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HUD Geographic Information Analysis
ICF International was engaged to perform a two-stage
study for the Policy Development & Research
(PD&R) function within the U.S. Department
of Housing and Urban Development. This study is
a Geographic Information Analysis needs assessment
for housing and economic development research
and policy staff and their partners, including
those in the academic, advocacy, state and local
governments, and in the housing communities. The
outcome will be a business plan PD&R can use
to decide its GIA role, be it as a data broker
or a service center.
Pennsylvania DEP Land Recycling
We developed the Pennsylvania
SiteFinder Web site as a replacement of their
former Brownfields Site Directory. This site matches
potential sellers and buyers of land in a B2B
Web site that allows sellers to post their information
directly online. The GIS component to this site
will spatially display relevant land use information
to potential sellers on sites they choose, with
information such as modes of transportation access
to the site, wetland designations, etc.
Land Loss due to Climate Change
ICF International helped the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency understand which lands would likely be
lost as a result of changes in sea level due to
global warming. Using Digital Elevation Models
from the U.S. Geological Survey and shoreline
information from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, ICF International analyzed the entire
Atlantic and Gulf coasts for low-lying lands.
This entailed processing enormous amounts of information
with powerful SUN UltraSPARC workstations and
ArcInfo software. The resulting map series show
where potential problems lie.
UNEP Internet Mapping
We helped the United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP) collect and display national-level information
on production, imports, exports, and stockpiles
of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) like dioxin
and PCBs. Using our MapObjects Internet Map Server
technology, UNEP now shares what they know about
these substances with the whole world. Anyone
with an standard Web browser like Netscape Communicator
or Microsoft Internet Explorer can "zoom-in" on
the part of the world they care about, mark countries
as color-coded according to their own preferences,
and "click" on particular countries to see further
details.
Map-Aware Tools for Deregulated
Utilities
ICF International has been engaged to build map-aware
tools for participants in the newly-deregulated
U.S. utilities markets. For one major utility,
we built tools that display the client's data
in context, with maps where needed, on local client
PCs, on remotely shared PCs via Citrix Winframe
technology, and on the Internet via the MapObjects
Internet Map Server. This work includes both Visual
C++ and Visual Basic using MapObjects OCX tools.
Oil & Gas Exploration and
Production Chemical Releases
In support of an effort led by the U.S. Department
of Energy to examine oil and gas production issues,
we developed on-line tools that show oil and gas
production chemical release data in context, via
a password-protected site on the Internet. A broad
selection of color-coded maps illustrates where
issues of concern may occur in key states. This
MapObjects Internet Map Server site is hosted
at ICF International's facilities.
Urban Oil and Gas Analysis
For both the American Petroleum Institute and
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),
ICF International helped analyze where oil and gas
production occurs and whether it is "urban." This
is a matter of some interest to both parties because
production in urban areas is regulated differently
than in rural areas. We mapped and contrasted
various definitions of "urban areas" from EPA
and U.S. Census Bureau information in an effort
to help characterize oil and gas production areas
appropriately. This work was performed using ArcView
software.
Superfund Environmental Benefits
Analysis System (SEBAS)
We developed this custom spatial decision support
tool for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
to help visualize resources that might be affected
by hazardous waste sites and to help quantify
the potential economic benefits of cleaning up
those sites. SEBAS displays Superfund sites together
with detailed street maps, U.S. Census data, and
endangered species information. It integrates
housing price data from the Census with an econometric
model to generate site-specific estimates of the
benefits of site cleanup. SEBAS is based on MapInfo
software, includes extensive copyright-free Census
Bureau TIGER and STF-3A data, and is distributed
on CD-ROM disks produced by ICF International.
Transit Planning Studies
ICF International has assisted communities as diverse
as Erie County, PA, and Memphis, TN, by doing
detailed demographic analyses to support transit
planning efforts. Using block group level 1990
U.S. Census data and MapInfo for Windows software,
we produced detailed color thematic maps (up to
3' by 4' in size) highlighting areas where data
suggest that transit ridership would be highest.
Employment, income, handicap, and travel-to-work
data are all available nationwide from the Census
STF-3A files we maintain in-house.
Environmental Impact Statement
Desktop Mapping
We helped the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
provide accessible information on environmental
contamination at U.S. nuclear weapons facilities.
Voluminous tabular information is linked on-screen
with detailed facility maps in a simple-to-use
integrated system running on PCs under Windows.
For the first time, this tool allows DOE managers
and the public to easily visualize this information.
