Columbia Center News

New FRI Web Site is Launched!

10/24/2011 11:34:43 AM

The Forest Resources Institute (FRI) has launched a new web site!

FRI was founded in 1997 by a grant from the T. L. L. Temple Foundation. FRI’s mission was and is to be a “Friend of the Forest” – an unbiased source of of information on forest heath and productivity for southern forest ecosystems.

In 2001, FRI along with the Humanities, Urban, Environ- mental Science (HUES) GIS lab initiated the GIS response to the Columbia Shuttle recovery effort. The success of that effort led to the formation of the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center. FRI and the Columbia Center continue to work closely together to further common goals.

FRI continues to collect data and sponsor research pertinent to the health and productivity of the forest. Visit the new FRI site today at http://fri.sfasu.edu

New Interactive Web Applications!

8/15/2011 11:40:42 AM

The Columbia Center has launched two new interactive web mapping applications for the community. The new apps are built upon a new web app model developed by the Columbia Center. The Nacogdoches County Interactive Map was constructed by Student Programming Assistant Daniel Yim under the direction of Geospatial Programmer II, Diana Gunter. The SFA Interactive Web App was created by Columbia Center Director, PR Blackwell, based on Mr. Yim’s foundation application.

"The Nacogoches County Interactive Map and the SFASU Interactive Map are our first applications built on the notion of “Theme Based Map Browsing”, said Blackwell. “The challenge we are addressing is how can we combine a simple, intuitive user interface with robust functionality. These applications do that by presenting user-selectable Themes that alter the information that is presented and the functionality available."

Both applications use the Center’s state-of-the-art web mapping technology housed on the Campus of Stephen F. Austin State University and utilize ESRI ArcGIS Server Javascript Application Programming Interface(API). The result is a smooth, intuitive user experience that feels natural to anyone familiar with web mapping applications such as Google Maps or Microsoft’s Virtual Earth. “The best way to get familiar with the sites is to visit them and just noodle around”, said Blackwell.

The Nacogdoches County Interactive Map offers four operational themes:

Transportation – a comprehensive road map of the county.

Political – precincts and voting places with look-up facility.

Community – restaurants, churches, schools and more.

Imagery – aerial photography, hill shade, digital topography and more.

The SFASU Interactive Map offers six operational themes:

Buildings – search, locate and identify campus structures.

Parking – find and identify campus parking lots.

Dining – locate dining establishments on and off campus.

Recreation – locate recreational opportunities on and off campus.

Safety – explore the campus safety features.

Disability – locate ADA features such as ramps, doors and restrooms.

The Columbia Center is developing additional applications using this innovative approach and will continue to develop these as time and funding permits. Watch these pages for additional announcements.

Both the Nacogdoches County Interactive Web App and the SFASU Interactive Map are available to anyone with a network-connected computer and a web browser. Performance will depend on the speed of your network connection. Click on any of the bolded Interactive Map titles or the images in this article to visit the sites.

Stephen F. Austin State University Interactive Map

8/15/2011 11:39:43 AM

The Stephen F. Austin State University Interactive Map offers a theme-based, interactive approach to exploring the SFASU campus virtually.

Buildings – search, locate and identify campus structures.

Parking – find and identify campus parking lots.

Dining – locate dining establishments on and off campus.

Recreation – locate recreational opportunities on and off campus.

Safety – explore the campus safety features.

Disability – locate ADA features such as ramps, doors and restrooms.

http://arcgis03.crgsc.org/sfasu

Nacogdoches County Interactive Web Map

8/15/2011 11:39:38 AM

The Nacogdoches County Interactive Web Map Application provides a theme-based approach to exploring Nacogdoches County:

Transportation – a comprehensive road map of the county.

Political – precincts and voting places with look-up facility.

Community – restaurants, churches, schools and more.

Imagery – aerial photography, hill shade, digital topography and more.

http://arcgis03.crgsc.org/naccounty

New Interactive Web Applications!

8/15/2011 10:32:43 AM

Transportation – a comprehensive road map of the county.

Political – precincts and voting places with look-up facility.

Community – restaurants, churches, schools and more.

Imagery – aerial photography, hill shade, digital topography and more.

The SFASU Interactive Map offers six operational themes:

Buildings – search, locate and identify campus structures.

Parking – find and identify campus parking lots.

Dining – locate dining establishments on and off campus.

Recreation – locate recreational opportunities on and off campus.

Safety – explore the campus safety features.

Disability – locate ADA features such as ramps, doors and restrooms.

StormTracker

6/6/2011 10:05:38 AM

The StormTracker Web Aplications combines web services from the National Weather Service, NOAA, and the National Hurricane Center into a convenient application for monitoring and tracking tornadoes, hurricanes, thunder storms and other severe weather.

http://arcgis02.crgsc.org/Stormtracker/default.aspx

Earth Observation Day 2011

4/7/2011 8:53:33 AM

Earth Observation Day 2011 is Friday, April 8th. Earth Observation Day, an initiative of AmericaView, Inc., has two stated goals:

to recognize the importance of using remotely sensed data to monitor the Earth and its environments; and

to promote the use of remotely sensed data by K-16 teachers and students.

Rick Landenberger, Executive Director of AmericaView, recently was featured on the Got GeoInt blog discussing Earth Observation Day. Listen to Dr. Landenburger’s comments HERE.

The TexasView Remote Sensing Consortium is once again participating in Earth Observation Day with a new and improved version of the TexasView Earth Observation Day website. This site is designed as a resource for K-12 teachers interested in using Landsat, MODIS and other earth observing satellite sensor data to teach children about the earth and earth processes. Learn more.

GIS Mapping and Data Meeting

10/11/2010 9:58:16 AM

The Texas Property Tax Assistance Division and the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center are hosting a CAD and GIS meeting on the Stephen F. Austin State University Campus. In addition, the PTAD will host an afternoon workshop dealing with mapping compliance issues.

We welcome Chief appraisers, staff and mapping specialists to attend the one day seminar. The activities begin at 8:30 am and last until 3:30 pm. The meeting will be held in the Baker Pattillo Student Union in room 2.201. Lunch will be provided on site. Professional development hours can be earned for attending the session. Parking will be in the Raguet Street parking garage. There will be a Columbia Center staff person present to provide parking permits. The parking garage is located at the corner of East College and Raguet streets. It is a 5 minute walk from the meeting room. Additional parking, for a fee, is located directly adjacent to the Baker Patillo Student Center. To reach this parking garage turn east off of North Street at the Main entrance of the campus. Directions to campus can be downloaded from this site.

Topics to be discussed during the morning session will include: remarks from Buddy Breivogel, Senior Technical Analyst, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts office, discussion of potential roles of GIS in CAD activities, overview of how the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center system can provide support for GIS activities, the HPIDS program for imagery acquisition, and a presentation about the connections between next generation 911 and parcel data. An agenda can be downloaded from this site.

In the afternoon, Steve Atkinson, Methods and Assistance Program Supervisor, Property Tax Assistance Division will lead a information workshop on mapping compliance.

Registration (including lunch) is free. Please email lclark@crgsc.org to confirm attendance by 14 October 2010.

For Agenda and Map of events, email: cashton@crgsc.org.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Columbia Center at 936-468-6100.

Date:
October 20, 2010 from 8:30am to 12:00 pm

Event:
Mapping and GIS Information Meeting
For County Appraisal Districts

Location:
Baker Pattillo Student Center, Room 2.201 – Stephen F. Austin State University

Attendees:
Chief Appraisers and/or staff from eastern Texas area local county Central Appraisal Districts (CADs), representatives of Council of Governments (COGs), PTAD and representatives of university GIS mapping programs

Purpose:
Explain how partnerships with universities might benefit CADs needing assistant with mapping projects

AGENDA
8:30 – 9:00 Registration – Hosts Columbia Center and Lamar Geospatial Lab
9:00 – 9:10 Welcome by SFASU – Dr. Carrie Brown, Director ORSP
9:10 – 9:20 Opening remarks – Buddy Breivogel – Division Director – PTAD
9:20 – 9:35 P.R. Blackwell, Director Columbia Center – Introduction – CRGSCs
9:35 – 9:50 Jim Jordon, Director Lamar Geospatial Laboratory
9:50 – 10:00 What is GIS mapping? – Johnny Brown, Senior GIS Analyst,CRGSC
10:00 – 10:15 Break – networking
10:15 – 10:35 Justin Cure, ESRI Instructor, City of Longview, Texas
10:35 – 10:55 Johnny Brown and Diana Gunter – GIS Mapping applications for CADs
10:55 – 11:25 Buddy Breivogel – TNRIS HPIDS image acquisition program
11:25 – 11:45 Question and answer period – informal discussions with attendees
11:45 – 12:45 Lunch in the Baker Pattillo Student Center
1:00 PTAD workshop – Steve Atkinson (Regents Suite B, Baker Pattillo Student Center)

Columbia Center Training and Education Lab Revamped

6/30/2010 11:48:26 AM

The Education and Training Lab in the Columbia Center has been upgraded! The upgrade includes an expansion from fifteen to twenty-four user stations each equipped with a Dell Precision Workstation running on the Windows 7 operating system.

The Education and training lab is designed to provide training for local and regional professionals and individuals interested in the use of geospatial technology for emergency response, natural resource management, and economic development. Customized classes and training are offered for the Texas Military Forces, law enforcement officials, mapping agencies, public schools students (K-12), activity groups such as the Boy and Girl Scouts of America or to anyone interested in learning about geospatial technology.

Training courses offered by the Columbia Center include:

Introduction to GPS Applications – Level I
Introduction to GPS Applications – Level II
Introduction to GPS data Collection with ArcPad
Introduction to Plume Modeling
Economic Risk Analysis for GIS Users
Geocoding with ArcGIS 9.3.1
Introduction to Metadata
The United States National Grid: Theory and Use
Introduction to ArcGIS I (ESRI Certified)
Introduction to ArcGIS II (ESRI Certified)

With first line computing resources, the latest in geospatial software, state-of-the-art Audio Visual capabilities and the ability to simulate Emergency Operations Center functionality, the Columbia Center training lab is well situated to provide public and private agencies with a high quality training experience. Come visit our training lab at our new location on the SFA campus McKibben Building Room 304.

Columbia Center Training and Education Lab Revamped

6/24/2010 12:12:20 PM

Training courses offered by the Columbia Center include:

Introduction to GPS Applications – Level I
Introduction to GPS Applications – Level II
Introduction to GPS data Collection with ArcPad
Introduction to Plume Modeling
Economic Risk Analysis for GIS Users
Geocoding with ArcGIS 9.3.1
Introduction to Metadata
The United States National Grid: Theory and Use
Introduction to ArcGIS I (ESRI Certified)
Introduction to ArcGIS II (ESRI Certified)

Mapping Featured in Historic Nacogdoches Pictorial Book

6/18/2010 3:31:06 PM

A new book, published by SFA Press, features historic photographs paired with new photos of the same scenes taken from the same perspective. The book’s photographers were inspired by a city with such a rich history and wanted to document landmarks throughout the town by digitally blending 19th and 20th century photographs with present-day ones to “bring history alive through art.” However, the project needed some mapping to tie it all together.

Christopher Talbot, director of the “Nacogdoches Now and Then” project, approached Johnny Brown, Geospatial Applications Specialist II for the Columbia Center, in the fall of 2009 to construct a map of the city that would be similar to old sanborn fire insurance maps, which are a useful resource for historical research. The map pinpoints the exact locations of each landmark in the photos, along with its specified GPS coordinates.

“It was a privilege to be asked to help out with a project like this,” Brown said. “The book gives a genuine, unique look at this town’s history.”

The project was put together under Talbot’s direction by a group of Stephen F. Austin State University art students beginning in the summer of 2008.

Copies of “Nacogdoches Now and Then” are currently available for $29.95 for hardback and $19.95 for paperback at several locations in downtown Nacogdoches, including the Nacogdoches Convention and Visitors Bureau.

For more information on the project, visit www.art.sfasu.edu/nowandthen.

Deep Water Horizon Oil Spill Response Log

6/16/2010 12:03:46 PM

06/09 – 06/13 – 06/14 – 06/15 – 06/16 – 06/17 – 06/18 – 06/19 – AAR

06/09/2010

1642 hrs – Responded to request for assistance from Tanner Kneese with The Response Group (TRG) offering Columbia Center System Personnel for Deep Water Horizon Oil Spill.

0738 hrs – received reply from Tanner to the effect that they were evaluating GIS needs and would get back to me.

06/13/2010

2125 hrs – received call from Tanner Kneese with the Response Group requesting two GIS analyst for Houma, La and Mobile, AL by Monday. Told him we would look into how to do it. Got contact info for Roy Berrett – owner of TRG.

06/14/2010

0815 hrs—met with staff to discuss deployment. Decision: best to contract with TRG. Began drafting contract and Statement of Work

Spoke with Roy Berrett and outlined plan.

1515 hrs – Contract approved by OSRP and Legal with minor changes.

06/15/2010

0921 hrs – emailed contract to Roy Berrett, owner TRG.

