SITE ANALYSIS
-Dick WaltonDEFINING YOUR SITE
Your first step might be to establish boundaries for your site. You may want to locate temporary markers and/or make use of relatively permanant existing features of the site (large trees, building perimeters, sidewalks, or brooks).If someone has a GPS unit, you will be able to define boundary points accurately with latitude and longitude numbers. http://www.gpsworld.com/ Devise a way to measure the square footage of your site. Calculate the distances between the "home site" and major wetlands, industrial areas, and/or transportation routes. (Who volunteers to write a small program to calculate the area, assuming straight line borders, based on a series of lat/long points? )
PUTTING YOUR SITE IN CONTEXT
Obtaining Maps:
State, county, and local maps will be helpful to define the general location of your site. Also useful will be Department of the Interior maps. Severial series (scales) are available. USGS (United States Geological Survey) 7.5 minute series topographic maps are a good choice. These are published by quadrangle (eg. Concord Quadrangle, Massachusetts-Middlesex County) and provide information on wetlands (brooks, streams rivers, and ponds), land relief (elevation), urban area, railroads and highways, as well as significant buildings at the time of publication.General information: http://info.er.usgs.gov/
Map Retail Outlets: http://mapping.usgs.gov/esic/usimage/dealers.html
Additional Map Resources: Terraserver & MapQuest Terraserver offers subscriptions for a variety of numbers of days for satellite images (by zip code, for example). You can get drawn maps from MapQuest when you type in your zip code. You can scroll in all directions to explore your surrounding and use a navigator to obtain an aerial view of the same location.
Locating Your Data:
Divide your map into a grid of squares. Number and letter the coordinates. These should be referenced in your data collection. Attach to GPS, if possible. MapTap Atlas (http://www.mobilegeographics.com/maptap/) looks promising.
Inserting Maps in your Palm:
Convert the map to .pdb with Fireconverter or another application that converts to Palm OS. Transfer to your handheld.
CHARACTERIZING YOUR SITE
The Big PictureA description of the area in the immediate vicinity of your site will provide baseline data for future comparisons. Define a circle with your site at the center and having a radius of between .25 and .50 miles. Describe general land use patterns within the circle (see below). If possible, obtain data for specific points, data such as population statistics, daily traffic figures, and major manufacturing or industrial sites. A less detailed description of the land use outside this circle will also be useful. Are there areas that might be critical to conditions on your site if there is a change in the way the land is used?
By Biomes
One way to describe the earth's large natural areas is by using the concept of biomes. Each biome is defined by its predominant vegetation type as well as various environmental factors (seasonality, average temperature, precipitation etc.) and "indicator" organisms (plant and animal). One such scheme includes 5 major biomes: aquatic, grassland, forest, desert and tundra. Determine which major biome provides the context for your site.
Each major biome is typically divided into various types. Forest biomes may, for example, be described as tropical, temperate, or tundra. Determining and describing the category into which your site best fits provides a generalized biological context.
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/glossary/gloss5/biome/Refining the Big Picture
While the biome and biome categories provide a general framework for understanding, a more detailed characterization of your site will be useful. If you have determined that your site is within the temperate forest biome the next step is to define the forest type. North America can be divided into various forest communities. Typical Eastern forests are northern hardwoods, beech-maple, oak-hickory, and southern mixed pine-oak. Each specific forest community is characterized by plants and animals often referred to as "indicator" organisms. Research how to identify these indicator organisms, and characterize the natural community of which your site is a part.
What plants and animals would have been characteristic of this biome in it's natural (pre-developed) state? In what ways has it been changed by human activity? Any facts you can uncover regarding yor land's history will give you a better appreciation of it. Local histories, published journals, and departments of deeds and taxation may provide rich resources for your research.
Let's collect some data! Data Collection Strategies
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