Presentation Descriptions 2008

SPATIAL DATA MANAGEMENT

Oracle Spatial and Geospatial Application Development - Joel Lawhead

This presentation is by developers for developers to share valuable lessons learned about design decisions related to Oracle's geospatial platforms and ESRI's latest suite. Tips presented in this talk will save you time and money. One little-known secret presented here can easily save you the cost of attending this conference.

The Federated System Approach to Spatial Data Management - Damon Dougherty

A major component of data analytics is data conversion and migration. A new approach to managing data is the federate information management system. This technique of data integration will be presented along with supporting benefits. The session will introduce an emerging technique that can reduce the amount of time and the level of replication needed to support an enterprise integration strategy.

Metadata Workflows: Moving beyond Data Discovery - Bruce Westcott

The old paradigm of geospatial metadata production and use - User A discovers data documented by Producers B and C - is withered from lack of a business case. Justified only by government mandate, it lies outside the mainstream of geospatial processing. Open interfaces (OGC) and standardized schema (ISO) offer the promise of allowing metadata content to become a valuable and thoroughly integrated resource for geospatial applications. Think outside the old metadata box!

FIELD FORCE AUTOMATION/UTILITIES

The ROI of Field Force Automation - Kecia Pierce

As more workers have jobs in field services, mobile solutions have stepped in to take the corporate enterprise on the road. These solutions increase business productivity by shortening the data acquisition chain - the time it takes to obtain information and act on that knowledge. Improving the productivity of mobile workers has an impact on revenue, expenses, customer service, and therefore, competitive advantage. Real-world examples will be presented along with the resultant benefits.

Implementing and Using GIS in Water Distribution Systems - Jason Britton

The presentation will draw from my personal experiences at the Madison County Water Department setting up and using GIS. These can be applicable to large water systems or rural water systems. It will also include some shortcuts that can be used for water systems that operate on a smaller budget. Topics will include: reasons to implement a GIS in a rural water system; mapping and attributing facilities, mains, and valves; mapping estimated pressure zones; using aerial photography; providing maps to system operators; creating system upgrade plans; managing customer information, keeping your GIS up to date.

Opelika Utilities - Dan Hilyer

Opelika Utilities initiated a geodatabase design and pilot project to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their workflow. The project involved the development of a customized water distribution data model based on the ESRI ArcGIS Water Utilities Data Model, a geodatabase implementation of the data model, and an automated ETL tool to populate the geodatabase. In addition, attribute and domain lists based on the standard data model were installed on GPS equipment. Connections to other departmental data sources, such as the Billing System, Hydraulic Model database, hydrant flow data, and water quality data, were created. This presentation will describe the process and lessons learned in developing the data model and integrating GPS and ArcGIS technology.

UAV APPLICATIONS

Oblique Imagery in Homeland Security - Art Kalinski

All Marine Corps bases have been photographed with high resolution geo-referenced oblique imagery. The imagery is being used by security, base firefighters, other first responders, public works and public relations. This session will review the uses of oblique imagery by the Atlanta Regional Commission to support the National Guard during Katrina, UASI exercises, NGA/USGS projects, installation on Predator and Osprey aircraft for in-theater use and a real-time imagery download test with FEMA. Fire departments have been able to show a 30-90 second improvement in taking action to attack a fire by pre-planning on the way to the fire.

Benefits and Challenges of using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) in geospatial workflows - Robert Mott

As today's military and intelligence organizations deal with the challenges of the global war on terrorism and combating weapons of mass destruction and their proliferation, it has become increasingly important for them to expand their capabilities beyond the traditional technical means by incorporating new and improved methods for collecting and analyzing information about the battlefield. The rapidly expanding field of motion imagery provides some of these new and improved methods. Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been instrumental in recent years in providing real-time surveillance and operational support, and are now gaining greater popularity as a viable source of intelligence, with more attention being paid to post-collection analysis and integration with other forms of geospatial information. Additionally, many civilian branches of federal, state, and local governments are working to incorporate UAV video into their existing operations, and effective integration with other geospatial technologies is critical to making this transformation a success. This presentation will focus on the challenges and benefits associated with UAV video and will also address effective methods for integrating UAV video into traditional geospatial workflows, including the collection, management, enhancement, and visualization of the video.

