Coastal GIS Activity Report
David Hart
April to October 2003
Coastal GIS Advisory Services – Madison Office (A/AS-1-DH)
Supervised work by Ted Quinby on the development of websites to serve GIS data for the
Lake Michigan (http://ortho.lic.wisc.edu/) and Lake Superior
(http://ortho.lic.wisc.edu/Welcome_superior.html) coasts of Wisconsin.
Supervised work by Ted Quinby on the development of a Lake Superior Circle Tour web
mapping site. A preview version of the website can be accessed at:
http://coastal.lic.wisc.edu/gwiz_mapserver/circletour/client_index.php.
Supervised work by John Alliet on the development of the Lake Michigan Bathymetry
Explorer, an educational web site (http://coastal.lic.wisc.edu/lmbathy/lmbathy.html) for
exploring the underwater features of Lake Michigan.
Acquired updated digital parcel mapping and tax assessment data from Racine, Ozaukee,
Sheboygan, Manitowoc, and Brown Counties to advance calculation of the value of land
and improvements along the Lake Michigan coast of Wisconsin.
Facilitated coordination of the planning for two public meetings on coastal hazards
outreach in Bayfield County.
Met with Jill Hewitt, a doctoral student at UW-Milwaukee, to discuss the use of digital
elevation data to assess wetland restoration projects. Reviewed methods to develop a
triangulated irregular network (TIN) from digital topographic mapping developed for
Ozaukee County. Discussed the usefulness of this TIN for floodplain modeling with staff
of the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Planning Commission, WDNR, and the county.
Met with Helen Sarakinos of the River Alliance of Wisconsin to discuss the use of GIS to
prioritize dam removal to restore streams in the Lake Michigan watershed of Wisconsin.
Continued communication with Wayne Wright of NASA and Ulf Gavert of the National
Park Service about a potential project to collect terrestrial and nearshore LIDAR data for
the Lake Michigan coast.
Acquired GIS data from Amy Benson of the USGS Center for Aquatic Resources Studies
to update maps of the diffusion of aquatic invasive species in Wisconsin and the Great
Lakes region.
Conducted journal article reviews for the Coastal Management Journal and the Journal of
the Urban and Regional Information Systems Association.
Agreed to conduct reviews of reports/proposals/books for NOAA and other federal efforts
in October and November.
Served on the Committee for State Cartography, Wisconsin Land Council – Land Use
Element Guide Team, and WCMP Coastal Hazards Work Group.
Implementation of Comprehensive, Dynamic GIS for Coastal Management: Linking
Agencies for Better Decisions and Public Information about the Coastal Zone
(A/AS-49)
GIS and Coastal Smart Growth. Supervised work by Lea Shanley on the use of GIS to
support smart growth in coastal areas.

Continued development of the coastal management content of the Community
Planning Resource (http://planning.lic.wisc.edu – password protected). The CPR is a
comprehensive web site for use by Wisconsin communities to support smart growth
planning. It will provide a myriad of resources to support comprehensive planning,
including information on the planning process, and tools to foster community
engagement and exploration of local maps and data. It will also include a web
template that communities can use to support citizen involvement in its planning
efforts. CPR is now being tested in a couple Wisconsin communities, including Iron
County on the Lake Superior coast.
Coastal GIS Training Models. Supervised work by Brea Lemke on the development of
GIS training exercises to support stormwater management.

Revised and updated GIS training exercises utilized at the “GIS Tools to Support
Stormwater Management” workshop at the Fox-Wolf Watershed Alliance Stormwater
2003 Conference on March 6, 2003 in Green Bay. The GIS exercises demonstrate LTHIA (Long-Term Hydrologic Impact Assessment) developed by Purdue University;
BASINS (Better Assessment Science Integrating Point and Nonpoint Sources)
developed by the Environmental Protection Agency; ISAT (Impervious Surface
Analysis Tool) developed by the NOAA Coastal Services Center; and SLAMM
(Source Loading and Management Model) developed by Robert Pitt and John
Voorhees. This information is available at http://coastal.lic.wisc.edu/stormwater.