1137 hrs – received verbal ok from Berrett, referring details to Chris Leonard, (accounting for TRG). Berrett irritated that personnel were not already dispatched. I told him 2 were standing by to depart. Agreed to send both to Houma, La, immediately, eta approx 1800 hrs. – 1 to stay in Houma and one to continue on to Mobile. Barrett requested 3rd mapper to be deployed to Houma.

1200 hrs – Johnny Brown and Jason Raines depart for Houma, La.

1542 hrs – emailed Berrett with resumes and revised ETA of 1830 hrs.

1845 hrs – team arrives at BP EOC in Houma, La. Contact not there, have difficulty getting into EOC

1911 hrs – team in contact with night shift Incident Commander. No one had been briefed on their arrival. IC can’t sort it out until they can contact Tanner Kneese. The man they are to replace has departed and been replaced by personnel from competing company. Situation eventually resolved. Brown to report to the EOC and Raines to depart for Mobile, AL in the morning.

Hotel not covered by BP. Need funding to front hotel cost for 2 weeks.

06/16/20010

Caption: Deployment Map showing locations of BP EOCs

0645 hrs – Brown reports to EOC. Raines departs for Mobile, AL.

0900 hrs — Brown phone. 2 companies providing GIS support, TRG is one. Conflict between the two. GIS lead had not been informed of another Analyst from TRG coming. Brown negotiating a spot for Morse. GIS operations massive at this location. Many people engaged in very specialized activities. Data sources unknown to us. Very high security prevails.

Hotel cost not covered by BP up front. Suggest interim reimbursement after 1 week. May need to do cash advance.

0943 hrs – Brown Phone: All Hands meeting imminent- afterwards, will meet with Planning Chief to sort out need for another body. Morse standing by to depart for Houma if needed.

1019 hrs – Raines SMS. Arrived Mobile EOC and made contact. He was not expected. Still waiting for credentials to get into EOC.

1105 hrs – Brown phone – still uncertain of roll. Waiting for clarification of duties. Offered to fill map requests if nothing else. Someone already doing that, but not well.

1259 hrs – Brown phone – condition still indeterminate. TRG attempting to have our personnel support their agency, namely undermine and replace personnel from other company. Brown has refused. Position: Columbia Center personnel there to help — will not participate in any politics or maneuvering to further TRG’s agenda. Brown working with Planning Chief to determine role. Message: Columbia Center is there to help. If we can’t help, we will leave. Brown trying to get Raines recalled to Houma to assist map generation, having determined short comings with current capability.

Raines still waiting for assignment in Mobile. Ready to relocate.

Morse deployment canceled for time being.

New policy: No Columbia Center personnel will be deployed for EOC duty without a duly executed 1019 request form from IC.

1359 hrs. – Raines SMS: got inside EOC, waiting for assignment. No plan for lodging. Standing by to return to Houma on Johnny’s orders. Instructed by Columbia Center Director not to redeploy anywhere without duly executed 1019 form.

1457 hrs. – Brown SMS: has secured a spot in mapping, taking over as mapping coordinator by weekend. Still trying to arrange a spot for Raines

1536 hrs – Brown phone: recaps previous message. Verifies that Raines is still unassigned in Mobile. Brown trying to get Houma Plans Chief to request Raines for a position in Houma. If not, we may pull Raines back and set up for him to rotate with Brown after 2 weeks. Raines has no lodging for tonight, but Brown does. If Raines is pulled back they can bunk together tonight.

1552 hrs. – Brown phone: Condition worsened. Still no assignment. Nearest hotel for tonight in New Orleans (1 hour drive). Has no transportation, but thinks can get ride. May meet Raines in New Orleans for the night – return to Houma EOC in the morning. If no improvement, will return to New Orleans tomorrow night and then home Friday.

1600 hrs. – Called Raines, no answer. Left message to call.

1615 hrs. – Raines phone: Possibility that he will be deploy to Mississippi with advanced group. Waiting to find out. Meeting Brown in New Orleans not practical. Spent the day assisting where he could in Mobile, but not very busy.

1633 hrs. – Brown SMS: Found ride to hotel in New Orleans for tonight and back to EOC tomorrow morning. Need to get transportation to him somehow. Possibly a rental car.

1803 hrs. – Raines SMS: reports that he will get a hotel for tonight in Mobile and depart for Pascagoula, Mississippi in the morning.

1832 hrs. – Brown SNS: Rental car companys won’t take credit card over the phone, however, room charged direct to BP. Will work out transportation day to day.

1951 hrs. – Brown SMS: secure for the night in hotel in New Orleans.

1951 hrs. – Raines SMS: secure for the night in hotel in Mobile.

06/17/2010

0716 hrs. – Raines email: needs Microsoft Virtual Earth license for deployment laptop. TRG using Bing map layers for response which requires VE extension.

0956 hrs. – Brown SMS: secured fairly dependable travel and hotel, however TRG may send him to the field by the weekend. Trying to get assigned with Raines so they can share transportation. Raines in route to Mississippi.

0957 hrs. – Raines email: I’ve been in Pascagoula since about 6:30 this morning, got set up with internet and printers by about 7:30. Took the data I was given yesterday (most of which is old now) along with data from TRG web services and created base maps at multiple common sizes for the whole operation area I’m covering as well each individual division (4 divisions in the area of responsibility) so I could go from there. Other than that, I’m working on getting an official BP network login so I can use the TRG SDE. I have yet to receive a mapping request and Johnny told me I may be moving again soon officially – which makes me think I may not “officially” be here even though the guy here asked for me and knew I was coming. Otherwise I’m just keeping in contact with Johnny and waiting for something to come up.

1354 hrs. – ESRI email: Trouble with Bing license code. They can’t locate the original license codes for Raines computer.

1508 hrs. – License problems resolved. New keycodes sent to Raines via email.

1700 hrs. – Very little contact with deployment team today, probably because they are busy – at last! Will request update after shift change tonight.

1851 hrs. – Rains phone: Not much doing in Pascagoula today. Spent day making base maps. One request to update data. No oil visible on local beach.

1904 hrs. – Rains SMS: Pascagoula, MS

Caption: Protective booms on the right, tanker on the left. About 5 mnutes from where I’m working – Raines.

1859 hrs. – Brown SMS: Settled in a mapping coordinator in Houma EOC. Talk of sending him to field this weekend diminished. Still trying to get Raines reassigned to Houma since he is not very busy in Pascogoula. Should find out tomorrow. On the way to hotel in New Orleans.

06/18/2010

0753 hrs. – Raines SMS: On site in Pascagoula EOC. Activity moderate for field work, but not much mapping work. Raines is only mapper there. One request since arrival to enter edits.

0804 hrs. – Brown SMS: On site in Houma EOC. Lots of activity but Brown still basically observing. No word on Raines transfer to Houma. If activity level continues as it has, consider demobilizing.

1008 hrs. – Brown SMS: Map requests in Houma are picking up. His position as GIS Coordinator solidifying. He is feeling more useful and part of the process. Still working on getting Raines reassigned to Houma EOC. Afraid momentum on that process will stall with personnel rotation tomorrow.

1320 hrs. – Brown phone: Situation deteriorating in Houma. Brief flurry this morning, no activity since. Contemplating demobilizing and returning home. Advised to sit tight until I can contact TRG management. Will discuss situation/needs with Plans Division GIS Lead. Will make decision by 5:00 pm today

1339 hrs. – Raines phone: Still not activity in Pascagoula – watched NBA game on television this morning. No GIS requirements this location. Standing by to demobilize this afternoon if necessary.

1352 hrs. – Brown phone: Talked to GIS plans lead – doesn’t want Brown to demobilize, but unable justify services. Wants to defer decision until Tomorrow. Told him that I would make a decision by 1700 hrs concerning demobilization.

1354 hrs. – Discussed ramifications of early demobilization with Uhyrek. PARs wont be cleared before Monday. Can defer decision until then.

1356 hrs. – Email Barret: If no requirement for our services is presented by 5:00 pm today, we will demobilize and terminate our involvement with incident.

1400 hrs. – Briefed Bullard on situation re oil spill deployment. Presented proposal for policy change allowing salaried personnel to be reimbursed for externally funded emergency deployment. Probably a moot point for this event, but may help next time.

1500 hrs. – No contact from Berrett or Kneese. Standing by for call or email.

1727 hrs. – Brown phone: Situation unchanged. Suggest demobilization and return to headquarters tomorrow.

1736 hrs. – Raines phone: Still not activity. Advised return to New Orleans tonight.

1900 hrs. – Barrett phone: Just now saw email. Was unaware of situation. Will check and get back to me.

1905 hrs. – Brown phone: Advised of discussion with Berrett – opinion unchanged. Will meet Raines in New Orleans tonight, return to EOC tomorrow, demobilize and return to base.

1921 hrs. – Barrett email: Will touch base with Tanner regarding Raines situation tomorrow. Brown should be taking the role that John Painter had (coordinator) Dylan will return tonight. Asked that we wait to hear from Tanner and Dylan tomorrow before leaving. Forwarded Barrett to Brown and Raines.

2054 hrs. – Brown phone: Received Barrett email. Opinion not changed. Will check in at EOC in am and reassess.

06/19/2010

0930 hrs. – Brown phone: Brown and Raines demobilized from the Houma EOC at approximately 0900. Spoke with TRG personnel on site and explained that the current need did not justify Columbia Center resources at the present time. Columbia Center is not a temp agency for TRG. Offer to consider redeploy if serious need develops in the future. Team leaving Houma and headed for Nacogdoches.

1500 hrs. – Raines SMS. Team arrived safely in Nacogdoches.

After Action Review

06/22/2010 1030 hrs. Blackwell, Brown, Clark, Coffee, Uhyrek.

Synopsis: Deep Water Horizon oil spill deployment was a mistake because:

We weren’t needed – not emergency situation

We had no role – no ICS approved spots for personnel

Role was temp service for TRG

What have we learned that will help make better deployment decisions in the future?

Consider time elapsed since event – our role is the initial emergency response. As the situation stabilizes, we should withdraw.

Be careful of involvement with private companies

Lack of a consistent story should be a warning flag

Expectation of payment for emergency services is inconsistent with mission

Conflicts with established university policy should be considered

Require clear communication (Form 213) in ICS controlled situations

Other lessons learned:

Staffing – how do we staff long term responses?

Transportation – consider ramification of splitting resources

Equipment – bill for use of Columbia Center equipment? When? How?

Finances – Extended deployment put strain on personal finances. Need mechanism for advancing cash

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6/7/2010 11:18:37 AM

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County Base Maps

5/29/2010 1:32:26 PM

Click toggles county selection, double-click toggles zoom, select “type” and “Download”.

	Map Book Available
	Base Map Available
	Base Map Not Availble

Selected Counties:

Select Files Types:

PDF files
Include Map Books

GeoPDF files
Include Map Books

ESRI MXD + Data Bundle

ESRI Layer Package

About County Basemaps

The Columbia Center provides prefab basemaps for selected Texas Counties. The basemaps are available as standard PDF files, GeoPDF files, MXD/data bundles and ESRI layer packages. The MXD/data bundles are ready for use by Desktop ArcGIS users as a basis for county-level projects. Layer packages are ideal for incorporating into ArcExplorer and other free GIS client software. All these data are provided free and may be used freely for any purpose.

How to Download County Basemaps

Select counties by clicking the map or typing the county name in Selected Counties:.

Double-click to zoom in and out as desired.

Select the desired data type(s) by clicking the file type checkboxes.

PDFs are standard Adobe PDF files;

GeoPDFs are geospatially enhanced PDFs (Download a browser toolbar for GeoPDFs HERE);

MXD + Data are zip bundles containing an ESRI MXD file and an ESRI personal Geodatabase containing all the data needed for the basemap. These bundles can be downloaded, unzipped and opened with ArcGIS as a starting place for any County-based project.

ESRI Layer Packages contain symbolized data layers suitable for use in ESRI and other desktop GIS software. Use these if you intend to make your own layouts but want pre-symbolized layers.

Click the Download button to retrieve your files

Clicking the “Include Map Books” check boxes will deliver Adobe PDF packages or GeoPDF packages containing a master grid and detailed maps for each section of the selected county. Map Books are currently available for Brazoria, Cameron, El Paso, Ft. Bend, Gregg, Harris, Hidalgo, Jefferson, Montgomery, Nueces, Orange, and Smith Counties. Map books include the standard county PDF or GEOPdf as well.

County Base Maps

5/29/2010 1:30:24 PM

Click toggles county selection, double-click toggles zoom, select “type” and “Download”.

	Map Book Available
	Base Map Available
	Base Map Not Availble

Selected Counties:

Select Files Types:

PDF files
Include Map Books

GeoPDF files
Include Map Books

ESRI MXD + Data Bundle

ESRI Layer Package

About County Basemaps

How to Download County Basemaps

Select counties by clicking the map or typing the county name in Selected Counties:.

Double-click to zoom in and out as desired.

Select the desired data type(s) by clicking the file type checkboxes.

PDFs are standard Adobe PDF files;

GeoPDFs are geospatially enhanced PDFs (Download a browser toolbar for GeoPDFs HERE);

MXD + Data are zip bundles containing an ESRI MXD file and an ESRI personal Geodatabase containing all the data needed for the basemap. These bundles can be downloaded, unzipped and opened with ArcGIS as a starting place for any County-based project.