BIM/GIS Integration

Integrating Building Information Models (BIM) and GIS Data with Spatial ETL - Don Murray

In the past, separate tools and systems were needed in order to leverage different types of spatial data. This session will explore how spatial ETL tools can be used to integrate a variety of different data types, including Building Information Modeling (BIM) data formats, such as IFC and CityGML. Using demonstration, we will illustrate several common "data fusion" scenarios. We'll also discuss how spatial ETL can be used to address critical data model conversion requirements.

"Digital Cities" - The convergence of CAD, BIM, Geospatial, Analysis, Visualization, Collaboration and Web Services in the Future - David Kingsbury

How will these digital tools, processes and data sources converge and compliment in the future? How will people, policies, projects and technology come together to better plan, design, construct and operate a more sustainable world in the future? This presentation will look at the emerging business of Digital Cities and examine the industry as it moves to better capitalize on this exciting time of convergence and opportunity.

TRANSPORTATION

Highway Development and Land Use Change - Alicia Potter

This study will present transportation routes in Madison County, Alabama and assess the land use change around those routes. It will also seek to determine the association of major transportation route alignments with the rate of land use conversion from undeveloped to developed land. Further, the study will assess what, if any, integrating strategies planners are adopting to thus create a tighter synthesis between transportation decisions and land use change.

Services Oriented Architecture Technology for Transportation Applications - Bruce Aquila

Services Oriented Architecture (SOA), with its use of loosely coupled, reusable components, promises more speed and agility in developing highly focused applications. This is important for any application built with a SOA. Key to SOA is the component Web services which are its building blocks. This provides an overview of SOA, discuss what a Web service is and addresses and looks at examples of Web services for transportation applications. The transportation Web services addressed will be for the areas of linear referencing, routing, and for straight line diagrams.

Franklin County Department of Transportation - David Palmer

Franklin County deployed a custom ArcGIS desktop pavement management system that has transformed the way they manage pavement projects and permitting for hauling on County roads. Adding the geographic approach to their workflow has created many benefits to the County's DOT including, the ability to communicate more effectively with decision makers, prioritizing where to spend money, and the ability to calculate the road condition index (RCI). This presentation will focus on the application's functionality and the return on investment realized.

MILITARY/INTEL/HOMELAND SECURITY

Use and demonstration of Explosive Safety Software (ESS) for Army Installation Planners - Beverly Richey

This demonstration will show ease of use of the ESS software for U.S Army installation explosive safety planning.

Redstone Arsenal Munitions and Explosives of Concern (MEC) Probability Assessment - Jason Watson

The purpose of this presentation is to demonstrate the advantages of producing a Munitions and Explosives of Concern (MEC) Probability Assessment. The assessment provides three forms of functionality. The first is a historic account of locations where MEC activities occurred at Redstone Arsenal. The second provides the probability of encountering an MEC item at a specific location. The third enables Redstone Arsenal to minimize funding expenditures by providing timely analysis of proposed construction and maintenance activities which allows for better planning in areas that contain a high probability. The assessment consists of two GIS vector layers with attribute data for Unexploded Ordinance (UXO) and Chemical Warfare Munitions (CWM). These layers give the user instant access to over 60 years worth of historical information and analysis for Redstone Arsenal MEC related activities.

WEB GIS

KML Generation Web Services - Steve McKinney

This presentation describes a Web service that dynamically generates a KML from user-selected layers. The service, originally designed on the Alabama Resource Management System for Virtual Alabama, uses computational geometry to generate thematic layers on the fly. Users choose map layers of interest and a KML is then made available to them for download. This discussion will show how quickly a novice user can utilize a Web service to locate and visualize thematic data layers of interest without having to use anything more than their browser and KML displaying application.

Interoperating geospatially over the web - Roger Harwell

The last few years have seen a surge of new geospatial technologies on the Web. Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo have created popular geospatial browsers with more and more geospatial analytical functionality. And, they provide an open API that has led to thousands of Web sites providing a level of integration with these browsers known as "mashups". At the same time, there has been enormous growth in the use and popularity of Web services (like OGC WMS, WFS, WCS) and formats (like GML and KML) that allow interoperability of geospatial data and functionality over the Web. These include various regional, national, and global SDI efforts like the European Union's INSPIRE initiative. This presentation will discuss both of these trends, and the opportunities they are providing in conjunction with one another.

