Improving the efficiency of Market Information Analysis Systems using GIS, Polygon and Spatial Databases

An organization's future developments are influenced by its managements' decisions. This can only happen by strengthening research and development strategies. Market monitoring and analyzing systems are designed to provide an organized flow of information to enable and support the marketing activities of an organization. In recent years the development of Market Information Analysis Systems (MIASs) to monitor and control the market has been significantly increased. However, the concept of such systems is not new and has been around for many years. Early systems were paper-based but, with the advancement of computing and information technology these systems have become more electronic and (semi) automated in nature. This paper presents a MIAS for Samsung Company in Iran which uses Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Polygon, and Spatial Databases as a component to improve the efficiency of market information analysis and monitoring systems. It also reviews the technical capabilities of GIS, Polygon, and Spatial Databases and shows how these capabilities align with accepted elements of MIAS. © 2013 IEEE

Aplicação do modelo de grandes bacias (mgb-iph) para simulação da vazão na bacia hidrográfica do alto teles pires.

O estudo da dinâmica hidrológica das bacias hidrográficas tem ganhado importância em função dos problemas potenciais decorrentes das diversas demandas pelos recursos hídricos. Com isso, é fundamental a adequação do planejamento e o aumento da eficiência do uso da água na produção agrícola (principal consumidor consultivo) por meio de metodologias que permitam estimar adequadamente a disponibilidade hídrica em bacias hidrográficas. Neste contexto, a utilização de modelos de simulação hidrológica torna-se imprescindível. Um modelo hidrológico nada mais é do que a representação matemática simplificada de um sistema no mundo real (PAZ et al., 2011). Seu conceito está relacionado com as interações entre água, clima, solo e uso da terra. Adicionalmente, características espaciais e temporais também são consideradas (FAN et al., 2014), o que permite a simulação de processos físicos da bacia na sua dimensão temporal e espacial (PULLAR; SPRINGER, 2000). Dentre os vários modelos hidrológicos disponíveis, o Modelo Hidrológico de Grandes Bacias (MGB-IPH), desenvolvido pelo Instituto de Pesquisas Hidráulicas da Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, tem seu destaque no sucesso da aplicação em varias bacias brasileiras com diferentes características. O MGB-IPH é um modelo distribuído em células desenvolvido a fim de obter a transformação da chuva em vazão em níveis diários (COLLISCHONN et al., 2007). Neste sentido, objetiva-se no presente trabalho aplicar e avaliar o desempenho do Modelo de Grandes Bacias (MGB-IPG) na simulação das vazões da bacia do Alto Teles Pires de modo a representar corretamente a resposta hidrológica atual da bacia para que previsões futuras sejam adequadamente realizadas

Development of a GIS-Based Information System for Watershed Monitoring in Mato Grosso, Central Brazil

This paper describes the conceptual framework and implementation of a prototype for a GIS-based Information System for Watershed Monitoring and Planning in the state of Mato Grosso, Central Brazil. The system was developed to support the implementation of water resources management policies passed by Brazilian federal and state legislatures in 1997.The first phase of the information system development was focused on database design, to create modules for the storage and pre-processing of diverse environmental data sets and for georeferenced registration and control of water users. The GIS environment includes tools for data mining and integrating the NGFlow and QUAL2E models for river runoff and water quality simulation; these tools were successfully validated in the Cuiabá River basin. To guarantee acceptance and continuity of system maintenance in regions under development, GIS applications for watershed management should be component-based. They should also integrate models with robustness for input data that are poor in consistency and quality. Finally, they should be implemented with development tools already used by local technical staff and have a high degree of user friendliness.This paper describes the conceptual framework and implementation of a prototype for a GIS-based Information System for Watershed Monitoring and Planning in the state of Mato Grosso, Central Brazil. The system was developed to support the implementation of water resources management policies passed by Brazilian federal and state legislatures in 1997.The first phase of the information system development was focused on database design, to create modules for the storage and pre-processing of diverse environmental data sets and for georeferenced registration and control of water users. The GIS environment includes tools for data mining and integrating the NGFlow and QUAL2E models for river runoff and water quality simulation; these tools were successfully validated in the Cuiabá River basin. To guarantee acceptance and continuity of system maintenance in regions under development, GIS applications for watershed management should be component-based. They should also integrate models with robustness for input data that are poor in consistency and quality. Finally, they should be implemented with development tools already used by local technical staff and have a high degree of user friendliness