ESRI Layer Packages contain symbolized data layers suitable for use in ESRI and other desktop GIS software. Use these if you intend to make your own layouts but want pre-symbolized layers.

Click the Download button to retrieve your files

County Base Maps - no about

5/29/2010 1:25:07 PM

Select a county or counties, and click “Download” for the appropriate data type.

Map Book

Base Map

No Data

Selected Counties:

Select Files Types:

PDF files
Include Map Books

GeoPDF files
Include Map Books

ESRI MXD + Data Bundle

ESRI Layer Package

About County Base Maps

5/29/2010 12:51:53 PM

How to Download County Basemaps

Select counties by clicking the map or typing the county name in Selected Counties:.

Select the desired data type(s) by clicking the file type checkboxes.

PDFs are standard Adobe PDF files;

GeoPDFs are geospatially enhanced PDFs (Download a browser toolbar for GeoPDFs HERE);

MXD + Data are zip bundles containing an ESRI MXD file and an ESRI personal Geodatabase containing all the data needed for the basemap. These bundles can be downloaded, unzipped and opened with ArcGIS as a starting place for any County-based project.

ESRI Layer Packages contain symbolized data layers suitable for use in ESRI and other desktop GIS software. Use these if you intend to make your own layouts but want pre-symbolized layers.

Click the Download button to retrieve your files

Columbia Center Awarded at Annual SCAUG Convention

4/15/2010 3:19:26 PM

Johnny Brown with Founders Award

The Columbia Center received the prestigious Founder’s Award this March at the annual South Central Arc Users Group (SCAUG) conference in Fort Worth, Texas.

The Founder’s Award was created by SCAUG in 1990 to recognize agencies or individuals that have made contributions enhancing the importance of geospatial science and advancing the use of GIS. Specifically, this award was presented to the Columbia Center “For Being Instrumental In Changing the Future of GIS in the South Central United States.”

“It is always gratifying to be recognized by one’s peers.” said PR Blackwell, Director of the Columbia Center. “This award reflects the impact of the Columbia Center Staff on the regional geospatial community over many years.”

“We feel lucky to have the resources available to accomplish the things that we have,” said Charles Ashton, Geospatial Trainer II for the Columbia Center. “Without such a vast and dynamic team of workers, these advancements in GIS would not have been possible.”

The Columbia Center combines innovation with training and outreach to support the geospatial activities of organizations across the region.

“The opportunity to help others in the GIS field of our region in completing GIS training and application development has been an award in itself,” said Johnny Brown, Geospatial Applications Specialist II for the Columbia Center.

4th Annual East Texas Geospatial Conference

4/7/2010 10:34:44 AM

The 4th Annual East Texas Geospatial Conference hosted by the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center System was held January 26-30 2010 at the Baker Pattillo Student Center and The Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center on the Stephen F. Austin State University campus to present and discuss regional applications and issues. There were approximately 90 conference attendees as well as students from across campus who attended the paper and poster sessions.

The conference began with an Introduction to Remote Sensing workshop, sponsored by TexasView, held on Tuesday and Wednesday (January 26th and 27th). Gayla Mullins of Texas Natural Resource Information Systems (TNRIS) and Teresa Howard from The Center for Space Research (CRS), University of Texas at Austin led the workshop. They provided an overview of remote sensing techniques. Workshop attendees included conference attendees, SFASU faculty and graduate students from three colleges. The workshop was held in the new training lab of the Columbia Center located in the McKibben Education building room 324.

Other workshops held during the conference included an Introduction to Plume Modeling led by LaRied Oates of the CRGSC, ArcPad led by Jason Grogan of the CRGSC and Weather Mapping Mashups presented by Charles Ashton of the CRGSC. Conference attendees were able to visit vendor booths and an array of information booths set up to promote interdisciplinary programs offered by campus departments in the Grand Ballroom at the Baker Pattillo Student Center during the conference.

On Wednesday, the keynote speaker was Jim Scott, the Director of Texas Natural Resource Information Systems, Austin, Texas. The plenary talk was followed by organized sessions included thinking about cartography in the GIS world, career potentials in the GIS world, issues and challenges in the GIS world and public safety opportunities in the GIS world. Dinner that evening followed a project poster display in the Grand Ballroom.

The evening presentation was given by Todd Ulrich, Realworldfx.com. Todd provided an overview of his journey in developing large physical format globes of the earth using processed remotely sensed data.

Thursday lunch session included the second keynote presentation by Dr. Theresa Coble (second from the left) who discussed the Preserve America Grant project as part of the Celebrating Community Partners event held in conjunction with the East Texas Geospatial Conference. In addition Dr. Steven Bullard, Dean College of Forestry and Agriculture discussed new initiatives for the College. Thursday’s conference sessions featured topics ranging from geospatial tools and models for interpreting landscapes in the GIS world, to cultural landscapes and interpretation in the GIS world and managing natural resources using geospatial applications.

The last session, moderated by by P.R. Blackwell, director of the CRGSC, discussed the status, initiatives and research of the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center System. Panelists included Kevin Mulligan-director, Center for Geospatial Technology-Texas Tech University; Raed AlDouri- director of University of Texas at El Paso Regional Geospatial Service Center; Joe Kruger – Associate Director of Lamar University Geospatial lab and Ken Tobin, director of Center for Earth and Environmental Sciences- Texas A&M International University. This session allowed each partner in the CRGSC system to discuss their status, initiatives and research.

Following that was a National Weather Service Beta workshop at the CRGSC on Friday and a WADA vs. SAR workshop for a focus group on Saturday. The weather workshop focused on developing tools to aid NWS scientists in preparing weather forecast maps for briefings. The SAR vs WADA workshop provided participants with an overview and field exercise focusing on protocols to be followed during a SAR activity and protocols to be employed during a Wide Area Damage Assessment (WADA) mission.

Schedule

3/4/2010 1:49:41 PM

What would be the best format for displaying a training schedule?

Intro to ArcPad Workshop

2/26/2010 10:39:00 AM

Begins: Tuesday, March 02, 2010 at 1:30 PM
Ends: Tuesday, March 02, 2010 at 3:00 PM

Introduction to ArcPad 8.0 Workshop
This workshop is an introduction to ArcPad 8.0. It involves learning how to collect point, line, and polygon data and export that data to a computer for differential correction. The workshop will be held in room 324 at the Columbia Center. Contact Jason Grogan at jgrogan@sfasu.edu or 936-468-3301 for more details.

Columbia Center Back on Campus

2/24/2010 10:35:58 AM

Ever since its establishment in 2005, The Columbia Center had been strategically located in downtown Nacogdoches, right on the historic “square.” This location provided for a highly visible and symbolic presence; a statement that the geospatial services provided by the center are indispensible to the East Texas region. Ironically, The Columbia Center’s success in supporting emergency planning and response, economic development, and natural resource management in East Texas has necessitated the need for more space.

To accomodate this need, the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center has relocated to the McKibben Building (formerly the Elementary Education Department) on the Stephen F. Austin State University campus, sharing the third floor with the School of Honors. The move, which took place during December, allows combining the Forest Resource Initiative (FRI) and the Center for Economic Development and Research (CEDAR) with the Columbia Center. This brings all three operational areas of the Columbia Center Mission together in one location.

The new facility provides:

Substantially more space (over 10,000 sq feet)
Better utilization of space
Larger more convenient training lab
Expanded student work area
Superior network connectivity
Expanded server-room capacity
Better integration of educational initiatives
A platform to expand support to the community and the region

The Columbia Center is proud of the new facilities and ready to serve the public in a bigger way!

GIS

11/4/2009 11:10:37 AM

Geographic data provided by the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center are the result of a collaborative effort by local, regional, state and national government agencies as well as educational and research institutions. These data are availble for free download from this site.

NRCS Soils Data

10/28/2009 4:37:59 PM

About NRCS
Soils Data

County FIPS Codes

STATSGO2
Soils Data

SSURGO
ZIP by FIPS

SSURGO
by County

Two Sugars, One Cream, and Some MODIS Imagery, Please?

6/8/2009 4:32:06 PM

Ever wish your favorite breakfast joint would offer a GIS combo meal? That way, as you chomp down on that sausage biscuit, you could revel in the beauty of the latest satellite imagery of the Lone Star State.

Here at the Columbia Center, I am sad to announce that we are unable to offer you a bacon and egg croissant. As of today, however, we will be serving up daily MODIS imagery of Texas via our TexasView.org web presence. We’ve made a cozy spot for a thumbnail of the latest imagery at the top of the right column of this page. Click on it, but take CAUTION: Contents are AWESOME!

Or you can click here, if you don’t feel like moving your mouse that far because you haven’t had your coffee yet…

Team GEO and Earth Day 2009

4/21/2009 4:55:13 PM

The Geospatial Enthusiast Organization, or Team GEO, is a NEW official Organization on SFA campus. Any students at SFA who take part in GIS, GPS, or Geocaching activites are encouraged to join. We also take part in volunteer Geospatial activties in encouraging the public awareness about the many uses of GPS and Geocaching.

After Hurricane Ike there was a consensus among emergency responders associated with the Columbia Center that there was a need to establish a channel through which students at SFA could participate in emergency response. As a result, Charles Ashton, Johnny Brown, Bret Morse, and Taylor Wilson orchestrated the formation of Team Geo, an official SFA organization for students who wish to participate in GIS, GPS, or Geocaching activities.

On Saturday, April 18, Team GEO took part in the Earth Day 2009 events at the SFA Recreation Center. Members brought flyers, GPS units, and a 4-foot globe to the event where they set up at a booth. Four members including Charles Ashton, Allison Bergman, Chelsea West, and Alex Brown represented the organization by showing students, faculty, and the Nacogdoches community how to use GPS units, explaining the method by which the devices triangulate a position from satellite signals. Geocaching is one of the most popular uses of GPS in which people download points into their unit and go on treasure hunts to find hidden containers called geocaches. In one particular instance, Charles Ashton discussed with two bicyclist riders how they could strap GPS units to their bikes and track their biking routes. Outside the weather was dark and gloomy, and the clouds dropped 3 to 4 inches of rain. But inside, people were entertained by live music and visited the various booths and vendors.

Team GEO donated three maps that were raffled off at the event: A “Texas: Diverse Landscape” map showing the different landscapes in Texas, as well as posters showing satellite imagery of Hurricanes Rita and Ike.

Texas "A Diverse Landscape" Poster

4/7/2009 9:23:26 AM

All the basic landforms of Texas are clearly discernable from the desert mountains of the west to the gaping gash of Palo Duro Canyon to the lush forests of East Texas. Cultural impacts on the landscape are visible as well, including center-pivot irrigation in the panhandle and the great metropolitan cities of Dallas-Forth Worth and Houston. The poster measures 36×36 and is off-set printed on heavy-weight semi-gloss paper.

Click here to purchase!

Hurricane Posters

4/6/2009 2:37:04 PM

Rita

Ike

When Hurricane Rita cut a savage swath across East Texas on September 24, 2005, it left a vivid impact across the countryside and in the minds of those who found themselves in its wake. This image, captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on board NASA’s Terra (EOS AM-1) satellite, reveals the fearsome majesty of the storm as it passed over East Texas. State and county boundaries have been lightly superimposed on the image to aid location. The poster measures 18” x 24” and is off-set printed on high-quality, heavy-weight, semi-gloss paper.

Click here to order!

For the second time in three years, a hurricane brought destruction to East Texas. Hurricane Ike was larger and less organized than Rita when it passed over East Texas on September 13, 2008, but no less destructive. This poster of the Storm over Texas captures the scale and intensity of Ike. Created from a composite of Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data carried aboard the Aqua and Terra satellites, this poster makes a nice companion piece for the Rita poster offered elsewhere on this page. State and county boundaries have been lightly superimposed over the imagery to aid location. The poster measures 18” x 24” and is off-set printed on high-quality, heavy-weight, semi-gloss paper.

Click here to order!

Buy both hurricane posters as a package and get one of your posters for half off!

Store Header

4/6/2009 11:51:41 AM

Additional Training Materials

3/23/2009 8:55:22 AM

Additional material are available by request. If you are interested in any material, please email Charles Ashton at cashton@crgsc.org.

KBTX Features GPS Training for the Texas State Guard

2/9/2009 2:21:29 PM

College Station based television station KBTX featured a Texas State Guard training exercise for which the Columbia Center provided GPS equipment and observation. Click here to watch the video.

The '08 Texas GIS Forum

11/7/2008 1:19:25 PM

Every year, the Texas Natural Resource Information System (TNRIS) hosts Texas GIS Forum, a conference dedicated to bringing GIS professionals together from all over Texas to share their applications of GIS technology.

The Columbia Center was represented at the conference by Johnny Brown, Charles Ashton, Dr. Darrel McDonald, Jason Raines, and Shane Diaz. As usual, the conference proved to be a great opportunity for networking. “It was great because we got to tell a lot of people about the Columbia Center,” Diaz said. “We had lots of good comments about our response to hurricane Ike.”