Dynamic Access to Geospatial Information - Jesse Mardis

Internet-based GIS services and information repositories have not only increased the ease in which data can be retrieved and analyzed, but it has also increased the amount of geographic data that must be stored and managed. This presentation will describe the categorical drill down system of dynamic access of The Alabama Resource Management System's map layer repository, which houses over 60,000 map layers. This discussion will present a way to give users the ability to access large amounts of data dynamically, using the drill down structure to limit them to only what they need with greater speed and efficiency.

ENVIRONMENTAL

Alabama Underground Coal Mine Map Project - Dr. Richard Carroll

Over 4,000 underground coal mines have operated in Alabama since the late 19th century. Maps of over 2,000 of these mines are archived as paper copies at the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations. However, no current unified source exists to catalog the location and plan of these mines. The Geological Survey of Alabama is scanning the mine maps, developing a meta-database of map information, georeferencing the maps, and creating a GIS project. This GIS project will enable public, private, and governmental entities to assess safety and environmental risks during regional planning and development of communities, industrial facilities, public infrastructure, and new underground mines.

GIS Hydrological Flow Direction Grids - Joel Herr

Flow direction grids are a simple but highly effective way to visualize predicted gravity-driven water flow using ordinary maps. This presentation will cover the concepts behind creating flow direction grids using ESRI software and how they can be used in emergency management, utilities, and other areas where you may work. This talk will add a little-know but valuable GIS product to your toolbox.

The Digital Area Contingency Plan (DACP) - Lynn Ford

The Coast Guard Sector Mobile, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation, EPA, and many other contributors came together to create a resource that assists in the planning and response to oil spills. The Digital Area Contingency Plan (DACP) is an interactive computer based tool. This presentation will demonstrated how federal, state, and commercial partners worked together to create the DACP and the function and content of the DACP. The audience will be introduced to a tool that will be used to assist in the cleanup of oil spills in the Sector Mobile and minimize the environmental and ecological impacts.

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT 1

Natural Disaster Response - Ryan Pecharka

This is a description of a disaster event that occurred on a Sunday afternoon in which an F 3 tornado cut a diagonal path several miles long through Prattville, Alabama. The content will address organizations and methods of response, recovery and how GIS technology aided in the endeavors. This presentation will encourage listeners to be prepared for the types of disasters no one commonly thinks will ever affect them. The content is intended to encourage individuals and groups to take steps necessary to both protect and prepare themselves for such an event.

GIS and the Incident Command System - Kevin Bupp

DHS has mandated all entities involved in emergency management to become fully compliant with the National Incident Command System over the next couple of years. GIS is mentioned briefly in this mandate, however it does not provide guidance or standards related to GIS. This presentation will provide helpful information related to GIS and the NIMS Incident Command System (ICS). This presentation will benefit anyone working under NIMS more effectively use GIS for NIMS compliance.

Emergency Management - Melissa Mayo

Alabama has experienced impacts from several storms this year, though Gustav indirectly impacted the AEMA most. Alabama served as a shelter state, accepting over 12,000 evacuees from Louisiana. For Gustav, location maps of shelters were extremely important to decision makers. Real time hurricane tracking and storm information was distributed through Virtual Alabama. AEMA has also established Web service maps to provide additional disaster- related information to viewers. The case study showing how AEMA utilized GIS during the activation for Hurricane Gustav will reveal not only how traditional methods were used, but also how they were improved upon to assist AEMA with an effective response to the storm.

SPATIAL DATA INFRASTRUCTURE

National Critical Infrastructure Data Models - Geoff Zeiss

Open standards are a driving force of modern IT. The world's distributed operating system, the Web, is based on open standards. Another driving force of IT is open source software, and recently the Department of Defense recognized open source software as COTS, evening the playing field with proprietary. The open source licensing model has been extended outside of programming, to media, with Creative Commons licensing, and more recently data, where different licensing models are being assessed.

Applying New Server-based Spatial ETL to SDI and Data Clearing House Initiatives - Don Murray

With the recent emergence of server-based spatial ETL technology, anyone with access to a Web browser will be able to consume custom views of spatial data where, when and how they need to. This presentation examines the role of server-based spatial ETL in helping organizations participate in Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) initiatives and build spatial data clearing houses. Demonstrations will highlight two types of data distribution and transformation: real-time data streaming and self-service data download.

