F S A

advertisement
FOREST STEWARDSHIP
SPATIAL ANALYSIS PROJECT
METHODOLOGY REPORT FOR PENNSYLVANIA
DECEMBER 2006
COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA
DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION AND NATURAL RESOURCES
BUREAU OF FORESTRY
Gene F. Odato, Chief
PA DCNR, Bureau of Forestry
Rural and Community Forestry
RCSOB, 6th Floor
P.O. Box 8552
Harrisburg, PA 17105-8552
Phone: 717- 787-2106
Fax: 717-783-5109
email: godato@state.pa.us
Joseph R. Petroski, Forest Planner
PA DCNR, Bureau of Forestry
Forest Resource Planning
RCSOB, 6th Floor
P.O. Box 8552
Harrisburg, PA 17105-8552
Phone: 717-772-4766
Fax: 717-783-5109
email: jpetroski@state.pa.us
TABLE OF CONTENTS
List of Tables .................................................................................................................................. ii
List of Figures................................................................................................................................ iii
List of Acronyms ........................................................................................................................... iv
Introduction..................................................................................................................................... 1
Private Forestland ........................................................................................................................... 2
Forest Patch Size............................................................................................................................. 3
Wetlands ......................................................................................................................................... 4
Priority Watersheds......................................................................................................................... 5
Slope ............................................................................................................................................... 6
Proximity to Public Lands .............................................................................................................. 7
Threatened and Endangered Species .............................................................................................. 8
Riparian Areas ................................................................................................................................ 9
Public Water Supplies................................................................................................................... 10
Treat of Development ................................................................................................................... 11
Wildfire Risk................................................................................................................................. 12
Forest Pests ................................................................................................................................... 13
Analysis Mask............................................................................................................................... 14
Optional / Additional Data layers ................................................................................................. 15
Stewardship Potential ................................................................................................................... 15
State Stewardship Committee....................................................................................................... 17
Appendix....................................................................................................................................... 18
i
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1. Datasets used to derive private forestland. ...................................................................... 2
Table 2. Datasets used to derive forest patch size. ........................................................................ 3
Table 3. Datasets used to derive wetlands. .................................................................................... 4
Table 4. Datasets used to derive priority watersheds..................................................................... 5
Table 5. Datasets used to derive slope. .......................................................................................... 6
Table 6. Datasets used to derive areas that are proximal to public forest lands. ........................... 7
Table 7. Datasets used to derive threatened and endangered species. ........................................... 8
Table 8. Datasets used to derive riparian areas.............................................................................. 9
Table 9. Datasets used to derive public water supplies. .............................................................. 10
Table 10. Datasets used to derive areas threatened by development........................................... 11
Table 11. Datasets used to derive wildfire risk............................................................................ 12
Table 12. Datasets used to derive forest pests. ............................................................................ 13
Table 13. Datasets used to derive the analysis mask. .................................................................. 14
Table 14. Weights assigned to the twelve data layers in the overlay analysis............................. 15
Table 15. Criteria used to classify low, medium, and high areas of stewardship potential......... 16
ii
LIST OF FIGURES
Figure 1. Map of private forestland (grid name: privatefor). ....................................................... 2
Figure 2. Map of forest patch size (grid name: ps_f).................................................................... 3
Figure 3. Map of wetlands (grid name: wetlands_ra)................................................................... 4
Figure 4. Map of priority watersheds (grid name: psheds)........................................................... 5
Figure 5. Map of slope (grid name: slope_5_25).......................................................................... 6
Figure 6. Map of proximity to public lands (grid name: publicland). .......................................... 7
Figure 7. Map of threatened and endangered species (grid name: pnhp3). .................................. 8
Figure 8. Map of riparian areas (grid name: pa_strms_f). ............................................................ 9
Figure 9. Map of public water supplies (grid name: drnkwater). ............................................... 10
Figure 10. Map of areas threatened by development (grid name: threatdevelop). ..................... 11
Figure 11. Map of wildfire risk (grid name: wildfirersk)............................................................ 12
Figure 12. Map of forest pests (grid name: forhealth)................................................................ 13
Figure 13. Map of the analysis mask (grid name: analysismask). .............................................. 14
Figure 14. Output from the overlay analysis (grid name: finaloverly). ...................................... 16
Figure 15. Potential for forest stewardship in Pennsylvania. Cell values 0-2 represent low
stewardship potential; cell values 3-4 represent medium stewardship potential; and
cell values 5-12 represent high stewardship potential (grid name: finaloverly). ...... 18
Figure 16. Resource richness for Pennsylvania. Cell values 1-2 represent low resource richness;
cell values 3-4 represent medium resource richness; and cell values 5-9 represent high
resource richness (grid name: resrichness)............................................................... 19
Figure 17. Resource threats for Pennsylvania. Low threat values contain only 1 data theme
threat; medium threats contain 2 data theme threats; and high threats contain all three
data theme threats (grid name: resthreats). .............................................................. 20
iii
LIST OF ACRONYMS
PA
DCNR
DEP
PASDA
GIS
ESRI
SAP
DEM
NLCD
SCC
1
Pennsylvania
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
Department of Environmental Protection
Pennsylvania Spatial Data Access1
Geographic Information System
Environmental Systems Research Institute Inc.