Wisconsin Marine Management Areas Inventory—NOAA, National Center for
Marine Protected Areas
A project assistant, Andrea Finch, has been hired. Andrea is pursuing a Masters in Water
Resources Management and has previous experience with NOAA concerning marine
protected areas. Met with WCMP and WDNR staff to discuss completion and use of the
inventory. Reviewed MMA inventory efforts by Pennsylvania and Georgia. Developed
an initial list of sites in Wisconsin.
Developing a Dynamic and Distributed GIS to Support Coastal Management Along
the Lake Superior Coast of Wisconsin—NOAA Coastal Services Center
Administration
 All the paperwork has been processed on the University’s side and an active account
for the project has been established.
 A project assistant, Carola Blazquez, has been hired. Carola is pursuing a doctorate
in Civil and Environmental Engineering. Her past experience includes GIS for
transportation management and collaboration on a booklet on shore protection for
Great Lakes property owners.
 We are in the process of finalizing a subcontract for services from Mark Miller with
JumpStart GIS, Inc.
Development of Web Mapping Interfaces and Tools to Support Public Access to Local
Government GIS Data
 A kickoff meeting was held with staff from the four Lake Superior coastal counties
(Douglas, Bayfield, Ashland, and Iron) on July 10. The objectives of the meeting
were to:
o Review project objectives/methods with local government land information staff.
o Gain a better understanding of where counties are in contemplating or
implementing web mapping.
o Discuss technical and institutional issues that may be encountered during the
project.
o Schedule design and development of county web mapping sites.
o Discuss strategies for working with other potential project partners.
 Bayfield County has implemented a Land Records Viewer using the open source
MapServer software developed by the University of Minnesota. It can be accessed at
http://www.bayfieldcounty.org/LandRecords/mapviewer_start.htm
 Ashland County has hired Applied Data Consultants of Eau Claire to develop an Arc
IMS site. The site should be finalized by mid-October.
 David Hart and Mark Miller met with Iron County staff on September 9 to discuss
developing a web mapping site. The initial focus would be on recreational trails (xcountry ski, ATV, and snowmobile). Contacted meteorology specialists at the
National Weather Service and the University of Wisconsin-Madison to explore the

possibility of integrating snow cover and precipitation data with local web map
services.
David Hart and Mark Miller met with Douglas County and City of Superior staff on
September 10 to discuss developing a web mapping site. Douglas County has some
institutional issues to address before starting. The City of Superior is interested in
developing a web mapping site similar to that of Bayfield County.
Development of Web Mapping Services that Support Integration of Disparate GIS Data
Across Political Boundaries
 A limited number of state and local government web mapping sites in Wisconsin have
began to explore the steps necessary to support interoperability. These include the
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Kewaunee County, and Fond du Lac
County. David Hart has started to write a white paper that will provide assistance to
local governments who would like to make their web mapping sites interoperable.
 Created a web site of Wisconsin internet mapping sites that is accessible at
http://coastal.lic.wisc.edu/wisconsin-ims/wisconsin-ims.htm.
Development of Tutorials and Workshops that Demonstrate how Interoperable Web
Mapping Services can be Utilized to Analyze Coastal Smart Growth and Hazards Issues
 A first draft of a tutorial have been written to demonstrate how to use interoperable
web mapping sites to integrate federal (FEMA), state (DNR), and local (Fond du Lac
County) data sets to address floodplain management concerns.
Use of GIS to Support Decision-Making About Coastal Management
Along the Lake Michigan and Lake Superior Coasts of Wisconsin—Wisconsin
Coastal Management Program
Met with WCMP staff to discuss project administration and progress.
Reviewed the efforts of state coastal management directors and OCRM staff to develop a
national system of coastal performance indicators.
GIS and Performance Indicators for Wetlands. Supervised work by Karen Tuerk on use
of Wisconsin Wetlands Inventory data to produce summary statistics for wetlands in
coastal counties.
GIS and Performance Indicators for Public Access. Supervised work by Karen Tuerk to
use DNR managed lands data and local parcel data to produce summary statistics of
public lands in coastal counties and to use network analysis to evaluate accessibility of
coastal sites.
Data Acquisition and Integration for Coastal Hazard Damage Assessment—Corps
of Engineers, Detroit District
Continued work on the production of historical digital orthophotos for Kewaunee,
Milwaukee, Racine, and Kenosha Counties using the Orthomapper software developed by
Prof. Scarpace, as well as the delineation of the bluffs toes and tops from current and
historical orthophotos.
