Month: October 2015

New Science and Citizen-Driven Land-Use Planning Book

/ Matt Artz / 2 Comments

The number of people living in the United States is expected to swell from 321 million today to just over 400 million by 2055, according to the US Census Bureau. Millions of additional acres will be needed for homes, schools, offices, and infrastructure to support the burgeoning population while conserving open space and preserving agriculture. Other countries face similar challenges.

The book teaches concepts and walks readers through how to identify potential land-use conflicts and make smarter land-use decisions using specialized methods and tools that complement Esri's ArcGIS.

The book teaches concepts and walks readers through how to identify potential land-use conflicts and make smarter land-use decisions using specialized methods and tools that complement Esri’s ArcGIS.

Technology is driving more of the decision making about which areas are suitable for urban development, agriculture, and conservation and how to resolve conflicts over land use. Advanced Land-Use Analysis for Regional Geodesign: Using LUCISplus, a new book published by Esri, teaches readers how to solve real-world land-use issues using geographic information system (GIS) technology from Esri and a land-use analysis process developed at the University of Florida.

LUCIS stands for land-use conflict identification strategy, a process for analyzing land-use suitability and resolving land-use conflicts. The methodology was developed by Paul D. Zwick and Margaret H. Carr of the University of Florida. LUCISplus analysis tools are powered by Esri’s geoprocessing framework, ModelBuilder, in particular.

The book teaches concepts and walks readers through how to identify potential land-use conflicts and make smarter land-use decisions using specialized methods and tools that complement Esri’s ArcGIS.

The book will help urban planners and GIS analysts who work in land-use planning and students enrolled in advanced GIS courses make well thought out land-use decisions rather than follow a plan as you go method.

The LUCIS strategy places a high priority on input from citizens and incorporates community values into the plans. For example, one of the tools mentioned in the book is the A4 LUCIS Community Values Calculator. “The LUCIS modeling of community values produces various land-use visioning alternatives,” the authors wrote. “LUCIS is a process of land-use planning and visioning, not prediction.”

Chapters cover many topics, including conflict analysis as a decision-making tool, land-use suitability automation tools, analyzing and mapping residential land-use futures, analyzing and mapping employment land-use futures, analyzing and mapping conservation and agriculture preservation and protection, and analyzing and mapping land use for natural disasters.

Advanced Land-Use Analysis for Regional Geodesign: Using LUCISplus was written by Zwick, former director of the GeoPlan Center and a professor of urban and regional planning at the University of Florida; Iris E. Patten, an assistant professor in the School of Geography and Development at the University of Arizona; and Abdulnaser Arafat, an assistant scientist for the Shimberg Center for Housing Studies at the University of Florida.

The book is a follow-up to the book Smart Land Use Analysis: The LUCIS Model (Esri Press 2007),written by Zwick and Carr, a professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture at the College of Design, Construction, and Planning at the University of Florida.

A video about the book is available to watch.

Advanced Land-Use Analysis for Regional Geodesign: Using LUCISplus is available in print (ISBN: 9781589483897) or as an e-book (ISBN: 9781589484337), 380 pages, $59.99. The book is available at online retailers worldwide, at esri.com/esripress, or by calling 1-800-447-9778. Outside the United States, visit esri.com/esripressorders for complete ordering options, or visit esri.com/distributors to contact your local Esri distributor. Interested retailers can contact Esri book distributor Ingram Publisher Services.

[Source: Esri press release]

Geographic Clustering of Elevated Blood Heavy Metal Levels in Pregnant Women

/ Matt Artz / 2 Comments

BMC Public Health, 2015, 15:1035

By Katherine E. King, Thomas H. Darrah, Eric Money, Ross Meentemeyer, Rachel L. Maguire, Monica D. Nye, Lloyd Michener, Amy P. Murtha, Randy Jirtle, Susan K. Murphy, Michelle A. Mendez, Wayne Robarge, Avner Vengosh, and Cathrine Hoyo

“Background: Cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), and arsenic (As) exposure is ubiquitous and has been associated with higher risk of growth restriction and cardiometabolic and neurodevelopmental disorders. However, cost-efficient strategies to identify at-risk populations and potential sources of exposure to inform mitigation efforts are limited. The objective of this study was to describe the spatial distribution and identify factors associated with Cd, Pb, Hg, and As concentrations in peripheral blood of pregnant women.