Spatial Analysis Project
Digital Elevation Model
National Land Cover Datalayer
State Stewardship Committee
PASDA houses spatial data for Pennsylvania on a website (http://www.pasda.psu.edu).
iv
INTRODUCTION
The Spatial Analysis Project (SAP) is a Geographic Information System (GIS) tool
primarily designed to identify important forestland, forestland tracts under Forest Stewardship
Plans, and priority areas to concentrate future stewardship efforts. The objectives of SAP are to
1. promote strategic program delivery over traditional first-come, first-served basis;
address accountability for positive results on the ground, and
2. provide a standard, consistent way to assess the impact Forest Stewardship Plans
have on the forest resource in addressing regionally or nationally important issues.
The SAP is broken into two components: a suitability analysis for stewardship potential
and the spatial tracking of stewardship plan tracts. The purpose of this report is to document the
methodology used in the suitability analysis for Pennsylvania (PA).
Twelve key factors were determined to influence the suitability of land for stewardship
potential. Each factor is categorized as either a resource threat or as a contribution to resource
richness. The twelve factors are:
Resource Threats
Threat of Development
Wildfire Risk
Forest Pests
Resource Richness
Private Forestland
Forest Patch Size
Wetlands
Priority Watersheds
Slope
Proximity to Public Land
Threatened and Endangered Species
Riparian Areas
Public Water Supplies
In addition to the twelve factors above, an analysis mask was generated for the purpose of
excluding public land, surface water, and urban areas from the analysis. The twelve key factors
and analysis mask were overlaid in the GIS and used to generate a composite layer of Forest
Stewardship Program potential. This report describes how the twelve key factors, the analysis
mask, and the composite grid were generated.
1
PRIVATE FORESTLAND
Private forestland is depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from one data
source listed in Table 1. All forestland was queried from the National Land Cover Datalayer
(NLCD Classes 41, 42, 43, and 91). The analysis mask layer was then used to remove public
and urban forestland areas. Raster cells with values of 1 represent private forestland areas.
Areas that are not private forestland have raster cell values of 0. Figure 1 shows private
forestland in PA.
Table 1. Datasets used to derive private forestland.
DATASET NAME
National Land Cover
Datalayer
SOURCE
U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency
DESCRIPTION
Major land use classifications.
1
0
Figure 1. Map of private forestland (grid name: privatefor).
2
FOREST PATCH SIZE
Forest patch size is depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from two data
sources listed in Table 2. The private forestland layer and major PA roads were used to create
private forestland patches in PA. Major PA roads were buffered 15 meters on both sides, and
these buffer areas were converted to a 30 x 30 meter grid. All raster cell values from the private
forestland layer within the 15 meter road buffer were reclassified to zero. This created a grid of
private forestland patches for PA. The Region Group Tool was then used to identify forest
patches. Forest patches greater than 100 acres were extracted. Raster cells with values of 1
represent private forestland patches greater than 100 acres. Private forestland patches less than
100 acres have raster cell values of 0. Figure 2 shows forest patch sizes in PA.
Table 2. Datasets used to derive forest patch size.
DATASET NAME
National Land Cover
Datalayer
Major PA Roads
SOURCE
U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
DESCRIPTION
Major land use classifications.