Web-Based Tools for Development Impact Assessment and Comprehensive
Planning—Wisconsin Coastal Management Program
Discussed the development of a web mapping site to support implementation of the
comprehensive plan for the Town of Gibraltar in Door County. The Town is nearing
completion of a “Smart Growth” planning project with the assistance of the Bay-Lake
RPC. Developed a web mapping service for a land use inventory of the Town prepared
by the Bay-Lake RPC. Discussed the possible county role in hosting web mapping
services that would support the Gibraltar plan with Tom Haight, Door County land
information coordinator.
Configured a Dell server with Arc Internet Map Server. The server will be transferred to
the Bay-Lake Regional Planning Commission to serve as a regional pilot node for the
Wisconsin Land Information System. Land use web mapping services and websites were
developed for Sheboygan County and Marinette County.
Coastal Erosion on the Great Lakes: Using Remote Sensing and Geovisualization
for Public Education—NASA/Institute for the Application of Geospatial Technology
Met with Mark Harrower and State Cartographers Office staff to discuss project
administration and progress. Purchased upgrades to 3D visualization software (World
Construction Set v6 and Visual Nature Studio v2). Reviewed a comprehensive inventory
of GIS data sets necessary for the project. Consolidated GIS data sets for Ozaukee
County and provided to SCO. Provided guidance for the development of a digital terrain
model from Ozuakee County topographic mapping.
GIS Training
Teach an Introduction to ArcView class at LICGF on April 8-9. 4 attending.
Participated in meetings at LICGF to plan the development of a Web GIS training class.
GIS Presentations
None.
Meetings/Conferences
Attended the Planning Committee meeting for the Town of Gibraltar, Door County on
April 1.
Attended the Kewaunee County Land Information Office Committee meeting to discuss
the Kewaunee/Bay-Lake RPC WLIS Pilot Node Project on April 2.
Met with WCMP staff to discuss coastal performance indicators on April 4.
Attended the Environmental Monitoring Seminar on April 4.
Met with Ted Koch, AJ Wortley, and Mark Harrower to discuss a coastal visualization
proposal to NASA/IAGT on April 4.
Met with Ted Koch, AJ Wortley, and Mark Harrower to discuss a coastal visualization
proposal to NASA/IAGT on April 11.
Attended a meeting to develop a Web-Based GIS Training Course at LICGF on April 24.
Attended Sea Grant Week in Galveston, TX from April 27-30.
Attended a meeting with WCMP and LICGF staff to discuss progress on Web-Based
Tools for Development Impact Assessment project on May 5.
Attended a meeting to discuss progress on the Kewaunee/Bay-Lake RPC WLIS Node
project on May 7.
Met with Phil Moy in Manitowoc to discuss developing updated maps for the diffusion of
aquatic invasive species on May 7.
Attended the Sea Grant Committee on Advisory Services meeting on May 16.
Met with staff of the Bay-Lake RPC to discuss web-mapping capabilities at LICFG on
May 20.
Attended meetings to discuss progress on the Kewaunee/Bay-Lake RPC WLIS Node
project in Kewaunee on May 27.
Attended the Committee on State Cartography meeting in Madison on May 28.
Attended the Great Lakes Sea Grant Network meeting in Burlington, VT from June 7-11.
Attended a committee meeting to prepare a guidebook for the Wisconsin Smart Growth
Land Use Element on June 13.
Met with Tom Haight, LIO for Door County to discuss interoperability of web mapping
services in Sturgeon Bay on June 17.
Attended meetings to discuss progress on the Kewaunee/Bay-Lake RPC WLIS Node
project in Kewaunee on June 18.
Coordinated a conference call to plan public educational meetings on coastal hazards in
Bayfield County on June 27.
Met with Jill Hewitt and Ken Potter to discuss assessment of wetland restoration projects
in Ozaukee County on July 1.
Met with Ted Koch, AJ Wortley, and Mark Harrower to discuss a coastal visualization
proposal to NASA/IAGT on July 7.
Coordinated a conference call to plan public educational meetings on coastal hazards in
Bayfield County on July 7.
Participated in a teleconference organized by the Great Lakes Commission to discuss
Great Lakes Data Sharing on July 8.
Participated in a meeting to develop the UW Sea Grant Advisory Services Strategic Plan
in Superior on July 9.
