Geographic Information System Skills for Foresters and Natural Resource Managers

Product Description Geographic Information System Skills for Foresters and Natural Resource Managers provides a resource for developing knowledge and skills concerning GIS as it applies to forestry and natural resource management. This book helps readers understand how GIS can effectively be used by professional foresters and land managers to conduct spatial analyses or address management decisions. Through topics presented, readers will improve their ability to understand GIS data sources, identify GIS data types and quality, perform common spatial analysis processes, create GIS data, produce maps, and ultimately develop the skills necessary to use GIS analysis to answer real-world questions.This book will be of great benefit to GIS users looking to directly apply techniques to real-world data or foresters and natural resource scientists who use GIS in their research. Review Presents a practical guide on the use and applications of GIS technologies for foresters and natural resource managers From the Back Cover Geographic Information System Skills for Foresters and Natural Resource Managers is a resource specifically for developing knowledge and skills concerning GIS as it applies to forestry and natural resource management. GIS knowledge and skills are essential tools of foresters and natural resource managers as GIS is a powerful tool used very frequently by nearly everyone employed in these fields. This book helps readers understand how GIS can effectively be used by professional foresters and land managers to conduct spatial analyses or to address management decisions. Through the topics presented in the twelve chapters of this book, readers will improve their ability to understand GIS data sources, identify GIS data types and quality, perform common spatial analysis processes, create GIS data, produce maps, and ultimately develop the skills necessary to use GIS analysis to answer real-word questions related to forestry and natural resource management. Intermixed within the core content of each chapter, additional ‘reflections, diversions, inspections, and translations’ are provided to encourage readers’ critical thinking and directly apply the methods of the book to their own work, prompting readers to compare concepts presented to real-world applications.Geographic Information System Skills for Foresters and Natural Resource Managers will be of great benefit to GIS users looking to directly apply techniques to real-world data, or foresters and natural resource scientists who use GIS in their research and need a practical reference on techniques, applications and methods. About the Author Dr Merry is well-published and has nearly two decades of experience in using geographic information systems (GIS), satellite imagery, and aerial photography. She has Bachelor’s and Masters degrees in Geography from the University of Georgia. She is co-author of Mapping Human and Natural Systems, published by Academic Press. She has taught many continuing education courses for seasoned professionals on the use of GIS. She also has experience in developing an online continuing education course (introgps.uga.edu) and has led the data collection efforts for several human subject surveys. She is co-editor of Forest Plans of North America (Academic Press, 2015), and editor of the Proceedings of the Southern Forestry and Natural Resource Management GIS Conference (soforgis.uga.edu).Pete Bettinger is a professor of forestry at the University of Georgia. He conducts research in applied forest management with particular emphasis on harvest scheduling, landscape planning, precision forestry, and geospatial technologies. Dr. Bettinger received Bachelor’s and Masters degrees in forestry from Virginia Tech, and a PhD in forest resources from Oregon State University. Dr. Bettinger worked for the forest industry in the southern and western United States and maintains this connection to forestry professionals through h