In addition, Dr. McDonald presented on Wide Area Damage Assessment using GPS technology, and Columbia Center System member Kevin Mulligan presented a session entitled “Mapping the Usable Lifetime of the Ogallala Aquifer in Texas.” Both sessions were well received.

Conference attendees were all abuzz over Microsoft’s Virtual Earth and an application of its possibilities using new table-top touch-screen technology called Microsoft Surface. Microsoft Surface is demonstrated in the video below:

GIS organizations have the opportunity to set up a presence at the conference, and this year the Columbia Center set up a large booth which showcased various mapping projects and allowed attendees to chat with Columbia Center employees. A slideshow which represented the various facets of the Columbia Center’s mission was played at the booth, and the same slideshow can be viewed below:

We enjoyed the conference and look forward to experiencing it again next year!

Where Do I Vote?

10/30/2008 11:24:32 AM

The Columbia Center has released a tool for the residents of Nacogdoches County that makes finding your polling place a snap. Follow these simple steps, and you won’t have to lose sleep over where to vote on Tuesday, November 4th.

Step 1
Click on this link: Nacogdoches County Election Precincts

Step 2
Click on the “Search Roads” link on the upper-left of the screen, type in the name of your road, and click “Find.”

Once you have your search results, right-click where it says “Full Road Name” and choose “Zoom to.”

After the map zooms, you should see your street highlighted in light blue, and there should be a precinct number visible. Take note of this precinct number.

Step 3
Click on the “Search Polling Places” link on the upper-left of the screen, select your precinct number from the drop-down list, and click “Find.”

Once you have your search results, right-click where it says “Polling Places” and choose “Zoom to Selected Features.”

After the map zooms, you should see a red push-pin over your polling place.

Please note that sometimes a road can be in more than one precinct, so your final authority on where to vote is your voter registration card. If you can’t locate this card, please call the Nacogdoches County Elections Office at 936-560-7825. Don’t forget to exercise your right to vote in this historic election!

After the Storm

10/7/2008 4:50:44 PM

Ike viewed from space.

Though the clouds have all dissipated weeks ago, the damage wrought by Hurricane Ike still lingers. As of the 2nd of October, 300 people are still missing along the coast of Texas, and insured loss estimates range from 6 to 25 billion dollars. In light of this, especially against the backdrop of our country’s financial woes, it’s hard to see a silver lining.

What gives hope, however, is that thanks to technological advancements such as computer storm modeling and the tireless public servants who assisted before, during, and after the storm, the loss of life due to Ike is exponentially less than it was in the aftermath of the Galveston Hurricane of 1900.

A weather mashup made during the storm.

The Columbia Center’s involvement in this disaster was a foregone conclusion. Our mission mandates that we provide up-to-date geospatial information for emergency response. Our involvement started on September 4th, over a week before Ike made landfall. We began compiling weather data and presenting them in the form of “weather mashups,” which are snapshots of the storm forecast at the time. These mashups were distributed via a mailing list to emergency response personnel throughout the state.

We also presented what are called “base maps” of every Texas county in the projected path of the storm. As a service to Nacogdoches residents and sheltered evacuees, we created “hospitality maps” which showed the location of every shelter, church, and restaurant within city limits. Aside from making these maps available through our website, we printed and distributed these maps to shelters around town.

Hospitality Maps
Restaurants	Businesses	Churches

On Thursday the 11th (3 days before the storm made landfall), we established a presence in Nacogdoches’ Emergency Operations Center where we provided weather updates and traffic flow information via highway cameras. In the immediate aftermath of the storm, we also made available web applications for reporting road closures and fuel shortages.

The devastation in Gilchrist on Bolivar Peninsula, Galveston.

Once the winds died down and the storm finally passed, the Columbia Center’s response kicked into high gear. On the Sunday after the storm we received a call through TNRIS requesting GIS assistance to Galveston County. On that same day we dispatched a team composed of Jason Grogan (our lead in GPS field-work) as well as Johnny Brown and Jason Raines (two of our top GIS applications experts) to Galveston County. Soon afterwards our team was joined by Abdiel Quesada (a GIS graduate student from our sister Center at The University of Texas at El Paso), Beni Patel (a member of the GIS Corps), Lani Cabico (an employee of Brooks City-Base in San Antonio), and SSGT Kari Page of the Texas State Guard. Eventually our presence in Galveston also included a server, several workstations, and a plotter provided by ESRI.

While at Galveston, we aided in search and rescue operations by providing maps and imagery captured before and after the storm. Our services included identifying chemical spills, demarcating new vegetation lines, and providing an area wide damage assessment for every identifiable structure (approximately 100,000) in Galveston County.

While our people were busy in Galveston County, we continued the work here in Nacogdoches, supporting damage assessment and recovery operations for both the City and the County. We also provided maps to the Red Cross and FEMA for many East Texas Counties.

“Our biggest challenge in emergency response is in making sure our resources are fully utilized”, said PR Blackwell, Director of the Columbia Center. “Getting [our services] out has traditionally been a problem. People just aren’t aware of all the resources we have to bring to the table.”

The Columbia Center’s philosophy is to work from the bottom up, starting with local jurisdictions where state and federal resources are sometimes lacking.

“During Ike we were able to help in Galveston County when they were unable to get an immediate relief from other agencies. This is exactly where we want to be.”

8/30/2008 5:05:21 PM

Click here to show PDF

Shelter Info

8/29/2008 4:22:36 PM

The main shelter for Nacogdoches is the Fredonia Hill Baptist Church. Those seeking shelter must report here.

Mashups

8/26/2008 3:46:01 PM

A Keyhole into Our World

8/15/2008 3:52:27 PM

A leaked KH-11 photo showing the Nikolaiev 444 shipyard in the Black Sea taken in 1984.

In December of 1976, the United States government began launching spy satellites named KH-11’s (the “KH” standing for “Key Hole”) with the capability of transmitting data digitally back to Earth. Ever since then, novelists and screen writers have played with the idea that at any point in time a silent, 28,000 pound machine that is so high above the ground so as to be invisible to the naked eye is watching us.

In 2001 a company named Keyhole, Inc named itself in homage to these satellites, and over the next four years, Keyhole, inc developed a software application which, after the company was acquired by Google, became known to the rest of the world as Google Earth. Despite Google’s heavy branding of their product, an important vestige of Keyhole, inc remains: the Keyhole Markup Language, more commonly referred to as KML.

At this year’s ESRI International User Conference, KML was a kind of buzzword (buzz acronym?). As ESRI promotes its suite of GIS software applications, it frequently touts the ability to import or export geospatial data to or from KML. ESRI has wisely refrained from appearing to compete with Google Earth or Microsoft’s Virtual Earth. Instead ESRI has adopted a strategy of cooperation. Ever since the release of ArcGIS Server 9.3, ESRI has provided training on publishing KML services with ArcGIS for consumption by Google Earth. On July 29th, ESRI announced its collaboration with Microsoft by providing ArcGIS users with Virtual Earth’s imagery content.

This strategy of opening up standards and sharing information across multiple platforms is a welcome alternative to previous business models. As a gesture of good faith, Google relinquished control over KML, handing it off to the Open Geospatial Consortium to be maintained and extended.

It’s an exciting time for the field of GIS. And who knows? Maybe the world has found an international language for describing itself in the form of KML.

County Maps

8/4/2008 3:12:44 PM

Texas Tech’s Digital Atlas of Texas Counties

City of Nacogdoches

7/18/2008 9:09:46 AM

The City of Nacogdoches Web Application is an ESRI ArcGIS Server web applicaiton for Nacogdoches. It includes most of the layers in the City GIS including 6 inch aerial photography captured in 2005.

http://arcgis02.crgsc.org/cityofnac

Consuming Ibis Eye

7/10/2008 4:29:13 PM

Under the Web 2.0 paradigm, it seems the phrase “dog eat dog” has taken on a new connotation. Back when the law of the jungle ruled the business world, “dog eat dog” meant kill or be killed. But the concepts of the past are, well, passé. We no longer engage in hostile takeovers, we collaborate. We no longer compete, we consume each other’s services. There is a difference between a dark jungle and a thriving ecosystem.

One example of this new way of thinking can be found on the upper right-hand corner of your screen. The map visible under the “weather” column heading is the result of the Columbia Center consuming a web service provided by the Herald Tribune called IbisEye, which in turn consumes Google Maps in order to display its data. Dog eat dog indeed!

IbisEye’s mission is “to bridge the gap between the technical world of meteorology and the common man.” They accomplish this by providing “mountains of real-time weather and tropical storm data; a system to estimate a storm’s threat to property and population in its path; a system to exchange damage reports; and an encyclopedic storehouse of hurricane history.” At the time of writing this article, IbisEye has been tracking the progress of Hurricane Bertha.

When any major storm or hurricane pops up, IbisEye automatically centers on the storm and follows it throughout the course of its existence. Feel free to click on the IbisEye map to the right and enjoy a full screen version of the tool. Historic storm information can be viewed on the IbisEye site itself. The Columbia Center is excited about making IbisEye accessible via its website, and will continue to research new ways to keep our users informed about the world around them.

Panola County

6/24/2008 3:42:31 PM

The Panola County Map Viewer is an ESRI ArcGIS Server Application for Panola County, Texas. This Web Application may be viewed in a web browser or used as a data layer in GIS Desktop Software.

http://arcgis01.crgsc.org/panolacounty/

Nacogdoches County

6/24/2008 3:42:25 PM

The The Nacogdoches County Map Viewer is an ESRI ArcGIS Servier Application for Nacogdoches County, Texas. This Web Application may be viewed in a web browser or used as a data layer in GIS Desktop Software.

http://arcgis01.crgsc.org/naccounty/

Professor World

6/13/2008 8:47:12 AM

Professor World watches vigilantly over the Columbia Center.

America loves her Superheroes. But unless they’re from Krypton, heroes are made, not born. Here at the Columbia Center we can boast our own Superhero: Professor World. The illustrious Professor World began life as mild-mannered professor Dr. Darrel McDonald. About a decade ago, however, something changed in Dr. McDonald, and he began to wear magical robes imbued with mighty Geospatial powers.

His mission was clear: “To go out and encourage awareness about our world, about the people who live in it, and the way maps can impact our lives.” Dr. McDonald always smiles when he delivers his mantra. “If you know where you are you’ll better understand who you are.”

Professor World has been busy, holding more than 50 events over the years, for crowds ranging from second graders to seniors, in order to help people understand their world. Like all superheroes, however, Professor World must rely on powerful tools. The aforementioned robes, of course, allow him to become one with the globe. Upon his head sits the Scarlet Cap of Culture, which allows him to understand and explain societies across the oceans.

The Rod of Life and the Walking Wuffers.

In his hand rests the sturdy Rod of Life, through which flows the life energy of the planet. Finally, his feet are clad with the never failing Walking Wuffers, which allow him to traverse unimaginable distances at mind-bending speeds.

On June 3rd, Professor World was called upon to perform yet another mighty deed. The Nacogdoches Public Library summoned him to bring enlightenment and escape from summer tedium to a group of Nacogdoches school children.

Against all odds, rare footage was captured of Professor World performing at this event. Until now, few mortal eyes have had the privilege to see the Professor at work. The Columbia Center has decided to broadcast this clip over the internet. What better way to pay homage to this unsung hero than to make his work accessible to the world the Professor fights so hard to celebrate?

The Pirates of SCAUG

5/25/2008 9:23:48 PM

There are few fields as acronym riddled as Geographic Information Systems (GIS). This is most likely due to the polysyllabic nature of the terminology we use on a daily basis: no one wants to spit out ten syllables when three will do just fine. Among these frequently used acronyms is ESRI, which stands for Environmental Systems Research Institute. To say that ESRI is a big player in the GIS industry is a gross understatement: they hold a kind of monopoly on enterprise GIS software solutions.

It comes as no surprise, then, that ESRI related user groups abound. In April, the Columbia Center sent several employees to a conference held by one such user group called the South Central Arc User Group, or SCAUG (yet another acronym).

It’s refreshing, however, that members of SCAUG are aware of how much their acronym, when pronounced correctly, sounds like something a scurvy dog might say on the deck of the Flying Dutchman. This is why April’s SCAUG conference was pirate themed.

In keeping with this sea faring theme, it might be appropriate to say the Columbia Center made a big splash at this year’s conference. Just before the conference, Jason Grogan and Johnny Brown taught a training session which included ArcPad familiarization and GPS usage. Johnny and Charles Ashton entered maps and a map book into a competition, with Charles’ map book coming in second place. Johnny, Charles, and Diana Gunter participated in a panel discussing the operations, capabilities, and services the Columbia Center offers to the public.

All reports indicate that the conference went swimmingly—SCAUG has proven to be a treasure trove for networking with other GIS professionals and gaining knowledge and insight for navigating the field’s exciting waters.

Daisetta Sinkhole

5/18/2008 2:36:52 AM

During the course of their work collecting data for the TCEQ Critical Facilities Infrastructure Project (see TCEQ Partners with Columbia Center), Columbia Center Data Collection Technicians Buddy and Chyrell Reich found themselves in the vicinity of Daisetta, Texas. Their duties took them well within the restricted area around the growing Daisetta Sinkhole, and they were able to capture these images of the phenomenon.

