Use of geospatial technology for oil spill response planning in the western basin of lake erie

Abstract

This study reviews existing plans and proposes a development process for geospatially enabled oil spill protection strategies in the Western Lake Erie basin. Geospatially enabled protection strategies take advantage of existing data and the capabilities of a GIS to develop variations of protection strategies to allow for strategic changes to plans as a result of seasonal or meteorological conditions. It also allows the analysis, display and distribution of geospatial data in a manner that meet the different needs of planners, responders and incident managers. Data distribution options are discussed, including multiple paper and electronic publication options including, but not limited to Adobe Acrobat, GEOPDF, ArcReader, Google Earth and ArcIMS to make data available in the appropriate format to all personnel who require it.