Hotspot Delineation in the Eastern Nile, Abbay/Blue Nile Basin, As a Criterion for the Optimal Risk Assessment and Watershed Management of the Basin

Erosion hotspots within a drainage basin refer to an area that erodes more rapidly than anticipated or more rapidly than adjacent portions. Or, areas having high erosion rate as compared to the adjacent places. Since erosion can adversely affect ecosystems on-site as well as off-site, the estimation of runoff and soil loss in catchments is becoming more important. The main objective of this work is to: (1) delineate the hotspot areas (areas of erosion/sediment source) within the Abbay/Blue Nile Basin, (2) generate vulnerability maps to assess the risk possibilities at these areas as well as to support the watershed management approaches for the whole basin, (3) determine the environmental impact, and (4) evaluate sediment and water resources. The area under consideration is located to the northwestern of Ethiopia and to the East of Sudan, directly on the political boundary separating the two countries. The basin area is about 314458 km² and isfully dissected by streams that form the Blue Nile River. The majority of mentioned area is considered one of the most important highlands feeding the River Nile with both water and sediment. Therefore, Assessment of the erosion hotspots within this basin is essential for the management of the whole system. The Splash and sheet erosion are most widely observed within the highlands of the Blue Nile basin in Ethiopia, which generate noticeable amounts of sediments that induce and increase the erosion rate when the rills and gullies start to form. The slope, runoff intensity, and soil types are the most factors that play an essential rule in the erosion hotspots. The Digital Elevation Model (DEM) was used to derivethe slope angels, shapes (concavity and convexity), profile curvature, as well as the flow direction vector. Approximately 65% of the area has a slope gradient less than 15%. However, very steep slopes (up to 65%) are also present, increasing the risk of erosion in these mountainous areas. Climate maps, runoff maps, soil maps, land use maps as well as satelliteimages were also used in the spatial calculations and modeling. For the modeling phase, the Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) Model along with the Geo-Spatial Interface for WEPP (GeoWEPP), integrated with the GIS, were used. The potential reading of the resulted maps showed that the most affected areas with erosion lie within the highlands of Ethiopia where there are very steep slopes, soft soil cover, and intensive runoff. Also, down from the highlands in Sudan, there are several hotspots formed due to the erosion by mass movement which due to the existence of specific soil types.Keywords: hotspot delineation, watershed management, Blue Nile Basi

Hotspot Delineation in the Eastern Nile, Abbay/Blue Nile Basin, As a Criterion for the Optimal Risk Assessment and Watershed Management of the Basin

Erosion hotspots within a drainage basin refer to an area that erodes more rapidly than anticipated or more rapidly than adjacent portions. Or areas having high erosion rate as compared to the adjacent places. Since erosion can adversely affect ecosystems on-site as well as off-site, the estimation of runoff and soil loss in catchments is becoming more important. The main objective of this work is to: (1) delineate the hotspot areas (areas of erosion/sediment source) within the Abbay/Blue Nile Basin, (2) generate vulnerability maps to assess the risk possibilities at these areas as well as to support the watershed management approaches for the whole basin, (3) determine the environmental impact, and (4) evaluate sediment and water resources. The area under consideration is located to the northwestern of Ethiopia and to the East of Sudan, directly on the political boundary separating the two countries. The basin area is about 314458 km² and is fully dissected by streams that form the Blue Nile River. The majority of mentioned area is considered one of the most important highlands feeding the river Nile with both water and sediment. Therefore, Assessment of the erosion hotspots within this basin is essential for the management of the whole system. The Splash and sheet erosion are most widely observed within the highlands of the Blue Nile basin in Ethiopia, which generate noticeable amounts of sediments that induce and increase the erosion rate when the rills and gullies start to form. The slope, runoff intensity, and soil types are the most factors that play an essential rule in the erosion hotspots. The Digital Elevation Model (DEM) was used to derive the slope angels, shapes (concavity and convexity), profile curvature, as well as the flow direction vector. Approximately 65% of the area has a slope gradient less than 15%. However, very steep slopes (up to 65%) are also present, increasing the risk of erosion in these mountainous areas. Climate maps, runoff maps, soil maps, land use maps as well as satellite images were also used in the spatial calculations and modeling. For the modeling phase, the Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP) Model along with the Geo-Spatial Interface for WEPP (GeoWEPP), integrated with the GIS, were used. The potential reading of the resulted maps showed that the most affected areas with erosion lie within the highlands of Ethiopia where there are very steep slopes, soft soil cover, and intensive runoff. Also, down from the highlands in Sudan, there are several hotspots formed due to the erosion by mass movement which due to the existence of specific soil types

