Forestry Analysis Presentation

To culminate the end of Project 4, Forestry, we were to take all the data a research that we have collected over the past few weeks and present it in a poster format. I believe clearcutting is good, but it must be properly managed.  Stands should be kept small, site preparation must be methodical, and it creates jobs which in turn stimulates the economy, especially in Georgia.

Click to open in Adobe Acrobat

Forestry Analyze Week - Cited Works

This week we continue our analysis of clearcutting and the effects it has on the economy, the ecology, and the aesthetics.  We are to list our citations of the articles that we are using to form our opinions of clearcutting that we will display next week.  The assignment was to list the citations using Chicago style formatting.  Now, I haven't had proper indoctrination in the different report styles that are required, so I'm not guaranteeing this is correct, but I think it is.

Harlow, R. F., R. L. Downing, D. H. VanLear. 2000.  Responses of wildlife to clearcutting and associated   treatments in the eastern United States. Department of Forest Resources Clemson University June 1997 Technical Paper No. 19 Posted February 2000

Beck, D. E. and R. M. Hooper. 1986. Development of a Southern Appalachian hardwood stand after   clearcutting. South. J. of Appl. For. 168-172.

Duffy, D. C. and A. J. Meier. 1992. Do Appalachian herbaceous under stories ever recover from clearcutting? Conserv. Biol. 6:196-201.

Elliott, K. J. and D. L. Loftis. 1993. Vegetation diversity after logging in the Southern Appalachians. Conserv. Biol. 7:220-221.

Johnson, A. S., W. M. Ford, and P. E. Hale. 1993. The effects of clearcutting on herbaceous understories are still not known. Conserv. Biol. 7:433-435.

Stienbeck, K. 1993. Vegetation diversity after logging in the Southern Appalachians. Conserv.
Biol. 7:221.

Stransky, J. J., J. C. Huntley, and W. J. Risner. 1986. Net community production dynamics in the herb-shrub stratum of a loblolly pine-hardwood forest: effects of clearcutting and site preparation. USDA For. Serv. Gen. Tech. Rep. SO-61. South. For. Exp. Stn., Orleans, LA. 11p.

Palmer J. F.  2008. The Perceived Scenic Effects of Clearcutting in the White Mountains of New  Hampshire, USA.  Journal of Environmental Management. Volume 89, Issue 3, November 2008, Pages167–183. College of Environmental Science and Forestry, State University of New York, Syracuse, New York 13210

R.H. Becker, 1983. Opinions about clear-cutting and recognition of clear-cuts by recreation visitors. Journal of Environmental Management, 17 (1983), pp. 171–177

R.G. Ribe. 2005. Aesthetic perceptions of green-tree retention harvests in vista views: the interaction of cut level, retention pattern and harvest shape.  Landscape and Urban Planning, 73 (2005), pp. 277–293

Varnedoe Jr. L. E. 1998.  Forestry on a budget. University of Georgia school of forest resources extension bulletin 1032. 5/1998 Revised May, 1998

Forestry Preparation Week - Assessing Clearcutting Activities

A new project was started this week and is covering the topic of forestry.   My experience in forestry can only be summed up in that I have been to a forest on many occasions and can identify only a few types of trees and plants.  Good thing I work in the utility industry.  Our project will be focusing on the environmental, economic, and aesthetic effects of clear cutting in a region of New Brunswick Canada.  The map below highlights the study area just south of the capital city of Fredericton.

Supervised Classification

Supervised classification involves creating a "seed" of spectral data that will be used as the core pixels for creating land cover classification. Unlike unsupervised classification, only minimal user interaction is needed.  Familiarity with the area is still an important aspect as the analyst still needs to know what land features are in the ares such as lakes, roads, urbanized and residential, forest (deciduous and/or conifer) and grass.

Holiday Road - Postcards from the Edge

As the opening credits of the 1983 classic National Lampoon's Vacation roll, a series of vintage postcards from around the country are shown. Did you ever wonder is those places were real? Most are and here is a look at ten of them as they are today. 

For our final week of web applications we were instructed to customize our previous web map, or even start with a new template.  I chose to to with a new template, the Storytelling Playlist.  I also changed the thumbnail to the postcard that is shown in the opening credits of the movie. and did some minor font adjustments like color and style.  I wish I knew more code, because this could turn into a fun little project.

http://students.uwf.edu/jdw47/SpecialTopics/StorytellingPlaylist/index.html

View Larger Map

Unsupervised Classification

Unsupervised classification is a process of classifying that uses a computational algorithm to "cluster" pixels of similar density.  Clusters are then classified by name by an analyst.  It is important the the analyst be aware of and familiar with the subject image.  The image below was originally clustered into 50 classes.  The analyst (me) then named each class and later merged all similar classes into only five remaining categories.

Web Maps

Web maps are fast becoming a useful tool in today's fast paced, instant information age.  Unfortunately, what is fast and instant for the end user, takes some very meticulous back end work on the part of the creator.  ArcGIS online allows for the visual sharing of geographical data and maps.  Click on the link below to view my web map.

http://students.uwf.edu/jdw47/SpecialTopics/Project3/index.html