Lab #6: Fire Hazard Model

            In order to create my fire hazard model for the Station Fire region, I retrieved data from various sources including, a digital elevation model, landcover data, and the perimeter of the station fire. First I analyzed the slope using the DEM and the spatial analyst tool. Next I reclassified the slope percentage grid in order to represent the corresponding NFPA Hazard Points for each slope range. Therefore, the areas with flat slopes have low hazard points, while the areas with steep slopes have higher hazard points. Slope is an important factor in predicting wildfires because a steeper slope has a greater risk of catching fire. However, land cover is a more important factor than slope when determining the fire risk of a region.

The second component of my fire hazard model was analyzing the land cover near the station fire perimeter. First I reclassified the FBO Fuel Codes in order to represent the corresponding NFPA Hazard Points for each group of land cover types. The five classes of fuel types were Non-Fuel (0), Light (5), Medium (10), Heavy (20), and Slash (25). The area within the Station Fire perimeter is dominated with land cover with high NFPA Hazard Points, implying that this area has a high fire risk.

The final component of this fire hazard model is a map of combined factors. In order to merge these two data sets, I used the raster calculator to add the slope and land cover data values. The final product shows the areas at greatest risk (highest NFPA Hazard Points) in red, orange, and yellow, while showing the areas with the least risk (lowest NFPA Hazard Points) in green and blue. After viewing the final map, it is apparent that the region within the Station Fire perimeter has a huge risk of being destroyed by wildfires due to its flammable vegetation and steep slopes.

The greatest challenge that I encountered when creating this model was the reclassification of the slope and land cover data. It was difficult to make decisions about how many classes to make and what ranges within those classes. Also when I encountered data with a different projection, I had to do some investigating in order to determine what projection and datum to convert the map to.

Citations:

"Digital Elevation Model of Los Angeles." Seamless Data Warehouse. USGS. <http://seamless.usgs.gov>.

"Station Fire Perimeters – GIS shapefiles." Los Angeles County Enterprise GIS. <http://egis3.lacounty.gov/eGIS/?p=1035>.

"Surface Fuels Data Files." Fire and Resources Assessment Program (FRAP). California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. <http://frap.cdf.ca.gov/data/frapgisdata/download.asp?spatialdist=2&rec=fmod>.

Lab #5: Suitability Analysis of Landfills

            Suitability analysis is an imperative process in city planning and ArcGIS is an ideal application to perform this form of spatial analysis. In the case of planning for a landfill site, public concerns and fears can have a major influence and should somehow be factored into the suitability analysis. Despite the fact that landfill construction is heavily regulated by countless local, state, and federal agencies, public perception is often the greatest obstacle due to the NIMBY (not in my backyard) phenomenon.

For example, the residents of Kettleman City near the Central Valley landfill are suffering from water and soil pollution and have assumed that the source of this pollution is the landfill. The source of this toxic water and resulting birth defects is still being investigated. Other sources, such as naturally occurring arsenic, are likely candidates for these health issues but the large scale of the landfill causes many people to assume it is responsible. Since landfills are often the only option for storing trash and garbage that accumulate in cities, it is necessary to build them reasonably nearby urban areas so that the waste can be transported easily.

            After completing the suitability analysis tutorial in ArcGIS, it was apparent that many factors must be considered in the placement of a landfill. However, this tutorial mainly covered topological features including distance, slope, soil drainage, stream basins, and land cover type. All of these features were analyzed and classified in order to provide clear maps representing a range of suitability. For example, the buffer tool was used to outline the region near the stream basin, which is strictly off-limits for landfills, and the gradient showed darker shades with increasingly distance from the water system. All of these factors were combined, using the raster calculator, to create a final analysis that optimizes suitability by region.

            Since landfills are a sensitive and sometimes hazardous land use, it is important to incorporate public perception into the suitability analysis. For instance, another factor that could be incorporated into this analysis of Gallatin County is the proximity to schools, parks, and neighborhoods. A map could be created in which these locations would be geocoded and plotted with a buffer zone surrounding these sensitive areas. This consideration could help avoid public protests and predicaments like the situation in Kettleman City.