Priority ranking of Skudai River sub-watersheds for potential flood damages and water quality parameters

Sustainability of a watershed generally depends on climatic, hydrological, environmental, social, economical, ecological and many more other factors. The watersheds in Malaysia generally have two issues, which are water quality degradation and flash floods. Economic development activities have increased many folds in last few decades which have affected many watersheds including Skudai River watershed. In this study, Skudai River watershed was delineated into 25 sub-watersheds (SW) and a sustainability index for the watershed was developed by considering Potential Water Quality Deterioration (PWQD) and Potential Flood Damage (PFD) parameters. In order to get actual or at least close to actual classification of river water, the existing water quality index (WQI) developed by the Department of Environment (DOE) known as DOE-WQI formula was modified by adding six more important water quality parameters, which were total phosphorus, nitrate, total dissolved solids, electrical conductivity, turbidity and temperature. The weights to the water quality parameters in the modified WQI were elicited from 32 water experts in face-to-face survey. The modified WQI produced river water classifications, which were Class II for Skudai River- Natural (SKN) and Skudai River- Head (SKH) sampling points and Class III for Senai River (SEN), Skudai River- Middle (SKM), Skudai River- Tail (SKT), Danga River (DAN), Melana River (MEL) and Kempas River (KEM) sampling points. The weights of watershed sustainability indicators in the Skudai River watershed sustainability index (WSI) were obtained from 30 stakeholders consisted of engineers from various departments. Combining modified WQI and PFD parameters using pressure-state-response (PSR) model resulted in a framework of WSI for the Skudai River watershed. The WSI score for every sub-watershed was calculated by incorporating watershed sustainability indicators data and weights. The final ranking of sub-watersheds was SW2> SW7> SW6> SW1> SW4> SW3> SW5> SW8> SW12> SW18> SW25> SW10 >SW9 > SW14> SW16> SW24> SW17> SW11> SW22> SW19> SW13> SW15> SW21> SW23> SW20

Uncertainty Analysis as a First Step of Developing a Risk-Based Approach to Nonpoint Source Modeling of Fecal Coliform Pollution for Total Maximum Daily Load Estimates

Salado Creek in Bexar County, Texas is one of 65 streams listed as impaired water bodies for its high concentration of fecal coliform bacteria in the Clean Water Act’s 303(d) list. The Hydrological Simulation Program-FORTRAN (HSPF) available in the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Better Assessment Science Integrating point and Non-point Sources (BASINS) computer model was applied to the Salado Creek watershed for studying its applicability as a prediction tool for in-stream fecal coliform bacterial concentration from both point and nonpoint sources associated with different types of landuses in the watershed. In addition, the sensitivity of simulated peak values of in-stream fecal coliform concentrations to changes in parameters associated with the bacterial simulation was evaluated. The hydrology of the watershed was calibrated for a period from 1990 January 1 to 1993 December 31. The model was validated for hydrology for the year of 1995. The simulated peak value of in-stream fecal coliform concentrations was found to be most sensitive to parameters that represent the maximum storage of fecal coliform on the pervious land surface and surface runoff that removes 90 percent of fecal coliform from the pervious land surface. In-stream fecal coliform concentrations were also sensitive to stream water temperature, first-order decay rate of fecal coliform and a temperature correction coefficient for the first order decay rate. A First Order Analysis (FOA) was conducted to determine the fraction of the variance of the simulated peak in-stream fecal coliform concentration due to the uncertainty in these most sensitive parameters. The result of the FOA showed that the major portion of the variance in simulated in-stream peak fecal coliform concentration was attributed to the maximum storage of fecal coliform on the pervious land surface. Thus, the current study emphasizes the fact that small errors in parameterizing the maximum storage of fecal coliform over a given landuse class may result in large errors in predicted coliform counts