Major roads in PA.
1
0
Figure 2. Map of forest patch size (grid name: ps_f).
3
WETLANDS
Wetlands are depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from one data source
listed in Table 3. Raster cells with values of 1 represent wetland areas designated by the national
wetland inventory. Non-wetland areas have raster cell values of 0. Figure 3 shows wetland
areas in PA.
Table 3. Datasets used to derive wetlands.
DATASET NAME
PA Wetlands
SOURCE
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service
DESCRIPTION
Wetland areas designated by the National Wetland
Inventory Data.
1
0
Figure 3. Map of wetlands (grid name: wetlands_ra).
4
PRIORITY WATERSHEDS
Priority watersheds are depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from two data
sources listed in Table 4. Designated impaired streams were overlain on PA’s watersheds. A
subset of watersheds was selected representing those that intersect an impaired stream. Raster
cells with values of 1 represent watersheds containing an impaired stream. Watersheds not
containing an impaired stream have raster cell values of 0.
Figure 4 shows the priority
watersheds in PA.
Table 4. Datasets used to derive priority watersheds.
DATASET NAME
PA Watersheds
PA Impaired Streams
SOURCE
DESCRIPTION
Pennsylvania small watershed boundaries indicated in
the PA gazetteer of streams. This dataset is titled
“ERRI – Small Watersheds.” Published on the
PASDA website from the PA Department of
Environmental Protection.
Impaired streams in PA obtained on September 18,
2006.
PASDA
PA Department of
Environmental Protection
1
0
Figure 4. Map of priority watersheds (grid name: psheds).
5
SLOPE
Slope is depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from one data source listed in
Table 5. Raster cells with values of 1 represent 5 - 25% slopes. Slopes less than 5% or greater
than 25% have raster cell values of 0. Figure 5 shows slopes in PA.
Table 5. Datasets used to derive slope.
DATASET NAME
30 m DEM
SOURCE
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
DESCRIPTION
A 30-meter digital elevation model generated by the
Bureau of Topographic and Geologic Survey for the
state of PA on December 4, 2006.
1
0
Figure 5. Map of slope (grid name: slope_5_25).
6
PROXIMITY TO PUBLIC LANDS
Areas that are proximal to public lands are depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid
derived from four data sources listed in Table 6. There are four major public forestland areas in
Pennsylvania: 1) Allegheny National Forest, 2) state forest land, 3) state park land, and 4) state
gamelands. Raster cells with values of 1 represent areas within a ½ mile buffer of public forest
land. Areas greater than ½ mile from public forest land have raster cell values of 0. Figure 6
shows the areas that are proximal to public forest land in PA.
Table 6. Datasets used to derive areas that are proximal to public forest lands.
DATASET NAME
Allegheny National
Forest Land
SOURCE
U.S. Forest Service
PA State Forest Land
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
PA State Park Land
PA State Gamelands
DESCRIPTION
National forest land in PA. The “land survey and
status boundary” shapefile was downloaded from the
U.S. Forest Service’s website at
http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/forests/allegheny/maps/gis/.
State forest land in PA. This dataset has been
maintained by the PA Department of Conservation and
Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry.
State park land in PA. This dataset has been
maintained by the PA Department of Conservation and
Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry.
State gamelands in PA. This dataset has been
maintained by the PA Department of Conservation and
Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry.
1
0
Figure 6. Map of proximity to public lands (grid name: publicland).
7
THREATENED AND ENDANGERED SPECIES
Threatened and endangered species are depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived
from one data source listed in Table 7. This data contains polygons representing environmental
review indirect conflicts of plant and animal species of special concern, exemplary natural
communities, and unique geological features. The data was extracted on October 31, 2006.
Polygons were developed based on buffering criteria assigned by the agencies with legal
jurisdiction for the species. Areas of special concern have raster cell values of 1. Areas that are
not of special concern have raster cell values of 0. Figure 7 shows the areas of special concern in
PA.
Table 7. Datasets used to derive threatened and endangered species.
DATASET NAME
Natural Diversity
Database
SOURCE
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
DESCRIPTION
Shapefile containing environmental review indirect
conflict polygons. This data is maintained by the
Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program.