Providing Government Collaboration and Public Distribution via Spatial Data Infrastructures - David Holmes

Effective decision making relies on collaboration using current and accurate geospatial information between local, state, and federal levels of government, businesses, and the public. A Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI) provides a collection of technologies and policies to facilitate the availability and access to geospatial information. Progress in SDIs is being made in Europe due to the European Union INSPIRE initiative which is mandating government SDIs. This presentation will explore the drivers, benefits, standards, and technology of SDI.

Geospatial Beyond The Basement - Sam Bacharach

It is too soon to declare victory in creation of the US Spatial Data Infrastructure, but it is not too soon to start preparing for it. Mobile phones were built to overcome the limitations of location, sensors depend entirely on location for the relevance of their observations, and buildings have both external and internal location attributes. How we knit all of these things that have locations together is going to be key in quality of life, quality of environment, and our financial future.

GIS DATA INTEGRATION

Earth Science Information Discovery and 3D Visualization using NASA World Wind - Nadine Alameh and Patrick Hogan

NASA WorldWind is a three-dimensional geospatial information system and visualization technology developed by NASA, its partners and the open source community. This presentation describes the results of enabling WorldWind to discover earth science data from distributed catalogs (e.g GEOSS Clearinghouse) using OGC's Catalog Service for the Web. This effort represents a new direction in discovering and accessing geospatial information in support of decision making via an open source 3D visualization platform based on interoperability and OGC specifications. This presentation will not only demonstrate how to access and visualize distributed geospatial information in a 3D environment via OGC Web Services, but also how to exercise the OGC CSW protocol to discover data registered in distributed catalogs via keyword, geographic extent and more advanced search criteria.

Taking CAD Drawings into GIS: Finally an easier way! - James Murphy

Design work is done in a CAD system but you need to get the as-builts or designs into a GIS system. With today's CAD system you can design the new features and export to many GIS formats taking the cad object's properties right along with it, mapping the object properties to your attributes as defined in your GIS system. Being able to draw it once to keep the possibility of errors and time consuming of redundancy to a minimum is the goal of every geospatial technician. With the use of Open Source technology in CAD you not only design it once in CAD but in GIS as well, even connecting to native GIS format to analyze the surrounding area prior to the start of the designing process is possible.

City of Huntsville GIS Data: Have It Your Way! - Steve Perkins

The City of Huntsville GIS Division utilizes various GIS and CADD environments such as MGE/Microstation, FieldView, ArcGIS and GeoMedia to accommodate a diverse group of end users. Spatial ETL, SQL Server, Geoprocessing Models and Macros are used to integrate and convert between the different environments. The presentation will illustrate how the City has streamlined its GIS processes and workflows to increase efficiency and reduce redundant editing in multiple environments.

Nautical Mapping for the United States Army Corps of Engineers - John Merritt

In November 2007, USACE and 3001 completed the 2007 Flood Control and Navigation Book for the Lower Mississippi River. The data collection for a project of this scope included hydrographic surveys to determine shallow and project depth areas, stereocompilation and GPS to determine location, condition and ownership of all facilities, and GPS survey to collect locations of all navigation aids and wrecks. ArcGIS and MPS Atlas were utilized in the production of the maps and a similar effort is underway by the USACE on the Upper Mississippi River.

LOCAL & STATE GOVERNMENT ENTERPRISE APPLICATIONS

Using GIS to Prioritize Public Infrastructure Projects - Clifton Ogden

This presentation will cover the use of advanced spatial analysis techniques that can and have been used on large infrastructure programs to prioritize the construction of public projects. A case study of Metro Nashville's $80 Million Comprehensive Sidewalk Improvement program will also be presented. As a general concept, methods to model the needs and priority for construction public infrastructure such roadways, sidewalks as park will also be presented. This presentation will show general and specific examples of how to prioritize state and municipal infrastructure projects using GIS techniques.

Stewardship of Alabama's National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) - Phillip Henderson

The Alabama Office of Water Resources (OWR) is the data steward for Alabama's National Hydrography Dataset (NHD). The NHD is the most comprehensive digital statewide network of surface water features created by the USGS, EPA, and the USDA Forest Service. GIS technology is vital in providing the platform necessary for us to display, analyze, maintain, and edit Alabama's NHD. Partnerships are currently being established in order to update and analyze waterways at the local level.