At the time of their visit, the sinkhole was about 900 feet across and some 250 feet deep. It had filled with water, and there was an oil slick on top caused by a ruptured oil tank. These photos tell the story.

Geologists believe the collapse was caused by the removal of oil from a salt dome under the site. Over time, pressure from the overbearing layers caused the dome to collapse. No one knows how much the sinkhole may grow.

Daisetta is located in Southeast Texas between Houston and Beaumont.

To learn more about the Diasetta Sinkhole, visit:

Houston Chronicle, 5/9/08
ABC13, Houston, TX, 5/10/08
Houston Chronicle, 5/12/08
Clastic Detritus

To learn more about sinkholes and what causes them, visit:

USGS Water Science for Schools

GIS Jet-Setting: Training Texas' Finest

5/9/2008 2:17:17 PM

While the employees of the Columbia Center aren’t necessarily hobnobbing with the rich and famous, we’ve certainly been keeping great company: the Texas State Guard.

Our work with the Texas State Guard began in the summer of 2007 when, in collaboration with Colonel Charles Miller, plans were laid out for twelve hand-picked guardsmen to participate in a five day introductory GPS course at our facility on the Square in Downtown Nacogdoches.

The purpose of this training is to familiarize the State Guard with the use of geospatial technologies as tools in carrying out a successful first response to an emergency situation.

The initial training, which was held in December of 2007, was so well-received that it has cemented a relationship between the Texas Military Forces and the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center System. In fact, over the months of April and May we will have held around a dozen similar training sessions for the State Guard in five different locations, with several of them happening at the same time!

In order to facilitate all of this training, the Columbia Center has sent emissaries to our System partners at locations over 800 miles apart in order to bring uniformity to our training. This has provided us a chance to “train our trainers” in order to develop a quality, system-wide training curriculum. The goal is for the CRGSC System to have trained over 150 guardsmen by the end of October 2008.

Aside from helping the Texas State Guard develop crucial skills in emergency response, these trainings have resulted in positive publicity for both the Columbia Center and the Guard. According to First Sergeant Steven Donaldson, “The press coverage was surprising in its results for the Texas State Guard. So far we have received over 40 requests for information about joining the Texas State Guard. The story was covered by two television stations who put their stories on the web. Both of those stories made it up my chain of command to the General Staff, and received praises all the way up. So besides all the skills we learned, we may wind up gaining some soldiers also. This will help us fulfill our mission of military assistance to civil authorities, and continue to live up to our motto: ‘Texans Serving Texas.’”

We are proud of our relationship with Texas’ Finest, and look forward to exploring new opportunities for training in the future.

Columbia Museum Showing

5/8/2008 9:19:10 AM

Begins: Saturday, January 19, 2008 at 8:00 AM
Ends: Sunday, February 03, 2008 at 5:00 PM

Two large-scale models of the space shuttle will be part of a temporary exhibit of NASA memorabilia opening soon in downtown Nacogdoches to coincide with the fifth anniversary of the Columbia tragedy.

The exhibit is being sponsored by Stephen F. Austin State University’s Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center and the Columbia Memorial Museum. It will be open to the public from Jan. 26 to Feb. 10 in the vacant Wyatt building next door to Nacogdoches City Hall on the downtown square.

In conjunction with the exhibit, organizers also are holding a reunion for those who participated in the long recovery effort and kicking off a new campaign to record the recollections of recovery workers for posterity.

On Feb. 1, 2003, the space shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Texas upon re-entry into the earth’s atmosphere, and all seven astronauts on board were lost. The expansive debris field covered much of East Texas, including Nacogdoches and surrounding counties.

“There were literally thousands of people who came here to search for debris and help with the recovery effort, and, except for their individual recollections, we have no way to record their experiences for history,” said Dr. Morris Jackson, director of the Columbia Memorial Museum. “We are hoping to sit down with as many of them as possible over the coming weeks and begin to preserve their living histories for future generations.”

Along with the models of the space shuttle, the exhibit will include large panels with printed information and photographs detailing the history of space exploration in the United States. Scrapped space shuttle components also will be available for viewing; however, no debris from the Columbia disaster will be included in the display.

“This is the first time an exhibit of this magnitude and quality has been brought to East Texas, and it really chronicles the whole history of the shuttle program,” said Dr. James Kroll, director of the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center. “The displays are just incredible, so we are hoping a lot of people will take advantage of the opportunity to come and see the exhibit.”

The exhibit will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays; and 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays. Admission is free.

Volunteers are needed to serve as docents for the exhibit. If you would like to help, call the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center at (936) 468-6100. Donations for the Columbia Memorial Museum may be mailed to P.O. Box 635007, Nacogdoches, TX, 75963-5007.

New Site Launched!

4/2/2008 10:47:06 AM

WWW Specialist Bryan Tarpley gives the CRGSC website a makeover.

The Columbia Center’s web presence has been to the salon and had its hair done. It has picked out a new dress and a matching pair of shoes. It has stepped out onto the sidewalk, hoping to see heads turn. It might even appreciate a whistle or two.

But appearances are only pixel deep! The web site also offers a new navigation system in the form of the menu you see above, which stays at the top of every page you visit. The menu is broken down into the following main areas:

Home: This is where you’ll find all the things you would expect to find on a modern website, like a home page with news stories (you’re looking at it), an FAQ page, Calendar, Forum, and Contact page.

About: These are pages intended to help you understand the Columbia Center, including how it came to exist, what it does, who works here, and what the Columbia Center can offer you.

Data: This is where people seeking geospatial data go to find vector GIS data, raster images, remote sensing data, GPS base station data, and a wealth of other resources.

Training and Education: Under this section you’ll find helpful information about what kind of classes the Columbia Center offers, when they meet, and how to contact us so you can sign up for them.

Applications: Here you’ll find the map services we provide over the internet, as well as web applications for helping you use them in your browser.

Projects: This is where you can find out what the Columbia Center currently is working on, as well as completed projects.

The best way to learn what the new site has to offer, of course, is to don that Safari hat and go exploring. If you need to find something specific, feel free to take a shortcut by using the Search box you’ll find at the top-right of every page.

Don’t hesitate to drop us a line and let us know what you think of our shiny new site. If there’s something we’ve missed, or a feature you would like to see implemented, please let us know! There are two ways you can do this. You can send us an email by visiting our contact page, or you can post in our public forum. Either way, we promise to get back to you in a timely manner.

Happy surfing!

Mission

4/2/2008 9:50:40 AM

The Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center (The Columbia Center), established in 2005 by Congress, is the national model for a growing network of regional centers, delivering the most up-to-date geospatial information and tools for regional support with:

Emergency planning and response
Economic development
Natural resource management

The Columbia Center provides backup services, data storage and redundancy to other regional centers, and serves as a conduit between local, state and federal entities.

On-Line Resources

4/1/2008 8:11:45 PM

A number of on-line resources are available and helpful for learning geospatial technology. These link are listed here as a conveniences. The Columbia Center has no connection with these services and offers no warranty as to their suitability for any purpose. Any problems or questions concerning these workshops call the CRGSC Education and Training Department at (936) 468 6114 or email the CRGSC Education and Training Department at training@crgsc.org

	Weather, GIS and You is a workshop that that teaches you how to perform real time weather mapping by introducing them on how to gather weather information from various free open National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) web sources.
Click Here to Download Workshop

	Introduction to Metadata Level 1 is workshop that teaches you how to write geospatial metadata that meets the minimum requirements set by the Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) by using the FGDC Workbook and FGDC graphic flowchart.
Click Here to Download Workshop

Introduction to Aloha is designed to teach basic chemical plume modeling skills. It is not designed to be a comprehensive course on ALOHA. After taking this workshop, you should be competent in calculating a chemical plume and printing a map of the plume using MARPLOT. Important! Please read the Read_Me.doc file in your ALOHA_Exercise folder for workshop instructions and additional information

Click Here to Download Workshop

	Introduction to GPS is designed to give you an overview of the GPS system and how GPS satellites send signals to a GPS reciver. Plus, a brief introduction to how to operate a GPS unit, which includes how to take a waypoint and navigate to a waypoint. Important! Please read the Read_Me.doc file in your Intro_toGPS_Exercise folder for workshop instructions and additional information
Click Here to Download Workshop

Reading a USGS topographical map is essential to successfully navigating in the field. USGS topographical show the terrain, spatial relationship of the land, roads, structures and water features. This topographic map review covers the basic elements in using a USGS topographic map series.

Click Here to Download Workshop

Determining Latitude and Longitude deals with how to determine a set of Latitude and Longitude coordinates from a 15 minute topographic map.

Click Here to Download Workshop

	Stephen F. Austin State University
	Authur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture SFASU
	ESRI Virtual Campus
	USGS Online GIS Training Course
	National Parks Service GIS for Fire Specialists
	FEMA NETC Virtual Campus

Training Modules

4/1/2008 5:44:56 PM

Training modules will be offered to local, regional, and state government employees that will focus on how geospatial activities can be used in daily routines. The modules are designed to ensure that critical infrastructure is maintained accurately so that regular service delivery will continue to operate during an emergency.

Training courses will be made available to public groups, including non-government organizations, youth and educational groups, outdoor sports organizations among others that desire to be more informed about geospatial technology and its broader applications.

Community

4/1/2008 5:40:13 PM

The Columbia Center Education and Training team provide geospatial training and educational opportunities for the community at large. Among the most popular of these activities is a class on GPS training for hunter’s and fishermen. The program is aimed at the outdoorsman wanting to learn more about recreational grade GPS receivers that they own, or may be planning to purchase.

The classroom portion of the course covers theory, operation and usage of typical consumer-grade GPS Units. Garmin 76C GPS receivers are provided, but participants are encouraged to bring and use their own units. Classroom instruction is augmented with field exercises cover all normal modes of GPS operations. In addition, an introduction to GIS data sources and use is given along with tips on where to find free resources to enhance your GPS mapping experience.

Visit the Training and Education Schedule frequently for these and other training opportunities.

Columbia Center Education and Training personnel frequently speak to service clubs and other civic groups. Topics include all aspects of geospatial technology as well as real-world experiences during the Columbia Shuttle recovery effort, Hurricanes responses such as Katrina and Rita and other emergency events that the Center as been involved in.

SURAgrid

3/31/2008 8:18:01 PM

The Columbia Center is an active member of SURAgrid, a consortium of organizations collaborating and combining resources to help bring grid technology to the level of seamless, shared infrastructure. Involvement in SURAgrid provides access to high-performance computing resources that would otherwise be unavailable. In addition, the organization provides a means of collaborating with researchers from all across the southeastern United States.

The Columbia Center is focusing on three objectives within SURGgrid:

REDDnet – SURAgrid collaboration

Providing geospatial resources

Grid-enabling geospatial applications

In addition, the Columbia Center is working towards adding computational resources to SURAgrid.

SURAgrid is another example of the Columbia Center efforts to embrace a wide array of technologies in pursuit of our goals.

Data Replication

3/31/2008 7:56:22 PM

Data replication is one of the bedrock principles upon which the Columbia Center and The Columbia Center System is based. Recent history aptly illustrates the rationale behind this process. On September 11, 2001, the terrorist attack took out the New York City Emergency Operations Center, located in Building 7 of the WTC, along with the Twin Towers.

The Columbia Center is working towards providing live backup and geodata replication services for a number of local and regional governmental agencies. These services are being developed using state-of-the-art software that allows cross-database replication of geospatial data. The intention is to provide fault-tolerance and disaster recovery for critical public datasets.

Closer to home, Tropical Storm Allison dumped as much as 40 inches of rainfall over Southeast Texas, causing wide-spread flooding. Among the buildings flooded was the one containing the Texas GigaPop, a major network connection providing service to much of the Texas academic community, including SFASU. The outage effectively severed all communication to most geospatial assets in eastern Texas.

These examples illustrate why single points of failure cannot be tolerated for critical resources.

The Columbia Center philosophy answers this critical concern by replicating data and services across the state. The System partners, the University of Texas at El Paso, Texas Tech University and Lamar University replicate each other’s data stores as well as critical state-wide data maintained by the Texas Natural Geographic Information system. In this way no part of the state can be cut off from critical geospatial assets.

In addition to replicating state wide and each other’s data, the Centers provide replication services for local and regional governments. Through cooperative agreements, resources can be allocated at the Centers to backup and serve out critical data. Projects are currently underway with the following agencies:

The Deep East Texas Council of Governments

The East Texas Council of Governments

The Houston/Galveston Area Council

The City of Tyler

The City of Nacogdoches

Nacogdoches County

Panola County

Services

3/31/2008 7:03:34 PM

The Columbia Center proudly provides the following kinds of services:

Mapping Services

The Columbia Center is collecting data continuously and using them to update our geospatial databases. With these data we are able to create maps on-the-fly, and are always looking for new ways to apply this data. We can also be contracted to conduct field work for gathering new kinds of data. Here are some examples of work we have done recently in this area:

Geospatial Data Replication

Part of our mission is to provide a secure data center for the storing of critical geospatial information for public agencies. We can provide live, off-site backup of geospatial data for city, county and regional governmental organizations. Through our sister organizations, these services can extend across the state. Please contact us for more information.