We combined FoxPro and MapInfo into a single,
seamless tool. ICF International is an authorized
developer and an authorized reseller for MapInfo
Corporation products.
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Environmental Equity Analysis
ICF International assisted the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Solid Waste
with quantitative analysis of potential environmental
equity issues. Using GisPlus software and detailed
1990 U.S. Census data, we helped EPA compare ethnicity,
Hispanic origin, age, and other characteristics
of persons living near key hazardous waste management
facilities with those living further away.
Litigation Support at the DOE
Rocky Flats Site
We assisted the former operators of the U.S. Department
of Energy (DOE) nuclear facility at Rocky Flats,
Colorado, with detailed mapping of archival data
on off-site plutonium concentrations in soil and
related information. We performed this work successfully
by integrating data from many different sources
and converting this information into consistent
formats that can be presented in a clear, consistent
map series. We produced more than a thousand maps
in this long-term effort, many under quick-turnaround
deadlines. This work was performed using ArcInfo
software.
HUD Mapping Training
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
(HUD) developed the Consolidated Planning System
to simplify the process of applying for housing
assistance. A key component of this effort was
Easy Maps, a MapInfo-based mapping system that
allowed applicants to view their proposed projects
in context, together with key Census data. Although
ICF International did not develop this system, we
learned it and created improved versions of it
for other HUD clients. We were asked by the developers
of that system to provide hands-on training to
groups of up to 100 HUD staff at a time on the
efficient use of their Easy Maps product.
Ground-Water Data Management
and Mapping
We coordinated all data management and mapping
for a very large private facility with extensive
ground-water contamination. We managed data on
contaminants in many thousands of wells and produced
hundreds of custom maps required to meet the "Superfund"
hazardous waste cleanup program requirements.
Much of this work was done on a quick-response
basis. This work was performed using PC-ArcInfo
and ArcInfo software.
Air Pollution Exposure Study
ICF International assisted the U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Air Quality
Planning and Standards with GIS-based analysis
of exposure to potentially hazardous air pollutants.
By combining air quality monitoring data with
detailed demographic information from the 1990
U.S. Census, we helped EPA meet its statutory
responsibility to identify the pollutants that
pose the most risk to the most persons in the
most places. This pilot effort is based on a data
set from the San Francisco Bay area; analysis
was performed using ArcInfo GIS software.
Global Change GIS for the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
We provided an early, user-friendly GIS for EPA's
Division of Global Change. This system allows
users to easily construct and view maps, showing
multiple data "layers" such as electric utility
service territories, power plants, coal mines,
and a broad range of background data. Point-and-query,
statistical analysis, and links to external models
were included. This system produced high-quality
maps of electricity prices, CO2 emissions,
and other measures that bear on global atmospheric
change. The system included the GisPlus GIS package
with custom-produced tools and runs under DOS
on IBM-style PCs.
New York Oil Storage Facilities
Using New York State and U.S. Census Bureau data
together with GisPlus and PC-ArcInfo GIS software,
ICF International identified the locations of New
York's large above-ground storage tanks for the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Superfund
program. Locations were typically identified down
to the correct block and side of the street. U.S.
Geological Survey DLG data and other data sources
were then used to identify facilities near navigable
waters, federal parks, and other potentially sensitive
environments.
Hazardous Waste Transportation
In a project for the U.S. Department of Transportation,
we assessed alternative routes to transport hazardous
waste through the New York City metropolitan area.
The 1990 U.S. Census TIGER/Line and STF1A files,
together with dBase III+ and ArcInfo, were used
to develop detailed population density data bases.
We then identified populations living within 5-mile
and 10-mile corridors adjacent to various portions
of each route for a relative risk analysis.
Federal Housing Studies
Working for clients such as the Federal Housing
Finance Board and the Federal Home Loan Bank Board,
ICF International combined detailed 1990 U.S. Census
data with specific information on housing sales
and lending patterns. We pinpointed the locations
of thousands of specific properties and cross-matched
1980 and 1990 Census tract data as well.
Other Demographic and Geographic
Analyses
We responded quickly to a wide range of queries
regarding populations adjacent to various sorts
of facilities. We identified coal mines that generate
large volumes of methane that occur close enough
to power plants to consider capture and reuse
of coal-bed methane. We also examined regional
patterns in current and future usage of electricity
from alternative energy sources and produced graphic
representations of that information. We presented
management with the information on cleanups at
sites managed under EPA's Superfund program.
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