reliable asset for making good decisions in choosing strategies for implementing these systems in the Caribbean SIDS. One of the main information management concerns for Caribbean SIDS is the standardization of data collection and software systems. In many instances, the type of software that has been used in the past has been decided on a project-specific basis by the international agency that implemented the project. There has been no national policy on standards in GIS utilization. This has resulted in a fragmentation of data and system types, impeding the integration of data into larger datasets and the universal access to coverage data. GIS expertise is another challenge. Caribbean governments do not have enough people with GIS expertise to develop effective systems. Evidently, the training and development of awareness about GIS and its potential amongst government officials is paramount. A study done in 1998 under the Caribbean Planning for Climate Change (CPACC) Project (Review of GIS Capability and Needs in CPACC Partner Institutions) concluded that the countries under the program had several commonalties in terms of GIS equipment and strategies of development, with differences at the level of advancement. Thus, countries with relatively advanced GIS capacity and coastal databases included Barbados, Belize, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago; countries with functional GIS but little coastal GIS databases included the Bahamas, Dominica, Guyana, Saint Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines; countries with GIS equipment but limited GIS databases or expertise include Antigua & Barbuda, Grenada, and St. Kitts & Nevis. Recently, governments in the region have placed emphasis on the use of GIS, particularly for land use planning purposes, and have established GIS units within several critical ministries. An example of this is Jamaica's National Environmental and Planning Agency (NEPA), which ranks as one of the most advanced institutions in the region in terms of GIS capacity. Ideally, GIS systems and data would be standardized across the region, interlinked, and made accesible through the internet for the sharing of geographical information. Links to sites relevant to GIS and sustainable development CDMP Natural Hazard
Mapping Resources Page CHAMP Inventory of Hazard
and Vulnerability Assessment Maps and Data Data Collection and
Automation in GIS Workshop Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations (FAO) GIS and Sustainable Development
GeoCaribe PROCIG - Central American
Geographic Information Project Use of GIS and Remote
Sensing Techniques in the Sustainable Agricultural Management and Development.
The Indian Experience.
The Draft Proceedings of the Regional Training Workshop on
Methodologies for Coastal Inventories & Information Management.
|
||
|
[Home] [Menu] [Summary] [Pilot Network] [Documents] [Indicators] [Events Calendar] [Training Materials] [Press Releases] [Suggest Links] [Contact Us]
© 2004 Unit For Sustainable Development and Environment. Organization of American States |