Web Services

Our Columbia Center staff includes several highly trained programmers capable of taking geospatial information and making easy to use web applications. If you see a need for a service we could provide over the internet, please contact us. Below is our Web Applications page:

Software Resources

3/31/2008 6:37:48 PM

Free software is available that can manage and display geospatial data. We offer the links below as a convenience. The Columbia Center has no connection with any of the following products or companies and makes no warranties as to their usefulness or quality.

If you know of another free resource that you find useful, please send us a link and we will add it to this list.

ESRI

ArcExplorer Family of Free Geospatial Applications

Google

Google Earth

Lizzard Tech

ExpressView Browser Plug-in(MrSid) for Windows

Express Server Plug-in for ArcGIS

Leica

Leica Geosystems ViewFinder V2.1

Purdue University

Multispec (Multispectral Image Data Analysis System)

NRCS

NRCS Soils Data Viewer – ArcGIS extension for
soils data

Web Applications

3/31/2008 11:57:40 AM

Web Applications deliver geospatial data and functionality over the Internet. They utilize computing power, data and technical expertise at our facilities in Nacogdoches, Texas to deliver simple, easy to use geospatial applications through an ordinary Internet browser.

The applications are targeted at very specific goals and user communities in order to make them as simple and intuitive as possible. Again the emphasis is on placing the technical requirement on the server side and to free the user from as much technical complexity as possible.

The Columbia Center uses a variety of hardware and software to implement these services and we are always experimenting with new technologies. Check these pages often for additional applications.

Internet Map Services

3/31/2008 11:55:27 AM

Columbia Center Internet Map Services provide geospatial map data over Internet connections. These services fall into three broad categories:

Map Services are primarily for use as data layers in desktop GIS software applications such as ESRI Arc Explorer or ArcGIS. These services generally incorporate only one data theme or layer and are meant to be combined with other data.

Web Applications may be viewed in an ordinary web browser such as IE or Firefox. They can be customized to deliver GIS functionality over the Internet. Generally, web applications are designed to address a specific issue or purpose.

REDDnet

3/30/2008 9:10:44 PM

The Research and Education Data Depot Network (REDDnet) is an NSF funded research initiative to build a distributed network storage system for data intensive collaboration. The Columbia Center is one of 6 institutions involved in the project along with The University of Tennessee, Vanderbilt University, Nevoa Networks, North Carolina State University and the University of Delaware.

The concept underlying REDDnet is that data storage should be part of the network infrastructure. Rather than a data repository at a single location, REDDnet storage is distributed across the wide-area net- work. Data is sliced into blocks and distributed across the network.

The similarity to a data RAID store is useful to understand this technology. Just as a RAID system stripes data across several physical disks to improve I/O performance and enable fault tolerance, REDDnet stripes data across depots.

REDDnet is based on Internet Back- plane Protocol (IBP) developed at the Logistical Computing and Internetworking (LoCI) Lab at the University of Tennessee. Several technologies are layered on top of IBP to enable different capabilities. One of these, called L-Store, developed at the Advanced Computing Center for Research and Education (ACCRE), at Vanderbilt University, provides the file system abstraction and metadata maintenance that make REDDnet work. Tools developed at NEVOA Networks help manage the system.

The REDDnet project involves several application areas and Columbia Center’s involvement is focused on one of these, delivery of satellite remote sensing data. Other application areas are CMS – Elementary particle Physics at the CERN large Hadron collider, TeraScale Supernova Initiative, National Geospatial Digital Archive, and Retinopathy – Diabetic Eye Disease Screening in Peru and Bolivia.

The Columbia Center is in cooperation with AmericaView to develop the AmericaView/REDDnet Demonstration Project. This project provides fast download of AmericaView remote sensing archives through REDDnet. Phase 1 of the project is nearing completion at the time of this writing. Phase 1 involves a GloVis data discovery tool coupled with a L-Store download engine.

Learn more about REDDnet HERE.

Read about AmericaView/REDDnet application use cases HERE.

Try AmericaView/REDDnet HERE.

Panola County 9-1-1 Mapping

3/30/2008 9:04:40 PM

When Panola County approached the Columbia Center for help modernizing their 9-1-1 mapping, the management team jumped at the opportunity. The Nacogdoches 9-1-1 mapping project was winding down and this looked like an opportunity to apply the lessons learned during the Nacogdoches work and test the procedures that had been developed during that process.

It turned out to be something entirely different…

Most Counties in East Texas are using e9-1-1 addressing systems that are based on primitive, and somewhat inaccurate base maps. Yet, where there is a will there is a way! In Panola County, even inferior maps were unavailable. So instead of basing addresses on maps, the County assigns address by physically measuring distances from road intersections.

The data are recorded on paper forms and then entered into Excel spreadsheets. The system works well and is in fact much more accurate than most of the map-based systems in East Texas. However, with the industry moving towards Mapped Automatic Location Identification (Mapped ALI) and other map-based dispatch systems, Panola County’s system clearly needed updating.

Funding for the project was provided by a Grant administered by the East Texas Council of Governments (ETCOG). Panola County issued a contract with the Columbia Center to generate a e9-1-1 base map for the county and integrate the County’s existing 9-1-1 addressing into it. The result would be a standards-based e9-1-1 Geodatabase for Panola County e9-1-1.

This project involved the following steps:

Establish a spatially correct road-centerline for Panola County.
Impose address ranges on road segments based on existing addresses.
Generate an address location point file based on existing adress data.
Generate appropriate service area boundaries for the County.
Deliver all data to Panola County as an ESRI geodatabase.

In addition, the Center was intent on introducing GIS to the Panola County e9-1-1 addressing office, and from there to other County offices. Because of this, Larry Jones from the e9-1-1 addressing office, worked closely with Columbia Center Staff during the project. Doing so not only allowed him to become familiar with geospatial technology in general, and the GIS being created for Panola County in particular, but also to provide critical information that informed the choices Center personnel were making as the project developed.

As with the original 9-1-1 mapping pilot project in Nacogdoches County, a number of custom tools were created for the Panola County project. These tools automated certain tasks, allowing faster completion, but also eliminating common human error.

In addition to the Panola County geodatabase that was created during the project, the Columbia Center is building Internet Map Services that will allow other County offices and the general public to leverage this work. The result of the Panola County 9-1-1 Mapping Project is a modern GIS that not only serves as a sound basis for continued 9-1-1 Mapping efforts in Panola County, but also as a base map for other County endeavors.

Nacogdoches County 9-1-1 Mapping

3/30/2008 4:20:48 PM

Nacogdoches County, like many counties in East Texas, has a long and varied 9-1-1 history. Most early attempts to develop viable 9-1-1 systems in East Texas began with very poor mapping. In the days before GPS and accurate orthorectified aerial photography, there were no financially viable avenues for rural counties to acquire accurate maps. As a result, attempts to assign addresses in a systematic way failed because they were based on map representations that did not accurately portray what actually existed on the ground.

In 2006, The Columbia Center undertook to address this problem by developing methodologies that could be practically applied across the region. Nacogdoches County was selected for the pilot project.

Throughout the project, attention was paid to the feasibility of completing this work for other rural counties. Techniques, tools and work flows were developed that reduce labor and minimize the level of expertise required to do the work. The systematic approach developed and perfected by the Columbia Center involves several steps:

This image illustrates the kind of mapping problems that are commonly encountered in rural parts of the State.

Collect and evaluate available data.

Photo-revise road centerlines.

Verify road centerline attribution.

Verify road address ranges.

Align address points to base.

Align driveways to base and address points.

Verify address points to road ranges.

Flag unresolved addressing issues.

Create or align other boundaries to base.

The Columbia Center adopted the Texas State-wide standard 9-1-1 Geodatabase schema for this and all 9-1-1 mapping projects. Nacogdoches County was among the first counties in Texas to embrace this new standard.

The result of the project is twofold: First a comprehensive and accurate base map for Nacogdoches County e9-1-1. Second (and more importantly), a system that can be used to update mapping for other rural counties across the state. Although funding is limited, the Columbia Center is actively seeking opportunities to help other counties update their mapping.

Sample inset of completed Nacogdoches County 9-1-1 Base map. This map features geographically accurate line work, verified address ranges and integrated polygonal layers representing pertinent service areas.

The Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center System

3/29/2008 5:29:52 PM

The Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center System is a growing network of University-based Centers dedicated to supplying regional geospatial services in support of emergency response, economic development, and natural resource management. The System was established in 2006 by a federal appropriation through the Department of Defense. The original Center and prototype for the System is the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center at Stephen F. Austin State University (SFASU) in Nacogdoches, Texas. At present, Centers exist at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), Texas Tech University (TTU), and Lamar University (LU).

The Texas Natural Resource Information System (TNRIS), a state agency with responsibility for managing Texas’ geospatial assets, serves as the hub of the system. In one sense, the System extends the reach of TNRIS and expands its mandate to include regional geospatial support.

The Centers are connected via the Lone Star Education And Research Network (LEARN). LEARN is a cooperative effort of 34 institutions of higher education in Texas to provide high-speed connectivity between their institutions, and provide connectivity to research networks across the country. LEARN provides the physical connectivity required to allow the Centers to share data and collaborate on projects in spite of the great distances between them. In addition, the System is a Internet2 project.

Each Center brings it’s own area of expertise to the system. For example, The Columbia Center at SFA focuses on forestry issues, 911-mapping, and rural economic development. UTEP has expertise in geology, air quality, and border issues. TTU works on agricultural issues, water rights, and weather issues. Lamar University specializes in surface and subsurface geology, economic resources, coastal issues, and space science.

All of the Centers share responsibility for emergency preparedness and response, data replication, training and other state-wide issues.

The Columbia Center System has been identified by Senator Hutchison as a “Model for the Nation.”

K-12

3/28/2008 2:07:05 PM

The Columbia Center Training and Education group regularly conducts community outreach activities. One common activity is providing enrichment for local and regional K-12 educational institutions.

“We reach several thousand elementary kids each year with a variety of outdoor, Center, and classroom programs,” says Dr. Darrel McDonald, Assistant Director for Education and Training.The kids really enjoy it and so do we!”

For the younger kids, Professor World may very well make an appearance. Professor World is an intrepid wanderer roaming the globe his his walking stick and wearing his “Walking Woofers” looking for opportunities to talk to kids about our world and the places, people and things on it.

Other groups taking advantage of Columbia Center outreach opportunities are the Girl Scouts, the Boy Scouts, FFA, Boys and Girls Clubs and other similar youth organizations.

In addition to youth-oriented activities, the Training and Education group provides instruction for adults as well. One popular offere is “GPS for Hunters and Fishermen.” This one day class is usually offered on a Saturday and focuses on using recreational grade GPS recievers for outdoor activities.

These training sessions are generally offered free of charge for schools and other non-profit organizations. A modest fee is charged for some programs. If you are interested in the Columnbia Center visiting your organization, or if you would like to bring a group to the Columbia Center for training, please contact the Training and Edcuation Group by clicking here.

Focus Groups

3/28/2008 2:07:01 PM

The Training and Education section conducts focus group session regularly to assure that Columbia Center programs are in line with the needs and expectations of user communities. The “best” geospatial tool is the one that is used, and the best way be sure a tool will be used is to align it perfectly with the needs of the users.

Columbia Center invites professionals from a particular discipline, ems, fire or law enforcement for example, from across the region to gather at a central location. There is a brief presentation on geospatial technology, and then the session is opened up for discussion. Whenever possible, an individual from the selected group is chosen to facility the meeting. Geospatial experts from the Columbia Center listen to the comments and offer suggestions. Ideas and comments are recored and used to guide Columbia Center policy and program development.

Focus groups are an effective method of ensuring that we fully understand the issues facing our various user communities,” said P. R. Blackwell, Assistant Director for Operations. Without this direct contact, we can only guess at our user’s needs. These sessions also afford us the opportunity to meet and come to know the people we are supporting. We invariably come out of these meetings with enhansed admiration and appreciation of the jobs they do every day.”

Academic Classes

3/28/2008 2:04:36 PM

Stephen F. Austin State University offers several programs for degree seeking individuals. Students can pursue degrees that lead to minors in GIS, B.S. degrees with concentration in geospatial sciences, as well as two Masters degree programs. Internships are an integral part of both undergraduate and graduate programs. Also, graduate assistantships for teaching and research are awarded on a competitive basis.

For more information concerning academic programs, please visit SFASU, The Arthur Temple College of Forestry and Agriculture or contact the Columbia Center Education and Training Dept..

Certification

3/28/2008 2:04:18 PM

Stephen F. Austin is developing curricula for several geospaital technology Certification programs. Watch these pages for announcements as these programs come on-line.

Training

3/28/2008 2:04:13 PM

The Education and Training (E/T) Program of the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center System (CRGSC) is tasked to develop and distribute quality, integrated spatial information training about the use of geospatial data, tools, maps and images to regional public entities, local government groups, scientists, students and interested citizens. The target audience consists of regional professionals involved with emergency response, natural resource managers and economic development groups at all levels. An equally important target group is students and professionals seeking careers in geospatial sciences.

