The utility of a geographic information system in facility/land use-related opportunities and constraints analysis for the Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site

Conference · Sat Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1994

OSTI ID:103392

Stewart, J ^[1]

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1. S.M. Stoller Corp., Boulder, CO (United States)

Facility/land use-related opportunities and constraints analysis, which is indispensable for the evaluation of potential future uses for a site, is essentially spatial in nature. Spatial analysis is best accomplished using a geographic information system (GIS), as a GIS allows the identification and reporting or mapping of complex relationships among multiple data layers such as geology, soils, vegetation, contamination, and facilities. GIS-based maps and reports are valuable tools for communicating facility/land use-related opportunities and constraints to decision makers. This paper defines the term {open_quotes}GIS,{close_quotes}, provides an example of how a GIS could be used to conduct opportunities and constraints analysis at the Rocky Flats Environmental Technology Site (RFETS), and summarizes the benefits of using a GIS for this analysis. Because a GIS is often seen as a {open_quotes}black box{close_quotes} shrouded in technical jargon, this paper attempts to describe the concepts and benefits of a GIS in language understandable to decision makers who are not GIS experts but who migth profit from the use of GIS products. The purpose of this paper is to alert DOE decision makers to a valuable source of facility/land use-related information that already exists at many sites and that should not be overlook during the analysis of future use options.

• Research Organization: Pacific Northwest Lab., Richland, WA (United States)
• OSTI ID: 103392
• Report Number(s): CONF-9406226--; ON: DE95005084
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

05 NUCLEAR FUELS
29 ENERGY PLANNING, POLICY, AND ECONOMY
99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS
DATA COMPILATION
DECOMMISSIONING
EVALUATION
INFORMATION SYSTEMS
LAND USE
MAPS
ROCKY FLATS PLANT
USES