Cluster overlay for Cd and Pb. The white contour line represents the area of the highest probably of Cd clustering, while the black contour lines represent the highest probability of Pb clustering. The overlapping areas indicate high probability of both Pb and Cd clustering

Cluster overlay for Cd and Pb. The white contour line represents the area of the highest probably of Cd clustering, while the black contour lines represent the highest probability of Pb clustering. The overlapping areas indicate high probability of both Pb and Cd clustering

“Methods: Heavy metals were measured in whole peripheral blood of 310 pregnant women obtained at gestational age ~12 weeks. Prenatal residential addresses were geocoded and geospatial analysis (Getis-Ord G i * statistics) was used to determine if elevated blood concentrations were geographically clustered. Logistic regression models were used to identify factors associated with elevated blood metal levels and cluster membership.

“Results: Geospatial clusters for Cd and Pb were identified with high confidence (p-value for G i * statistic <0.01). The Cd and Pb clusters comprised 10.5 and 9.2 % of Durham County residents, respectively. Medians and interquartile ranges of blood concentrations (μg/dL) for all participants were Cd 0.02 (0.01–0.04), Hg 0.03 (0.01–0.07), Pb 0.34 (0.16–0.83), and As 0.04 (0.04–0.05). In the Cd cluster, medians and interquartile ranges of blood concentrations (μg/dL) were Cd 0.06 (0.02–0.16), Hg 0.02 (0.00–0.05), Pb 0.54 (0.23–1.23), and As 0.05 (0.04–0.05). In the Pb cluster, medians and interquartile ranges of blood concentrations (μg/dL) were Cd 0.03 (0.02–0.15), Hg 0.01 (0.01–0.05), Pb 0.39 (0.24–0.74), and As 0.04 (0.04–0.05). Co-exposure with Pb and Cd was also clustered, the p-values for the G i * statistic for Pb and Cd was <0.01. Cluster membership was associated with lower education levels and higher pre-pregnancy BMI.

“Conclusions: Our data support that elevated blood concentrations of Cd and Pb are spatially clustered in this urban environment compared to the surrounding areas. Spatial analysis of metals concentrations in peripheral blood or urine obtained routinely during prenatal care can be useful in surveillance of heavy metal exposure.”

On Regreening and Degradation in Sahelian Watersheds

/ Matt Artz

PNAS, 29 September 2015, Vol. 112, No. 39

By Armel T. Kaptué, Lara Prihodko, and Niall P. Hanan

“For decades, the science and policy narrative relating to the West African Sahel has focused on perceptions of overgrazing and human-induced desertification. More recent reports of regional-scale recovery (“regreening”) following the severe droughts of the 1970s and 1980s are sometimes ignored.

Averages of (A) seasonal iNDVI and (B) seasonal iR across the Sahel from July to October for the period 1983–2012. The figure also shows the location of the southwestern Niger [1], eastern Mali [2], western Mali [3], and northern Senegal [4] regions selected for further investigation.

Averages of (A) seasonal iNDVI and (B) seasonal iR across the Sahel from July to October for the period 1983–2012. The figure also shows the location of the southwestern Niger [1], eastern Mali [2], western Mali [3], and northern Senegal [4] regions selected for further investigation.

“This study provides a satellite-based evaluation of changes in watershed-scale vegetation conditions in four regions of the Sahel from 1983–2012. Though the results support earlier reports of a “greening” trend, our approach identified strong regional differences in the extent and direction of change, and in the apparent role of woody and herbaceous components in driving the temporal trend.”

Spatial Methods for Infectious Disease Outbreak Investigations: Systematic Literature Review

/ Matt Artz

ESEurosurveillance, Volume 20, Issue 39, 01 October 2015

By CM Smith, SC Le Comber, H Fry, M Bull, S Leach, and AC Hayward

“Investigations of infectious disease outbreaks are conventionally framed in terms of person, time and place. Although geographic information systems have increased the range of tools available, spatial analyses are used relatively infrequently. We conducted a systematic review of published reports of outbreak investigations worldwide to estimate the prevalence of spatial methods, describe the techniques applied and explore their utility.

