Here is our final map. What do you think?

The title should be changed to “Electricity Use in OWU Buildings.”

We decided to go with this for our pseudo-final layout.  Aside from our buildings, our other 2 layers are the unlabeled roads and a mostly transparent satellite photo.  This way the viewers can orient themselves and identify the buildings.  For the final layout make up it might be nice to have labels identifying the buildingw with the least and most consumption and try to explain why.  The title and key we put on usung Paint.

We chose the colors because the darker red colors can stand for intense burning (of coal) and the lighter colors are lighter. It seems intuitive.  We tried using symbols of different sizes to represent the electricity use of buildings, but the differences were hard to distinguish and the map was cluttered.

All the buildings energy use is corrected for building size (kWh/square footage).  With this we can see that buildings like Ham-Will, Corns, and the Science Center use a lot of electricity.

Investigating this will raise awareness on energy usage and highlight priorities for energy conservation on campus. Our group will graphically show the energy and heating use by building on campus. Our data comes from B&G utilities, ResLife housing information, and course enrollment from the Registrar’s office. With this supplementary data we can ask questions like what building costs the most to heat per square foot.

In ArcGIS, we will construct the map by drawing polygon features (on a different layer) over the orthophotos of campus. We can then assign values for each polygon (building) that include building data and utility data. We can then assign colors for particular values. For example, the buildings with the highest electricity bill will be redder and the lower bills will be bluer.

TIMELINE

• Mon, April 5 – Have comprehensive and consolidated data sheet that includes: building, number of residents/students, square footage, building age, annual electricity usage, annual heating usage.

• Wed, April 7 – Complete draft of Map in ArcGIS • Mon, April 12 – Beautify map. Make it aesthetically pleasing and decide which features to include on it.

• Mon, April 14 – Print Map.

• Sat, April 17 – Earth Day Delaware

• Have large map printed on poster board to present our findings
• Talk to visitors about ways energy consumption can be reduced in buildings, especially houses
• Some sort of Delaware statistic – i.e. If every house in Delaware reduced energy usage by 10% and weatherized their house it would save X million dollars.

• Parks/Preserves/Wildlife – Bohannon, Kraus, Blue Limestone, Mingo, Bicentennial, other City Parks, Delaware Preservation Parks, Delaware WIldlife Area and State Park, river access
• Environmental – marshes, forests, waterways…
• Outdoor recreation- bike/hike exercise trail – rails to trails, outdoor courts, sports fields, golf courses
• Consumer goods – fair trade products, local products, farmers markets (Sandusky and Fairgrounds), new local market
• Transportaation – bike racks, DATA Bus Stops, Park n’ Rides
• Misc – observatories
• Public Works – waste water treatment plant, dump, energy substation, Sims Recycling center, Price Farms Organic

Trails:

It is difficult to show that environmental injustice is happening on a large scale because in explaining is often relegated to isolated case studies.  The Delaware, PA study took a scientific approach to the situation and conclusively showed that environmental injustice was common.  Do you think it is far more common than we think?  If this study were duplicated in many areas, would they all yield the same results?  What about your hometown or Delaware County, OH?

The student Colloquium projects provided an excellent foundation for sustainable initiatives at OWU and projects for this class.  I particularly liked the rainwater harvesting section and the waste management section.  These could spawn two great projects for this class.

• What buildings would be easily adapted to rainwater harvesting systems?  They have to comply with state regulations (size), efficiency (slope of roof), and proximity to potential cistern sites and areas of intensive water use.  Using map overlays we could map the available buildings for conversion, the landscapes that use a lot of water, and feasible places to store rainwater.  With this map we could pick the ideal place for the system.
• What areas need more recycling bins.  Find the trash cans with the highest proportion of recyclables and all recycling bins and map them.  Are trash cans with high recyclable content far from recycling bins?  Where are the most effective places to put the limited number of bins?

http://maps.insideidaho.org/WebMapping/UIMoscowGreenMap/

On this interactive map (not powered by Google maps) you can view various “green” places on-campus and near campus.  Each location is marked by a symbol that is explained in the legend.  Symbols represent things like local green spaces, recycling centers, composting areas, and the campus sustainability center.  When you drag your mouse over any site a box pops up that gives you details about the area.  The further you zoom in , the more symbols pop up.

The map seems very useful, but it is clunky to use.  Any time you scroll over any site a box pops up.  Then when you go to use it , it follows your mouse and moves the map, making hard to start your searching over.

LOWER TEXAS COAST BIRDING TRAIL
“Birding Trails” are a popular  phenomena in anyplace with a distinct avifauna or high interest in birds.   All trails consist of birding hotspots on a map (usually in a pamphlet) marked with numbers.  The numbers correspond to text below the  map that  give information on what birds can be seen and that location and the best way to go about it.  They are especially useful for visiting birders.

DC TREE MAP
The city of Washington D.C. mapped out all of its trees on an interactive map.  You can click on any tree and it will give you the trees identity, morphological features, and biological features (i.e. carbon storage).  The map is slow and hard to use, but has great information. A similar system could be used to map the Jane Decker Arboretum.  Belo is an example from the DC tree map:

http://www.caseytrees.org/geographic/maps-tools/tree-map/index.php

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2006/06/18/getting_back_to_roots/

This is the first image that came up when I Google image searched "Jack Stenger". It is not me, although I could come to resemble this some day.

I am a senior zoology major.  I have a passion for all things pertaining to nature.   I will likely spend my life doing something that keeps me close to the environment or protecting it in some way. I  am taking this class because I had a ornithology field job this summer that heavily relied on GIS data.  I learned how to do some specific things with GIS, but have no general or stand-alone knowledge.  I am looking forward to seeing some creative ways to use GIS to address pertinent social and environmental issues.