            Suitability analysis is an invaluable tool when determining the placement of land uses, when combined with stringent government regulations created to protect the public and the environment. However, the human element must also be considered. Certain land uses such as wastewater plants, power plants, and landfills, inspire fear and concern in residents who are uneducated the high-level of safety maintained by these structures. Therefore in order to proceed with the expansion of the landfill in the Central Valley, the city needs to educate the public and approach a compromise to relieve public apprehension.

Citations:

Sahagun, Louis. "Feinstein, Boxer call for delay on plans to expand Central Valley Landfill ." Article Collections. Los Angeles Times, 10 Feb 2010. Web. 16 Feb 2011. <http://articles.latimes.com/2010/feb/10/local/la-me-toxic10-2010feb10>.

"Permitting Landfills and Disposal Sites." CalRecycle. California State Government. <http://www.calrecycle.ca.gov/SWFacilities/Permitting/FacilityType/Landfill>.

"Landfills: Hazardous to the Environment." Zero Waste America. <http://www.zerowasteamerica.org/landfills.htm>.

Quiz: Medical Marijuana Dispensaries

Although the protection of children is an important priority, the limitations put upon the location of medical marijuana dispensaries are absurd and unrealistic. As can be seen in the GIS map below, the buffer zone of 1000 feet surrounding all schools, libraries, and parks cover the a large percentage of the Hollywood area. Furthermore, the policy is rather vague in classifying “places where children congregate” so this buffer zone may actually be larger than depicted in this map

According to an article in the LA Times, medical marijuana dispensaries must abide by many restrictions including hours, on-site consumption, profitability, and the list goes on. After all of these restrictions have been enforced, city officials have also decided to limit locations of dispensaries due to public complaints. It seems as though parents fear that marijuana dispensary locations near their children’s activities pose a risk of their child being exposed to drugs. However, one must consider the fact that there are drug dealers and users all over a neighborhood like Hollywood offering much more dangerous drugs than marijuana. Instead of using the city’s funds to regulate medical marijuana, more time and money should be invested into the sale of drugs on the black market.

The map of dispensaries in the city of Los Angeles shows only a small fraction of locations due to the lack of information on the internet. This is probably represents the efforts of many dispensaries to maintain a low profile to avoid being shut down. The main drive behind this legislation is concerned parents and community members who assume majijuana is a dangerous drug simply because it is banned in the United States. Furthermore, they fail to recognize the advantages of government regulation as opposed to sale on the black market. Whether a child or teenager decides to use marijuana is largely dependent on their upbringing and less a factor of medical marijuana dispensaries. Black market marijuana is readily available in the vast majority of schools, representing an extremely close proximity and exposure to children.

Therefore a compromise should be made. In order to maintain a reasonable distance between children and marijuana users, a 500 foot perimeter should be established with very strict guidelines on what constitutes "a place where children congregate." Furthermore, restrictions must be made to limit radical citizens from erecting child-oriented places intentionally near a medical marijuana dispensary in order to force them out. This compromise would satisfy the reasonable contentions of parents while also preserving the rights of medical marijuana facilities and patients.

Citations:

http://www.canorml.org/prop/CBCWLA.html

http://www.losangelescannabisclubs.com/directory/#los_angeles

http://www.ci.la.ca.us/rap/dos/parks/parks.htm

http://www.marijuanadispensaries411.com/categories/Hollywood

http://notebook.lausd.net/schoolsearch/search.jsp

http://www.lapl.org/branches/Branch.php?bID=11
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/01/los-angeles-city-council-approves-pot-ordinance-requiring-1000-foot-buffer-zones.html#more

Lab Assignment #4: Digitizing in ArcGIS

Figure 1: Digitized Political Map of Iraq (1999)

Citation:

"Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection: Iraq Maps." The University of Texas at Austin. <http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/iraq.html>.