1
0
Figure 7. Map of threatened and endangered species (grid name: pnhp3).
8
RIPARIAN AREAS
Riparian areas are depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from one data source
listed in Table 8. Riparian areas were established by buffering streams and rivers a distance of
300 feet on both sides. Areas within this buffer may or may not be forested areas. Raster cells
with values of 1 represent riparian areas. Non-riparian areas have raster cell values of 0. Figure
8 shows riparian areas in PA.
Table 8. Datasets used to derive riparian areas.
DATASET NAME
PA Streams
SOURCE
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
DESCRIPTION
Perennial streams and rivers in PA. This dataset has
been maintained by the PA Department of
Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of
Forestry.
1
0
Figure 8. Map of riparian areas (grid name: pa_strms_f).
9
PUBLIC WATER SUPPLIES
Public water supplies are depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from one data
source listed in Table 9. Surface drinking water supply points were buffered a distance of 5
miles, and ground drinking water supply points were buffered a distance of 1 mile. Raster cells
with values of 1 represent areas within drinking water supply buffers. Areas outside drinking
water supply buffers have raster cell values of 0. Figure 9 shows areas within public water
supply buffers in PA.
Table 9. Datasets used to derive public water supplies.
DATASET NAME
Surface & Ground
Drinking Water Supply
Sources
SOURCE
PA Department of
Environmental Protection
DESCRIPTION
Surface and ground drinking water supply points in
PA.
1
0
Figure 9. Map of public water supplies (grid name: drnkwater).
10
TREAT OF DEVELOPMENT
Threat of development is depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from one data
source listed in Table 10. Areas projected to be developed in the year 2030 have raster cell
values of 1. All other areas have raster cell values of 0. Figure 10 shows areas threatened by
development in PA.
Table 10. Datasets used to derive areas threatened by development.
DATASET NAME
Forests on the Edge
SOURCE
Colorado State University
DESCRIPTION
Data on developed areas for the year 2000 and
projected developed areas for the year 2030.
Downloaded from http://www.nrel.colostate.edu.
1
0
Figure 10. Map of areas threatened by development (grid name: threatdevelop).
11
WILDFIRE RISK
Wildfire risk is depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from one data source
listed in Table 11. High and very high wildfire risk levels have raster cell values of 1. Very low,
low, and moderate wildfire risk levels have raster cell values of 0. Figure 11 shows wildfire risk
areas in PA.
Table 11. Datasets used to derive wildfire risk.
DATASET NAME
Northeast U.S. Fire Risk
SOURCE
Maryland DNR Forest
Services
DESCRIPTION
Fire risk in the Northeast U.S. in the year 2000
indicated by five levels of risk (very low, low,
moderate, high, and very high). Only the two most
severe categories of risk (high and very high) were
used in the analysis.
1
0
Figure 11. Map of wildfire risk (grid name: wildfirersk).
12
FOREST PESTS
Forest Pests are depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from one data source
listed in Table 12. The dataset was queried for severe outbreaks of gypsy moth, forest tent
caterpillar, or hemlock wooly adelgid in the last ten years (1996-2006). Insect outbreak areas
have raster cell values of 1. All other areas have raster cell values of 0. Figure 12 shows forest
pest areas in PA.
Table 12. Datasets used to derive forest pests.
DATASET NAME
PA Aerial Sketch
Mapping I&D 19632006
SOURCE
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
DESCRIPTION
Aerial sketch mapping of insect defoliations in PA.
This data contains tabular information on year, agent,
severity, host, and acres.
1
0
Figure 12. Map of forest pests (grid name: forhealth).
13
ANALYSIS MASK
The analysis mask is depicted with a 30 x 30 meter raster grid derived from five data
sources listed in Table 13. Surface water (NLCD class 11), urban areas (NLCD classes 21, 22,
and 23), and public forest land have raster cell values ‘NoData’ (e.g., NULL). All other areas
have raster cell values of 1. Figure 13 shows the analysis mask for PA.
Table 13. Datasets used to derive the analysis mask.
DATASET NAME
National Land Cover
Datalayer
Allegheny National
Forest Land
SOURCE
U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency
U.S. Forest Service
PA State Forest Land
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
PA Department of
Conservation and Natural
Resources
PA State Park Land
PA State Gamelands
DESCRIPTION
Major land use classifications.