Organized a meeting to kickoff the NOAA Coastal Services Center Lake Superior Web
Mapping Project at the Bayfield County Courthouse on July 10.
Attended meetings to discuss progress on the Kewaunee/Bay-Lake RPC WLIS Node
project in Waukesha at the offices of Ruekert-Mielke on July 15.
Met with DNR staff and others working on the WLIS node project on July 22.
Attended the WLIA Remote Sensing workshop in Wisconsin Rapids on July 24.
Coordinated a conference call to plan public educational meetings on coastal hazards in
Bayfield County on July 28.
Attended a meeting with WCMP and LICGF staff to discuss progress on Web-Based
Tools for Development Impact Assessment project on July 28.
Attended meetings to discuss progress on the Kewaunee/Bay-Lake RPC WLIS Node
project in Green Bay on June 30.
Met with DNR staff and others working on the WLIS node project on August 5.
Attended a meeting to develop a Web-Based GIS Training Course at LICGF on August
11.
Attended the WLIS Guidance Team meeting at WDNR on August 13.
Attended a meeting on the Future of GLIN at the Wingspread Conference Facility in
Racine on August 20-22.
Attended meetings to discuss progress on the Kewaunee/Bay-Lake RPC WLIS Node
project in Kewaunee on August 25.
Coordinated a conference call to plan public educational meetings on coastal hazards in
Bayfield County on August 26.
Attended a meeting to discuss integration of Advisory Services/Info/Communications
activities on August 27.
Participated in a conference call with staff from SEWRPC, WDNR, and Ozaukee County
to discuss the development of a digital terrain model from topographic mapping for
Ozaukee County on August 28.
Met with Ted Koch, AJ Wortley, and Mark Harrower to discuss progress on the
NASA/IAGT coastal visualization project on September 5.
Met with Bob Traczky and Neil Martinko of Iron County to discuss web mapping
applications in Hurley on September 9.
Met with Douglas County and City of Superior staff to discuss web mapping applications
in Superior on September 10.
Presented at a public meeting to provide information about Great Lakes coastal hazards in
Bayfield County in Herbster on September 10.
Attended the Lake Superior Water and Land Symposium in Odanah on September 11.
Presented at a public meeting to provide information about Great Lakes coastal hazards in
Bayfield County in Washburn on September 11.
Attended the Coastal Hazards Work Group meeting in Ashland on September 11.
Attended the Northwoods GIS User group meeting in Ashland on September 12.
Attended the SIAC Lecture titled “Understanding Visual Complexity in Animated Maps”
by Mark Harrower on September 23.
Attended a meeting with DNR staff to discuss the marine managed areas inventory at
WDNR on September 24.
Attended the SIAC Lecture titled “Building a Web-based Resource in Support of
Community Involvement in Comprehensive Land-use Planning: Design, Development,
and Lessons Learned" by Jeff Sledge on September 30.
Participated in the Committee of State Cartography meeting on October 1.
Attended the SIAC Lecture titled “The Past, Present, and Potential Future of GIS
Workshops on the Campus” by Steve Ventura on October 7.
Participated in a conference call to discuss progress on the Kewaunee/Bay-Lake RPC
WLIS Node project on October 8.
Participated in the Search and Screen Committee meeting for the Superior Outreach
Position on October 8.
Met with Helen Sarakinos of the River Alliance of Wisconsin and Steve Ventura to
discuss a project to prioritize dam removal for stream restoration in the Lake Michigan
watershed of Wisconsin on October 10.
Attended the Environmental Monitoring Seminar titled “State of the On-Line Spatial
Database at ERSC: Resources and Opportunities” by Sam Batzli on October 10.
Met with Steve Ackerman of the UW-Madison Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic
Sciences to discuss meteorology web mapping services on October 14.
Met with Ted Koch, AJ Wortley, and Mark Harrower to discuss progress on the
NASA/IAGT coastal visualization project on October 14.
Met with Marie Strum of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District to discuss
the progress and products of the Lake Michigan Potential Damages Study in Appleton on
October 15.
Participated in the panel titled “Spatial Data Access on Campus: Design Considerations
for an Online Infrastructure” as part of the SIAC lecture series on October 21.
Attended a meeting with WCMP and LICGF staff to discuss progress on Web-Based
Tools for Development Impact Assessment project on October 28.