More specifically, programs offered by the Columbia Center provide relevant geospatial training specially designed for first responders (including emergency managers), Homeland Security directors, National Guard units, fire and police personnel, designated logistics individuals and local government employees’ assigned specialized duties during emergencies. In addition, training modules are offered to local, regional and state government employees that will focus on how geospatial activities can be used in daily routines. This training includes ways to develop, manage and disseminate geospatial databases so critical infrastructure is maintained at an acceptable level of accuracy to carry out regular service delivery as well as provide vital data to support emergencies.

Some of the training courses offered by the Columbia Center are:

Introduction to GPS Applications – Level 1

Introduction to GPS Applications – Level 2

Intorduction to GPS data Collection with ArcPad

Economic Risk Analysis for GIS Users

Geocoding with ArcGIS 9.2

Introduction to Metadata

The United States National Grid: Theory and Use

Introduction to ArcGIS I (ESRI Certified)

Introduction to ArcGIS II (ESRI Certified)

To learn more about Columbia Center training classes, please contact the Training and Education Department.

To learn about upcoming classes, click HERE!

How The Columbia Center Helps You Vote

3/28/2008 10:51:28 AM

At times, when in polite conversation, a staff member of the Columbia Center is asked “So what is it that you do?” This is somewhat of an awkward moment, as the esoteric, technical nature of the collection and processing of geospatial data can be difficult to relate without a crash course in the field of geospatial information systems.

Debra Gaston, Election Coordinator

That is why the Columbia Center jumps at the chance to make practical, every day application of the data we collect and maintain. One such opportunity landed in the lap of Johnny Brown (Geospatial Applications Specialist II) when Nacogdoches Election Coordinator Debra Gaston called. “Several years ago, we purchased some mapping software to help with determining voter precincts, but it was not as accurate as we needed it to be,” said Gaston. “On one county road you can have as many as three different precincts depending on where and on what side of the road you live. We made the best we could with what we had.”

Fortunately, the Columbia Center maintains a constantly updated database which can be used to create the most current maps available for the Nacogdoches area. “They were able to understand my dilemma, and because of Johnny’s assistance, we’ve been able to clean up our data extensively. I personally feel our voter rolls are in the best shape they’ve ever been,” said Gaston. She was so happy, in fact, that she baked the Columbia Center a cake in time for a staff meeting over lunch. “I can’t say enough good things about the assistance I’ve had and the maps they produced.” Gaston said.

The Columbia Center continues to field questions from the Election Office regarding the correct voter district for individual addresses. “Sometimes I send over pages worth of addresses to verify. I get a response immediately.” said Gaston.

While the pride staff members at the Columbia Center take in their work is motivation enough, sometimes there’s nothing better than high praise and baked goods.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality Partners with the Columbia Center

3/28/2008 9:51:01 AM

Hurricane Rita

After hurricanes Katrina and Rita left swaths of devastation across Louisiana and Texas, an unforeseen consequence reared its ugly head: many public water supplies had been contaminated by raw sewage. Soon after the hurricanes hit the Gulf Coast, 23 percent of the drinking water facilities in Louisiana were rendered inoperable, forcing the state to require residents to boil their water before use.

Having witnessed the problems Louisiana faced in the aftermath of these disasters, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality identified a crucial gap in data required to assure Texas residents timely restoration of public water services during natural disasters and other emergency situations. With funding from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Columbia Center is working alongside TCEQ to fill this data gap.

The data being collected by the Columbia Center include GPS locations for water treatment plants, water storage tanks, wells, entry points, and interconnects. For each of these locations, vital information about these systems is being recorded. A database is being compiled for distribution. All data face a rigorous quality control audit involving the use of high-resolution aerial photography for verification. After passing quality control standards, data are submitted to TCEQ. In the end, each requesting water supply receives a map showing the location of their critical facilities, providing emergency responders a powerful tool for assessing the safety of water supplies.

Currently, the project is limited to mapping water supplies servicing less than 3300 customers in counties adjacent to the Gulf of Mexico and in East Texas most susceptible to damage by hurricanes. Plans are under way to map every public water system in the entire state of Texas.

Data collection technician Chyrell Reich recording the location of a public water supply feature.

This is a formidable project, requiring several Columbia Center staff members to commit full-time to its implementation. Our current field crew, Buddy and Chyrell Reich, are deployed in the Houston area where they are facing the daunting task of mapping around 600 public water systems, while facing traffic and other big-city challenges. Despite these challenges, they are successfully mapping close to 20 public water supplies per week, while developing positive relationships with water supply managers and other individuals.

Ryan Hudiburgh, a wildlife graduate student studying under Dr. James Kroll, is overseeing scheduling and logistical coordination of the project. Assisted by students Amy Braig and Chelsea West, water supplies are contacted by phone to solicit their participation in the project. On average, numerous calls, emails, letters and/or faxes are necessary to set up each appointment.

Paul R. Blackwell, Assistant Director for Operations, said “This project fills a critical need identified during the Hurricane Katrina and Rita responses. The results will allow emergency resources to be deployed more efficiently, restoring clean, safe drinking water to more people, more quickly than is currently possible. This is one of the most important applications of geospatial technology we have undertaken. We are proud to be a part of it.” The Columbia Center hopes to finish with the current scope of the project by the first of September, 2008.

Other Satellite Remote Sensing Data Sources

3/24/2008 9:42:48 PM

United States Geological Service GloVis

Mid-America Geospatial Information Center (MAGIC)

NOAA Satellite and Information Service

Global Land Cover Facility (GLCF)

Other Historic Map Sources

3/24/2008 9:42:28 PM

Texas Natural Resources Information System (TNRIS)

General Land Office Historic Preservation Program

UTA Library Cartographic Connections

Texas Transportation Archive (TTA)

Texas State Libraries & Archives Commission (TSL)

UT Library Perry-Castaneda Map Collection

David Rumsey Collection

Other GPS Base Stations

3/24/2008 9:42:21 PM

Cooperative CORS Sites

Trimble Reference Stations

TxDOT Global Positioning System

Other GIS Data Sources

3/24/2008 9:42:17 PM

The following organizations provide free access to GIS data for Texas. The Columbia Center provides this list as a convenience and makes no claims as to the quality or usefulness of data available on these sites.

Academic:

Center for Applied Spatial Technologies (CAST)

Texas A&M University – Department of Geography

Texas State University – Department of Geography

Texas Tech University – Digital Atlas of Texas Counties

Texas State University – Texas Stream Team

The University of Texas – Department of Geography

Regional Government:

Texas Association of Regional Councils

Capital Area Council of Governments (CAPCOG)

Houston-Galvestion Area Council (HGAC)

North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG)

Alomo Area Council of Governments (AACOG)

Sabine River Authority of Texas (SRA)

State Government:

Bureau of Economic Geology *(BEG)

Texas General Land Office (GLO)

Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC)

Texas Commission of Environmental Quality (TCEQ)

Texas Historical Commission (THC)

Texas Legislature Online (TLC)

Texas Natural Resources Infomation System (TNRIS)

Texas Parks & Wildlife (TPW)

Federal Government:

Geospatial One Stop (GOS>

Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC)

National Aeronotics and Space Administration (NASA)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

USDA Geospatial Gateway

US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFW)

United States Geological Service (USGS)

City of Nacogdoches Map Viewer

3/24/2008 7:46:29 PM

The City of Nacogdoches Map Viewer is an ESRI IMS viewer for Nacogdoches. It includes most of the layers in the City GIS including 6 inch aerial photography captures in 2002.

http://ims.crgsc.org/website/cityofnac/viewer.htm

Angelina County Parcel Viewer

3/24/2008 7:46:13 PM

The Angelina County Parcel Viewer is an ESRI IMS viewer for Angelina County Texas. The data for this service is provided by Angelina County Appraisal District and includes parcel ownership data for the county.

http://ims.crgsc.org/website/angelina/viewer.htm

GPS Base Station Data

3/16/2008 12:14:09 AM

The Arthur Temple College of Foresty and Agriculture in cooperation with the Forest Resources Institute and The Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center maintains a Trimble Reference Station GPS base station at Columbia Center location in downtown Nacogdoches, Texas. The basestation is a 12-channel, automated reference station, collecting L1 carrier and C/A code for differential GPS (DGPS) information. Public access is provided for GPS users within 300km of Nacogdoches.

GPS information is collected 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and archived on the Columbia Center webserver ten minutes after every hour. The data can be accessed automatically using Trimble Pathfinder Office software, or through this web interface

Click here to access the GPS ARCHIVES

Reference Position(WGS84):

LATITUDE: 31* 36’ 11.19222" N

LONGITUDE: 94* 39’ 19.65572" W

ELEVATION: 71.770 M HAE

Base Station:

RECEIVER TYPE: Trimble NetR5 13 Channel

BASE STATION TYPE: TRS

General:

ORGANIZATION: Arthur Temple College of Forestry, Stephen F. Austin State University
LOCATION: Nacogdoches, Texas
ADDRESS: PO Box 6109 SFA Station, Nacogdoches, TX 75962-6109
CONTACT: PR Blackwell
EMAIL: prblackwell@sfasu.edu
TELEPHONE: 936.468.1199
FAX: 936.568.0701

Internet Server:

WEB ADDRESS (for Pathfinder Office): http://data.crgsc.org/gis/gpsdata/yymmddhh.zip

NOTE: This archive cannot be accessed by direct anonymous FTP at the present time. Use a web browser to download correction files with the "http://" prefix rather than "ftp://".

Disclaimer:

The GPS digital data on this site was collected by the Geographic Information Systems Laboratory at the Arthur Temple College of Forestry, Stephen F. Austin State University and is made available as a public service. Neither Stephen F. Austin State Univeristy nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, make any warranty for the accuracy, completness or usefullness of the information contained herein. Reference to any specific commercial product, process or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the Arthur Temple College of Forestry, or SFASU.

City of Nacogdoches Maps

3/14/2008 5:21:42 PM

These maps are based on updated road centerline and other enhanced data sets generated by the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center for the City of Nacogdoches. They are presented here in Adobe PDF format. Large-format printed copies of these maps are also available.

City of Nacogdoches Road Map
	Download PDF	Order Map
City of Nacogdoches Indexed Road Map
	Download PDF	Order Map

DETCOG County Road Maps

3/14/2008 4:47:28 PM

DETCOG County Road Maps are compiled by DETCOG and presented in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format. The following counties are available:

ETCOG County Transportation Maps

3/14/2008 4:47:17 PM

Columbia Center compilations based on best available data – PDF format.

San Augustine County Maps

3/14/2008 4:47:08 PM

These maps are based on updated road centerline and other enhanced data sets generated by the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center for San Augustine County. They are presented here in Adobe PDF format. Large-format printed copies of these maps are also available

San Augustine County Road Map

Download PDF

Order Map

Nacogdoches County Maps

3/14/2008 4:46:59 PM

These maps are based on updated road centerline and other enhanced data sets generated by the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center for Nacogdoches, County. They are presented here in Adobe PDF format. Large-format printed copies of these maps are also available.

Transportation Map
	Download PDF	Order Map
Commissioner’s Precincts
	Download PDF	Order Map
Volunteer Fire Departments
	Download PDF	Order Map

TexasView GloVis

3/13/2008 11:32:11 PM

Visual metadata search engine for satellite remote sensing data

Experimental, distributed storage system for faster download

Landsat Imagery

3/11/2008 10:17:37 PM

Click on the Landsat footprint for a listing of available data:

TexasView Remote Sensing Archives

3/11/2008 10:17:20 PM

The Columbia Center houses the archives of the TexasView Remote Sensing Consortium containing free remote Sensing data for Texas. This project is supported by the AmericaView Remote Sensing Consortium and the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center.

Louisiana Data

3/10/2008 8:12:41 PM

Louisiana

Data Sets

from

Atlas: The Louisiana Statewide GIS

100k
quads

24K quads

Aquifers

Barges

BargesGM

CW
Boundary

CZ
Boundary

Field
Data97

Field
Data 98

Field
Data 99

Floodzones

Geology

GNIS

High
Tide Line

LA
Boundary

Local
Roads

Lwinterface

Marsh
Vegetation Line

Navigatable
Water

NWI
Habitat

Oil/Gas
Wells

Parishes

Pipeline
Companies

Pipeline
Crossings

Places

Powerlines

Primary
Roads

Quarter
Quad

Railroad

SeaBirds

Soils

Streams

Sub
Segments

T&E
Species

TM Images

TM
Parish Images

USGS
24k Quads

USGS
Parish

Waste
Pits

Waste
Pits GM

Water
bodies

Wildlife
Areas

Wildlife
Refuges

ESRI Data Sets

3/10/2008 6:43:37 PM

Environmental Science Research Institute (ESRI) data sets

ESRI World Data Layers

Coordinate System:

GCS_Assumed_Geographic_1
Datum: D_North_American_1927
Prime Meridian: 0

ESRI US Data Layers

Coordinate System:
GCS_Assumed_Geographic_1
Datum: D_North_American_1927
Prime Meridian: 0

US Census Data

3/10/2008 6:21:09 PM

US Census Data

1990-2000 Census

by County

2010 Census

Statewide

2010 Census

Nationwide

East Texas Data

3/10/2008 5:08:11 PM

East Texas High-resolution data presented in UTM coordinates.