Locations of outbreak investigations using spatial methods by country and continent (n = 80)

Locations of outbreak investigations using spatial methods by country and continent (n = 80)

“We identified 80 reports using spatial methods published between 1979 and 2013, ca 0.4% of the total number of published outbreaks. Environmental or waterborne infections were the most commonly investigated, and most reports were from the United Kingdom. A range of techniques were used, including simple dot maps, cluster analyses and modelling approaches. Spatial tools were usefully applied throughout investigations, from initial confirmation of the outbreak to describing and analysing cases and communicating findings. They provided valuable insights that led to public health actions, but there is scope for much wider implementation and development of new methods.”

Call for Presentations: Special GIScience Research Sessions, 2016 Esri User Conference

/ Matt Artz / 1 Comment

Transactions in GISEsri invites you to present a peer-reviewed paper in a series of special joint GIScience Research Sessions for the 2016 Esri International User Conference. Papers in this special track must focus on cutting-edge research in GIScience. Full papers will be included in a special issue of Transactions in GIS to be available online before the conference. Abstracts (≤ 500 words) must be submitted to Dr. John Wilson, University of Southern California, by 15th November, 2015.

The Transactions in GIS editorial team will review abstracts based on their GIScience content and select nine abstracts to become full papers. Notice of acceptance will occur by 1st December, 2015. Full papers (maximum 6,000 words plus figures, tables, and references in appropriate format for publication) must be submitted to Dr. Wilson for independent review by 9th January, 2016. Reviewed papers will be returned to authors by 12th February, 2016 and final manuscripts must be returned by 11th March, 2016, to be included in the special issue of Transactions in GIS.

For questions or additional guidelines on this special GIScience Research Track, contact Michael Gould at mgould@esri.com.

Abstracts should be submitted via e-mail with a subject line “Esri GIScience Abstract, Authors Last Name” no later than 15th November, 2015 to Dr. John Wilson, jpwilson@usc.edu.

Exploring Spatiotemporal Trends in Commercial Fishing Effort of an Abalone Fishing Zone: A GIS-Based Hotspot Model

/ Matt Artz

PLOS_ONEPLOS One, Published 20 May 2015

By M. Ali Jalali, Daniel Ierodiaconou, Harry Gorfine, Jacquomo Monk, and Alex Rattray
“Assessing patterns of fisheries activity at a scale related to resource exploitation has received particular attention in recent times. However, acquiring data about the distribution and spatiotemporal allocation of catch and fishing effort in small scale benthic fisheries remains challenging. Here, we used GIS-based spatio-statistical models to investigate the footprint of commercial diving events on blacklip abalone (Haliotis rubra) stocks along the south-west coast of Victoria, Australia from 2008 to 2011. Using abalone catch data matched with GPS location we found catch per unit of fishing effort (CPUE) was not uniformly spatially and temporally distributed across the study area. Spatial autocorrelation and hotspot analysis revealed significant spatiotemporal clusters of CPUE (with distance thresholds of 100’s of meters) among years, indicating the presence of CPUE hotspots focused on specific reefs.
Cumulative hotspot distribution map. Cumulative CPUE hotspot map overlays (based on the number of years that CPUE was clustered) for (A) Julia Bank and (B) Discovery Bay over LiDAR derived hillshade.

Cumulative hotspot distribution map. Cumulative CPUE hotspot map overlays (based on the number of years that CPUE was clustered) for (A) Julia Bank and (B) Discovery Bay over LiDAR derived hillshade.

“Cumulative hotspot maps indicated that certain reef complexes were consistently targeted across years but with varying intensity, however often a relatively small proportion of the full reef extent was targeted. Integrating CPUE with remotely-sensed light detection and ranging (LiDAR) derived bathymetry data using generalized additive mixed model corroborated that fishing pressure primarily coincided with shallow, rugose and complex components of reef structures. This study demonstrates that a geospatial approach is efficient in detecting patterns and trends in commercial fishing effort and its association with seafloor characteristics.”