GEOSPATIAL ISSUES

Sensors Join Geospatial / As Built World - Sam Bacharach

Open standard interfaces and encodings make it possible for every sensor and every part of a building to be a geospatial feature. Live sensor inputs can now be fused with geospatial coverages and detailed 3D urban models derived from CAD, LIDAR and other sources. Open standards with a common location foundation enable users to find, access, fuse and use almost any kind of information about the built environment. This presentation will show attendees how existing products can work together - through standards - to deliver information products and services that combine diverse kinds of information such as sensor outputs, 2D and 3D building models, and geospatial information.

Airborne Digital Camera Technology and a Highly-Automated Enterprise Orthophoto Production System - Mostafa Modani

The demand for geospatial data, especially imagery and orthophotos, has been steadily increasing. Governments, private companies, and individuals use geospatial data to make better and faster operational decisions. Photogrammetry production shops are increasingly under pressure to reduce the cost of their jobs. This means they need better image acquisition systems and software products that have higher performance and many automation tools working in a multi-user environment. Moving to an enterprise solution is the best approach to bring the production processes under control. For an enterprise production, a highly-automated and integrated photogrammetric system is demanded. In order to increase production efficiency, the system should be able to perform many tasks of a photogrammetric workflow automatically, to visually display input/output data, and to show the progress and results of all operation. Intergraph's DMC Digital Mapping Camera System is used as an example to explain the operational procedures and the data workflow. This paper also describes Intergraph's PixelPipe concept, a highly-automated orthophoto production system. PixelPipe is intended to address the needs of producers of large volumes of orthophotos, including distributed processing technologies, queue editing, and image enhancements.

GIS Integrated into the Geomatics Program, Troy University, Alabama - Dr. Steve Ramroop

The role GIS plays in Geomatics spans across the various measurement sciences that is under the umbrella of the Geomatics field. The Surveying and Geomatics Sciences at Troy University prepares graduates that are experienced in all branches of the Geomatics profession. This includes and are not limited to: Surveying; Construction Engineering; Land Law; Hydrology; Photogrammetry & Remote Sensing; and such like. Graduates have a good foundation understanding of the data source, its definition, projection systems, error analysis, least squares adjustment, and such like, that plays a critical role in the effective and efficient use of GIS applications. In this paper, the integration of the various branches of Geomatics with GIS, is presented from an academic standpoint.

INTEROPERABILITY & MOBILE APPLICATIONS

Open Standards, Open Source, and Open Content - Geoff Zeiss

Governments are developing data models for the exchange of data about critical infrastructure for emergency planning, security, and first response. Non-governmental organizations such as LandXML.org, Open Geospatial Consortium, and the International Alliance for Interoperability (IAI) have adopted domain specific open standards for data exchange. In this panel discussion experts from standards organizations, government, and industry will discuss the proposed government data models, how they related to open standards, and their implications for local government.

Sharing Geospatial Data Across the Enterprise - Jason Briley

As the demand for geospatial data continues to increase the GeoPDF file format is pioneering digital data workflows that bridge the technology divide between geospatial professionals and the rest of the world. In today's information age it is not enough that our geospatial data is accurate, readable and understandable. Today, geospatial data must also be accessible, useable and dynamic. The biggest barrier facing the geospatial community today is a lack of tools to help everyone not only view interactive mapping data, but also to be able to collaborate with other users whether or not they are GIS enabled.

ENTERPRISE APPLICATIONS

A GIS-based Web Reporting System - Xutong Niu

With the support of ArcGIS Server, integrating dynamic maps into a Web-based reporting system becomes possible. This presentation discusses several technical issues and solutions in the development of a dynamic web reporting system for Alabama Resource Management System (ARMS). This reporting system is currently under development by integrating technologies of ArcGIS Server and Crystal Reports. The purpose of this system is to provide users of ARMS with a set of effective tools to interact with data and visualize various statistics. Several methods of integrating ArcGIS Server and Crystal Reports will be introduced. We will focus on technical solutions to implementation issues related to database organization, report design, and dynamic map display in crystal reports. A comparison between Crystal Reports and Reporting Services will also be discussed based on their cons and pros.

Northrop Grumman's Real-time Collaborateve Planning Capability - Jack Tombrella

The Real-time Collaborative Planning (RCP) capability developed by Northrop Grumman is achieved by combining Service-Oriented Architecture and Event-Driven Architecture using an Enterprise Service Bus allowing for the implementation of both concepts. This approach provides a unique ability to enable distribution capabilities in an efficient manner that a single architectural paradigm cannot. This product will enable warfighters to use different planning systems to collaboratively interact.