Transpor- tation

Hydrology

Political Boundaries

USGS DRGs

Statewide Datasets

3/10/2008 4:30:19 PM

Moderate-resolution data for Texas.

Statewide data presented in geographic coordinates

Analytical Hillshade

Seamless DEM

Census

STATSGO2
Soils Data

Transportation

Hydrology

Boundaries

Place Names

High-resolution Datasets

3/10/2008 4:29:31 PM

Texas High-resolution data presented in Geographic coordinates. These data are organized by FIPS Code.	Elevation Data	Analytical Hillshade	Hypso (Contours)	SSURGO Soils Data
	Transpor- tation	FEMA Q3 Data	Political Boundaries	Geology (GAT)

Aerial Orthoimagery

3/7/2008 10:09:12 PM

Texas orthorectified aerial imagery presented in UTM coordinates.

County FIPS Code reference.

1996 DOQ 1m CIR Leaf-Off qquads

2004 NAIP 1m CIR Leaf-On CCM

2005 NAIP 2m True Color Leaf-On CCM

2006 NAIP 1m CIR Leaf-On CCM

(Availability)

2008 NAIP 1m CIR Leaf-on CCM

USGS East Texas 2008 DOQ 1m CIR Leaf-off CCM

2009 NAIP 1m CIR Leaf-off CCM

2010 NAIP 1m CIR Leaf-off CCM

Contact Us

3/7/2008 12:23:13 PM

For more information about classes, to find out how to sign up for a class, or to ask us any question, please contact us by either calling us, emailing us, or filling out the form below:

Darrel L. McDonald
Assistant Director for Education and Training
936.468.1347
dmcdonald@sfasu.edu

Charles Ashton
Geospatial Trainer 1
936.468.6114
cashton@crgsc.org

Classes

2/22/2008 9:32:04 AM

The Columbia Center offer several kinds of classes tailored for various audiences: Government, Private Enterprise, Emergency Response, and General Public.

Research

2/19/2008 10:47:15 AM

The Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center’s efforts to provide regional geospatial support for emergency planning and response, economic development, and natural resource management, is supported by an active research program in all three areas. The Columbia Center is engaged in several research projects intended to improve data distribution and access both for the academic community, government, and the general public.

Emergency Planning and Response research is focused on finding better ways to integrate geospatial technology into incident response at the local level. Working closely with rural city and county emergency officials, The Columbia Center is developing applications and procedures specifically designed for this group. In addition, the Columbia Center is working with regional officials to find ways to better integrate geospatial technology in the Incident Command System.

Economic Development research is conducted through the Center for Economic Development and Research (CEDAR.) Under the direction of Dr. Gary Kronrad, CEDAR strives to develop new technologies that contribute to the economic welfare of East Texas.

Natural Resource Management research is conducted by the Columbia Center’s parent organization, the Forest Resources Institute (FRI). FRI is engaged in a variety of projects, including studies to asertain forest ownership and managment trends amoung non-industrial private Forest (NIPF) owners, developing better ways to conduct forest inventories(ETFI), watershed studies (Alto Watershed Project), and more.

Technology research at the Columbia Center focuses on maximizing performance of traditional computing systems, Grid Computing, and distributed storage technology. Current projects include collaboration with the Logistical Computing and Internetworking Laboratory (LoCI) at the University of Tennessee. The latest product of this collaboration is REDDnet (pronounced “ready net”). REDDnet uses GRID technology to enhance the storage and distribution of remote sensing data. This translates to faster downloads for those wishing to access data.

Mapping

2/11/2008 4:29:42 PM

The Columbia Center is actively involved in improving mapping at the local, regional and state level. Our philosophy is built on the belief that local data is best. Many initiatives work from the national or state level to attempt to provide accurate, large scale data for emergency response, economic development and resource management. However, these efforts often fail to produce accurate and complete data that is useful at the local level.

We believe the process must begin with local agencies that know their land and have a real need for accurate, high-quality data. The places where really good geospatial data exist today are large urban areas where local agencies have the resources to produce and maintain good data. We are bringing this ability to the rural portions of Texas. We believe the flow of data should be from the local to regional to state and finally to the federal level.
The Columbia Center is currently engaged in several projects designed to attack the problem of poor geospatial data in rural areas:

9-1-1 mapping for Nacogdoches County

9-1-1 mapping for Panola County

Road updates for San Augustine County

DETCOG 9-1-1 modernization

The Columbia Center is also engaged in state-wide mapping initiatives to address specific emergency response needs. Again, these projects are being managed from the ground up , cooperating with local officials to gather information and develop long-term relationships. These projects include:

Texas Electrical Grid mapping for the Texas Military Forces

Public Water Supply Critical Facilities Infrastructure Mapping for Texas

Commission for Environmental Quality (TCEQ)

Public Water District Mapping for TCEQ

The Columbia Center continues to seek new ways to improve the quality and accessibility of geospatial data for rural East Texas.

Mission

2/11/2008 3:49:49 PM

The mission of the Education and Training Program is to develop and distribute information about the use of geospatial tools, maps and images for emergency response, natural resource management and economic development.

Historic Maps

2/11/2008 3:45:24 PM

Click to view full size image – right-click to download.

	1879 Texas Map published by N. D. Thompson & Co., St. Louis, Mo. 20” x 26”, JPEG format
	Map of Texas Coast by Stephen F. Austin. 1822 - 6” x8”, JPEG format
	New Spain, 1687. 16” x 20”, JPEG format
	Nveva Hispania Tabula Nova. 18” x 24”, JPEG format
	Rio Grande Del Norte 18” x 24”, JPEG format
	Houston 1912 22.5” x 17.5” PDF format
	Galveston 1891 45” x 32” JPEG format

Panola County Maps

2/11/2008 3:44:16 PM

These maps are based on updated Panola County 9-1-1 road centerline data. They have been created as part of a cooperative project between Panola County, ETCOG and the Columbia Center. These maps are presented in Adobe PDF format.

Panola County Transportation
	Download PDF	Order Map
Panola County ESN
	Download PDF	Order Map
Panola County Commissioner’s Prcts
	Download PDF	Order Map

People

2/6/2008 4:10:21 PM

The people below are invaluable resources for The Columbia Center and they are responsible for the day-to-day operations. Past members of the team are commended since The Columbia Center would not be what it is today without their efforts.

Management

Paul R. Blackwell
Director

History

2/6/2008 11:36:55 AM

The Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center can be attributed to the vision of four people:

Dr. Darrel McDonald, Geospatial Scientist;
Arthur Temple, East Texas Timberland Pioneer;
Dr. Kent Adair, SFA Forestry Dean;
and Dr. James C. Kroll, its first director.

Each of these men contributed significantly to the evolution of what has become a model for the entire nation.

Dr. McDonald was one of the first geospatial scientists in the region and enjoys a national reputation as an early pioneer in geospatial sciences. He created and successfully developed the Humanities Urban Environmental Sciences Laboratory (HUES) within the Geography Department at Stephen F. Ausin State University (SFASU). His early work cemented strong cooperative relationships with many of the east Texas communities; supporting such activities as city planning, cultural development and training of the next generation of geospatial scientists for rural eastern Texas.

Mr. Arthur Temple, not only was a significant pioneer and force in the pineywoods region of eastern Texas, but recognized the need for development of technologies to support rural America. From the beginnings of the College of Forestry at SFASU, Mr. Temple provided material and non-material support to the needed to develop the high quality education and research programs needed to develop forest industries. His financial contributions and encouragement are directly responsible in generating the national and international reputation of SFASU’s forestry programs.

Dr. Kent Adair recognized the potential of geospatial sciences in the economic and natural resources management of the region, creating the Tucker Center at SFASU. Working with geospatial scientist, P. R. Blackwell, Dr. Adair laid the early framework for technology development and regional support.

In 1997, Mr. Temple — through the T.L.L. Temple Foundation — saw the need to develop a regional research and technology center. Dr. Scott Beasley teamed up with Dr. Kroll to propose a revolutionary new entity: The Forest Resources Institute (FRI). The Foundation dedicated almost $5 million in startup funds to develop FRI, whose mission was to:

Develop a computerized database system, which would assemble critical data and information related to forest and cultural resources of the region; then,
Make this information readily accessible through the Worldwide Web to:
- Private landowners
- Resource managers
- Educators
- Policy-makers
- Agencies
Identify critical information needs, then
Conduct meaningful research related to these needs.

The Birth of the Columbia Center

By 2000, it became apparent the mission needed to be expanded to include supporting emergency response and management. Federally imposed mandates for planning by various agencies placed a heavy demand on small municipalities and counties in our region. Clearly, there was a need to provide technologically advanced support to a host of mandates, especially emergency planning. Although traditionally viewed as “rural” by policy-makers — and thereby not needing the support provided to large metropolitan areas — east Texas faces the eventual reality of having to absorb and deal with large numbers of citizens fleeing disasters occurring in metropolitan areas.

The full capabilities of FRI and its sister center, HUES, rose to international prominence in 2003 and brought national attention to their capabilities as “geospatial first responders” when the space shuttle Columbia disintegrated over Nacogdoches and much of East Texas.

The two centers provided immediate support to first responders during the first two weeks of the recovery efforts, where hundreds of maps and massive amounts of imagery were provided to the various state and federal agencies involved. FRI and HUES developed the Primary Search Vector during the first days of the disaster from data collected during search and recovery and it is credited as contributing significantly to the recovery efforts.

A new appreciation for the importance of geospatial products emerged among field personnel of the FBI, FEMA and other government agencies. The federal government’s investigative report credited FRI and HUES as significant contributors to the recovery efforts.

Soon after, HUES and the GIS services of FRI merged into a single entity, The Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center (CRGSC). This merger in of itself was a model for the nation, in that university-based geospatial programs often are spread across several departments, with little collaboration and significant duplication of effort and technologies. The new CRGSC would combine all university resources into a single unit.

Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison, and Congressman Louie Gohmert, successfully acquired Congressional funding for CRCSC in FY 05 to establish both the CRGSC and the Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center System. A significant aspect of the Center’s success involved working with the Texas National Guard (Air and Army) and it seemed logical to channel funding through this agency. The system would include CRGSC and a similar center at the University of Texas at El Paso, more than a 1,000 miles apart. The Texas Natural Resources Information System would serve as a hub for the system. TNRIS has been charged with coordinating and dissimilating important geospatial data among and between state agencies.

One important claim by the original concept was an interconnected network of regional centers, rather than a centralized system, would prevent loss of services, even if a center is damaged or destroyed. This concept applies both to man-made (i.e. accidents, terrorism) and natural disasters.

In late 2005, two hurricanes hit the Gulf Coast Region once again providing an opportunity for the CRGSC System to prove itself. Hurricane Rita struck the Texas Gulf Coast, its eye passed right over Nacogdoches, leaving hundreds of thousands of citizens without essential services and over a million acres of valuable timber on the ground. In spite of taking a direct hit itself, CRGSC managed to relocate and restore critical services within a few hours, and building on what had been learned through the Columbia disaster, the CRGSC provided government agencies and community groups with over 1,300 pre-printed maps and documents for use by first responders and those fleeing the coastal communities. Once again, as a consequence of the actions of CRGSC, lives and property benefited. These disasters provided an unfortunate “proof of concept” to the regional geospatial service center concept.

Senator Hutchison and Congressman Gohmert obtained additional funding for expansion and maintenance for FY06. An additional center at Texas Tech University will come online in FY07 and expansion funds are in the FY08 request for the addition of at least three additional centers.

Contact Us

2/5/2008 4:35:29 PM

Feel free to contact us in any of the following ways:

Voice: 936.468.6100

Fax: 936.568.0701

Mailing address:
P.O. Box 13074, SFA Station
Nacogdoches, Texas 75962-3074

Physical address:
Stephen F. Austin State University
Columbia Regional Geospatial Service Center
1936 North St.
McKibben Building, Room 304
Nacogdoches, Texas 75962

FAQ

2/4/2008 10:14:45 AM

Q: What does the Columbia Center offer?
A: The best way to answer this question is to direct you to the services tab where you’ll find a detailed description of what we offer.

Q: Where can I see a training schedule?
A: Go to the “Training and Education” tab, and click on Schedule.

Q: What is the best way to get in touch with the Columbia Center?
A: You’ll find phone numbers and email addresses on the Contact Us section under the “Home” tab.

Q: How can I access Columbia Center Internet Map Services?
A: Many Internet Map Services can be viewed in a web browser. Visit “Web Applications” under the “Applications” tab.

Q: How can I use Columbia Center Internet Map Services in my desktop GIS software?
A: Use ArcCatalog to create a GIS Server connection to http://arcgis01.crgsc.org, or create an ArcIMS Server connection to http://ims01.crgsc.org.

Q: Why can’t I open image data from your site?
A: Most of the image data on our site is compressed using Mr. Sid. Most modern desktop GIS software knows how to read Mr. Sid format. Plug ins are available for other applications and web browsers. Look under “Other Resources” under the “Data” tab for Mr. Sid utilities.