Spatial Institute Web Maps

Online Interactive Maps created by Institute Students, Faculty & Staff

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One of the main areas of interest over the last few years, both for ISIA and for the GIS community in general, has been the development of interactive, online mapping technologies. Beyond simply providing maps which allow users to pan, zoom and turn layers on and off, web maps can be used for spatial decision making support and for the collection of field data.

Below are some of the more recent projects that ISIA faculty, staff and students have been involved in. Click on images below to view the web-maps.

 

Western Washington University (WWU)
Interactive Campus Map

WWU Campus map
Campus Map for WWU
Main cartography and design by Josh Jones, 2011

The WWU Camps Map is an interactive map of the Western Washington University Campus, including Construction Updates, Accessibility information, the WWU Outdoor Sculpture tour, Food Services, Parking, Computer Labs and Bus and Bicycle information. The WWU map provides the user with the ability to create custom maps tailored to their interests (i.e., the Outdoor Sculpture Tour) and includes drop down selection menus to locate each building, department and key locations and services on campus. In addition, the map provides links to detailed information on individual buildings, parking information, construction updates, on-campus dining and more. Designed and developed almost entirely by WWU students working with ISIA, the map is an ongoing project as additional layers of information are being developed. This project was funded by WWU's Academic Technology & User Services (ATUS).

 

Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center (NWAC)
Avalanche Danger Forecast Map

NWAC map
Avalanche Danger Forecast Map for NWAC
Main cartography and design by Ben Kane, 2012

The Northwest Weather and Avalanche Center (NWAC) creates a daily regional forecast for avalanche risk for the Washington State and northern Oregon mountain regions. Each day NWAC produces a 'danger rose' for each region which displays the forecast levels of avalanche danger based on combinations of elevation and aspect (the direction a slope faces) for elevations between 3,000 and 7,000 ft. The web application developed for NWAC takes their daily forecasts for the different regions and displays this forecast via an interactive map. The map interface allows the user to view multiple dates (future and past forecasts) as well as to zoom to specific regions. The map also includes the NWAC's danger rose and a link to NWAC current forecast and more detailed information. This project was funded by the Friends of NWAC.

 

Toxic Release Inventory (TRI) Facility Risk Characterization (2000-2007)

TRI map
TRI Facility Risk Characterization Map (2000-2007)
Original cartography and design by Ryan Joyner, Sarah Oishi and Corey Holloran, working with Dr. Troy Abel, 2011
Revised design by Jacob Lesser, 2012

This application utilizes national data from the EPS's Toxic Release Inventory (TRI), EPA’s Risk Screening Environmental Indicators (RSEI), and methodologies from Kraft, Stephan, and Abel’s Coming Clean (2011) to spatially display the environmental performance of more than 8,000 manufacturing facilities.  Map users have the ability to visualize facility performance over time supported by an online database and map, to individually search for addresses, and to display a toxic release inventory information for different years.  TRI facilities are depicted as colored circles which correlate to a rating system that can be accessed through the map key. Smaller circles indicate fewer pounds released; larger circles indicate more pounds released. Green facilities represent polluters who are both producing less pollution and posing less risk to their neighbors than in previous years. Lower environmental performance is symbolized through yellow, orange, and red for facilities who are polluting more and/or posing greater relative risks. Users are also able to access an attribute table containing the facility name, location, identification number, pounds of toxins produced, and finally their RSEI relative risk score.  The use of color and size categorizations displays the EPA data in a way that is more accessible to an audience that may not be familiar with TRI data. Moreover, a time scale function allows viewers to perform a trend analysis between the years 2000 and 2007. The change of colors and sizes reflect increases or decreases in performance so the viewer will be able to see if a certain facility has been getting better or worse over time, or, if their neighboring industrial plants are getting safer and cleaner. This project is currently being expanded to include a wider range of dates.

 

Elwha Watershed Information

Elwha map
Elwha Environmental Data Map for the Elwha Watershed Information Resource
Cartography by Tyson Waldo, Zeck Donohue and Jacob Lesser, 2011, working with Dr. Michael Medler

In the early 20th century the Elwha and Glines Canyon Dams were constructed on the Elwha River, providing electrical power but blocking fish passage to the upper Elwha watershed. The process of removing these dams began in 2011, culminating decades of work negotiating and preparing for the largest dam removal in the history of the United States. The restoration of the Elwha River ecosystem also provides considerable challenges and opportunities for research: before, during and after the removal of the dams. The Elwha Watershed Information Resource integrates ecological and socioeconomic information that describes the physical environment, biological and human communities, and management issues in the Elwha watershed. The Elwha Watershed Information Resource was developed to support the management and recovery of the Elwha Watershed after dam removal. The Elwha Map provides environmental data (stream gauges, water quality, fish distributions, geology, zoning, etc.) for the Elwha watershed. This project was funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).

 

The Forgotten People: Uranium Mines and Water Sources within the Navajo Nation

FPPM map
Uranium Mines and Water Sources Map for the Forgotten People
Cartography by Robert Sabie, 2011, working with Dr. Troy Abel

The Forgotten People Dine' Be' Iina' na' hil naa (Dine’ Rebuilding Communities) is a non-profit community based organization dedicated to improve the well-being of the Dine’ people who live on the Navajo Nation in Arizona. Their mission is to help the Dine’ people have access to safe drinking water, sanitation, low-cost housing, solar electrification, sustainable agriculture, and economic development. This interactive web map provides information for some of the environmental features and hazards of the Navajo Nation in the Southwest USA, including Uranium Mines (active and abandoned), coal power plants and water sources. Data used in this project came from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Abandoned Mines Screening Assessment Report and Atlas. This project was done in collaboration with the Navajo Forgotten People.