Data Gathering and Mapping Exercise

Alex Melchiore
Environmental Issues (ENVL 4300)
Instructor: Dr. Tait Chirenje
January 31st, 2017

Abstract
Data collection and mapping are necessary skills to have in many fields that may show .
Through the use of geographic information systems, or more commonly known as GIS, data and
locations can be imported and mapped which can be interpreted rather easily. The exercises
outlined tested our skills of database browsing and downloading, importing the data collected,
and mapping the data and or locations gathered. The first activity had the students importing
their home locations (using the geographic coordinate system) and their income level in an excel
software so that every student could map the locations and show the differences in income for
each home. The class then used the a mapping coordinates website to locate Stockton
Universitys Lake Fred to randomly select coordinates around the lake for future water quality
studies. The next activity had the students browse through the New Jersey Department of
Environmental Protection to collect GIS maps of counties and municipalities, New Jersey roads,
and hazardous/polluted sites from all around the state to then use the information collected to
map out the hazardous sites of their hometowns and determine whether or not there were
polluted sites close to their homes. The final activity had the students collect GIS maps from
Utahs government website to show the state parks located within the state to be used for future
studies. These projects definitely helped hone the students skills in database browsing, data
collecting, and GIS mapping.

Table of Contents

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ABSTRACT .................................................................................................. 1
Introduction........................................................................................................... 3

Aim and Objectives............................................................................................... 3

Methods................................................................................................................ 3

Results and Discussion .......................................................................................... 5

Conclusion ............................................................ 8

REFERENCES................................................................................ 9

Introduction

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 Data collection and mapping are two key skills that are essential to the world of
environmental science. Maps created from data sources can give a key insight to the area
surveyed. Using geographic information systems (GIS), data can be much more efficiently
mapped out and easier to convey information about the area. For example, exact locations using
the coordinate system can be pinpointed directly onto a map of a wide range such as New Jersey
from downloaded sources, shapefiles can be created if you are surveying a large area to show
population densities, state parks, climate data, etc.

Aims and Objectives

The overall goal of this paper is to enhance our ArcGIS skills in data collection and
mapping purposes. It is also important to note that this exercise also enhance skills in database
browsing and downloading GIS files from these sites as well as continue the use of excel
software to help data organization.

Methods

To start off this exercise, everyone in the class gave their house location using the
coordinate system and household income to get acquainted with collecting data and organizing it
into an excel software using a GPS visualizer website. The data was organized by student name,
latitude, longitude, and income level. This data was then used to map out everyones location and
income level using a Geographic Information System (GIS) software. Using the GIS software,
we imported the excel sheet filled with the information needed to map out the locations. Once
the locations were imported, they were then shown on a map of the country (zoomed in to show
the tri-state area of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware) as shown in Figure 1. The
locations highlighted were also edited using the properties feature of GIS to show what the
income levels were for the area; the larger the income, the greater size the location point was.

The next exercise highlighted was planning and selecting data points for future water
quality studies. On Stockton Universitys campus, an old cranberry bog turned lake (commonly
known as Lake Fred) is a huge asset to our natural sciences department for studies on water
quality. Using the mapping coordinates website, we found Stocktons location and zoomed into

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Lake Fred. From there, five points were selected at random for future quality studies around the
lake from light path to dark path. The results from this are shown in Figure 2.

The following exercise tested our skills in maneuvering through databases to locate GIS
maps to download and then display. For this, we were required to download maps of New Jersey
municipalities and counties, as well as data on polluted sites and groundwater sources from our
hometown from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP). Living in
Mt. Laurel it was essential to download a map of Burlington County and displaying the polluted
sites from all over the county. All of these maps made were put into one single data frame to
better show the county within the state and the town within the county so someone who was not
from New Jersey could get a better idea of where the polluted sites are in your selected town.
Out of curiosity, it was recommended that members of the class find their home locations on
these maps using road maps downloaded and laid under the polluted sites. Depending if your
home location matched up with a polluted site, it was encouraged that the student find which
pollutants were affecting their homes. This map showing these locations is highlighted in Figure
3.

The final exercise was to browse through the databases of a different state to download
GIS data and map out state parks for future exercises. The state chosen was Utah so the students
had to browse Utahs government website to find GIS information on the state parks located
within the states borders. It was also imperative that a map of the country was downloaded, Utah
was highlighted, and the state parks were highlighted within Utah by combining all three data
frames into one to better display the maps as a whole. The work for this can be seen in Figure 4.

Results and Discussion

Figure 1. Class location and income level from 2017.

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 This the map that shows the location and income level on everyone within the class
collected and put into the Excel software and imported onto a GIS map. The larger the locations
signify that person has a larger income compared to the average income level as shown in the
legend.

Figure 2. Lake Fred water quality study locations

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 This map shows the five locations selected for future water quality studies in Lake Fred.
These locations were mapped using the mapping coordinates website to pick them at random,
enter the coordinates into an excel sheet, and import them onto a map of Lake Fred. It is ideal to
keep the locations on the perimeter of the lake for safety purposes.

Figure 3. New Jersey municipalities with polluted and groundwater sites in Mt. Laurel located in Burlington
County

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 This map shows the three data frames combined into one that show New Jersey counties
(with Burlington County highlighted), Mt. Laurel highlighted within Burlington County, and the
roads and polluted sites located in Mt. Laurel. My home location is highlighted and there was no
pollution found in my development at all, although there were polluted sites not far from my
location.

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Figure 4. Utah map location and state parks located within the state

Much like Figure 3, this map shows three data frames combined into one to show Utahs
location in the United States and the locations of the state parks within the state itself. This map
will be shown in future studies of biodiversity.

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Conclusion

Data collection, mapping, and interpretation of the maps created is essential to the
environmental science field that can show us as something as simple as locations within a state
or county, to something more complex such as hazardous sites within a town. These skills are
critical to understand as this information provides crucial insight along with
planning/development opportunities on how to handle issues within a certain area.

References