NASA Facilities and GeoSpatial Integration - Roy Interrante

The Facilities Management Office at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center uses many enterprise databases for operations and maintenance. However, many of these databases are independent from each other and have no spatial reference. A Web application and data integration techniques were developed that integrate disparate data sets, and provide a spatial perspective of tabular data. This presentation will reveal how a data modeling approach to data integration can lead to the proficient development of an integrated GIS solution.

EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT 2

The Advantages of Mobile Weather Systems for Emergency Preparedness and Response - Joe Millard

Mobile, satellite downlink of life-saving weather information enables emergency management agencies to accurately track inclement weather conditions, such as hurricanes, severe storms and tornadoes, at street-level. The Mobile Threat Net system provides near real-time, localized radar, hurricane tracks, buoy information, wind shear and more. Dual-redundant reliability and an S-Band satellite signal from XM WX Satellite Weather allow continuous data delivery to the system, preventing rain fade due to heavy rain and hail.

OWR: Using GIS to help create disaster resistant communities! - Wardell Edwards

The State of Alabama's Office of Water Resources is a division within the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs. OWR uses GIS applications on a statewide scale for a number of purposes. This study focuses on how OWR uses GIS techniques to maintain and enhance the quality of life of the communities in Alabama. Our Floodplain Management Branch uses GIS applications to update the states' flood maps and to research data for our Safe Dams Initiative. OWR's community outreach programs are designed to educate the public about the specifics of our floodplain management program. With GIS, OWR is able to help create and maintain disaster resistant communities!

Using Spatial Analysis Tools with Weather and Climate Data Using Spatial Analysis Tools with Weather and Climate Data - Greg Gaston

Spatial Analysis can provide powerful tools that improve the understanding of historical and natural patterns. Spatial Analysis tools have not traditionally been a large part of the analysis techniques used with weather and climate data. This research reports on ongoing efforts between the National Weather Service Forecast Office in Huntsville and the Geography Department at the University of North Alabama to further develop the application of spatial analysis tools to weather and climate data in the Huntsville forecast area. Specifically, we explore the patterns of tornados in the forecast area from 1874-2006, and discuss the use of spatial analysis tools to estimate the impact of historic storms to current conditions. Other ongoing research projects such as using warning boxes generated from severe storms to assess historic storm patterns will also be discussed.

ArcGIS Server Products - Kevin Stewart

GISi has developed a suite of ArcGIS Server products that offer organizations a practical way to transition from desktop to server. Data Viewer, Map Book Generator, and Data Download each serve as a single application that can apply to multiple users or departments. Data Viewer is centered around one application with multiple views (for department) with stored queries for each tab. Map book empowers users to author and publish their own map books. Data Download allows users to download data of a specified extent and file format (even CAD). This presentation will showcase three custom ArcGIS Server applications designed to ease organizations in the transition from desktop to server.

Water System Management - Phillip Henderson

Many of Alabama's water systems serve rural communities which are in need of some type of map showing their water systems' networks. In many cases, if maps exist, they are old and outdated because they usually were created when the water systems were first built. Most do not have digital maps of any kind. The Alabama Office of Water Resources (OWR) is meeting these challenges by using GIS and GPS technology. OWR is creating a digital GIS map of the infrastructure of this precious resource. Standardized GIS formatted files, tables, and symbol sets have been created to produce the model necessary for digital GIS mapping of the State. This mapping project will provide the infrastructure needed to make key decisions so that the impacts of natural disasters such as droughts are minimized and economic development is supported. It will also provide for the coordination and maintenance of the digital infrastructure of the water systems across the State. Much of the field work will be conducted over the next three years by the regional planning commission throughout the state. OWR will serve as the repository for this project and will create a digital GIS map for Alabama water systems. GIS technology has made it possible to create a digital GIS that will enable water systems to plan development and better serve customers by being able to quickly locate water lines and other features. In addition, this statewide project will assist in determining the best connection routes among systems to aid in sharing water during times of crisis or shortages. Fire departments also can use it to locate existing hydrants and determine the best sites for future hydrants to improve fire safety and help reduce home insurance rates. This project will also provide the data needed to make key decisions to protect and restore water supplies threatened by natural disasters such a hurricanes and droughts.