Description: This map is a compiled group project of Group 1. There were 4 people in the group and we chose a certain area of our study area to focus on. The process to get the map to where it is took about 3 weeks to complete. For my portion of the map. I started out with four aerial images. I compiled the 4 images into one seamless photo. From there I took the image and loaded it into a program called ERDAS. Within ERDAS I analyzed the image which was broken down into 50 classes. I zoomed into the pixel level of each of the 50 classes and determined if it was a Mountain Top Removal (MTR) area or not. Once that was completed I reclassified the image in ArcMap to two classes MTR and NonMTR areas. The new classified image was edited and the ending process of these edits were areas that are greater than 40 acres, areas within 50 meters of roads and rivers removed, areas within 400 meters of major rivers and highways were removed, and the new map only included areas that intersected mountain ridges. The map was then packaged and sent to the group leader, Jon Voiles. Jon then complied all the maps of the 4 members of the group and then sent it back to the group members as Final Compiled group MTR layer.
This was a difficult project for me to do. There were several times that I would have to start the project completely over from scratch because things were just not working right. On top of the issues I was having with the map I also traveled overseas during the course of the project and struggled to find internet and time to work on the project. I would often find myself using airport Wi-Fi and working on the project between flights. This project has taught me a lot and allowed me to use a lot of mapping programs and tools that I have not used before.
Copyright Text: Jon Voiles, Sophia Nickloy, Jared Ritch, UWF GIS Department, Skytruth