National forest land in PA. The “land survey and
status boundary” shapefile was downloaded from the
U.S. Forest Service’s website at
http://www.fs.fed.us/r9/forests/allegheny/maps/gis/.
State forest land in PA. This dataset has been
maintained by the PA Department of Conservation and
Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry.
State park land in PA. This dataset has been
maintained by the PA Department of Conservation and
Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry.
State gamelands in PA. This dataset has been
maintained by the PA Department of Conservation and
Natural Resources, Bureau of Forestry.
1
0
Figure 13. Map of the analysis mask (grid name: analysismask).
14
OPTIONAL / ADDITIONAL DATA LAYERS
There were no additional data layers added to this analysis.
STEWARDSHIP POTENTIAL
After the twelve data layers and the analysis mask were created, an overlay analysis was
performed to generate the composite grid. The output from the overlay analysis ranks the land
for stewardship potential.
The raster cell values for all twelve data layers are in a 0-1 format (a value 0 indicates ‘no
threat’ or ‘no resource richness,’ and a value 1 indicates a threat or contribution to resource
richness). Table 14 lists the weights assigned to the twelve data layers. Each layer was given
equal weight in the overlay model.
Table 14. Weights assigned to the twelve data layers in the overlay analysis.
FACTOR
Private Forestland
Forest Patch Size
Wetlands
Priority Watersheds
Slope
Proximity to Public Lands
Threatened and Endangered Species
Riparian Areas
Public Water Supplies
Threat of Development
Wildfire Risk
Forest Pests
WEIGHT
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
ESRI’s Spatial Analyst Extension was used for the overlay analysis. The Single Output
Map Algebra tool was used to sum the twelve individual data layer values across the state. Since
each layer was assigned equal weight and there were twelve input layers, the maximum value for
any given area was twelve. Figure 14 shows the output from the overlay analysis. High,
medium, and low stewardship potential levels were generated from the overlay analysis. The
15
criteria used to generate each level are shown in table 15. The Appendix contains three maps
summarizing the overlay analysis: 1) Potential for Forest Stewardship Program Benefits, 2)
Resource Richness, and 3) Resource Threats.
Figure 14. Output from the overlay analysis (grid name: finaloverly).
Table 15. Criteria used to classify low, medium, and high areas of stewardship potential.
Stewardship
Potential Level
Low
Medium
High
Cell Values
0-2
3-4
5+
16
STATE STEWARDSHIP COMMITTEE
The State Stewardship Committee (SCC) provided input through various stages of this
project. Their decisions were gathered at the August 2006 meeting and consisted of: 1) project
level decisions, and 2) individual data layer decisions.
The project level decisions dealt with broad decisions made about this analysis as a
whole. The SCC investigated whether or not additional data layers (beyond the twelve key
factors) should be analyzed.
Their knowledge, understanding, and experience with issues
specific to PA were used to make this decision. The committee also helped determine weights
for the twelve key data layers in the final overlay analysis. The methodology report and results
of the final overlay analysis were reviewed by the committee as well.
Several decisions were also made by the committee about specific factors and individual
data layers. When generating the slope data layer, the committee helped determine the range of
slopes to display in the analysis.
Several buffer distances were also decided on by the
committee, such as the buffer distances used to generate the drinking water supplies, riparian
corridors, and proximity to public land layers. When generating the forest patch size, the
committee determined the minimum size that defines a patch. The committee also decided on
which pests to include in the forest pest layer.
17
APPENDIX
Figure 15. Potential for forest stewardship in Pennsylvania. Cell values 0-2 represent low stewardship
potential; cell values 3-4 represent medium stewardship potential; and cell values 5-12 represent high
stewardship potential (grid name: finaloverly).
18
Figure 16. Resource richness for Pennsylvania. Cell values 1-2 represent low resource richness; cell values 34 represent medium resource richness; and cell values 5-9 represent high resource richness (grid name:
resrichness).
19
Figure 17. Resource threats for Pennsylvania. Low threat values contain only 1 data theme threat; medium
threats contain 2 data theme threats; and high threats contain all three data theme threats (grid name:
resthreats).
20
Download