In a series of ongoing projects, ESSA developed
a computer-based analysis and reporting tool that provides overview
information to staff in headquarters and districts about British
Columbia's protected area system. The Protected Areas Overview (PASO)
tool is designed to answer key questions about how individual protected
areas fit into British Columbia's overall system by linking existing
spatial and attribute information and providing tabular and map-based
data about individual Protected Areas in a provincial context. The
PASO tool performs spatial data overlays, queries the overlay data
to organize the results into a series of standardized reports, and
provides users with a simple interface that allows them to view
the results in either tabular or spatial (map-based) formats.
The system has been developed using ministry
data stored in a variety of formats (Arc/Info, Oracle, Access, Dbase,
Excel). Reports are delivered to users across the BC Ministry's
Wide Area Network using a customized data viewer that seamlessly
combines ArcView GIS functionality for map display with the tabular
and graphical display capabilities of Microsoft Excel.
 |
assessment of user needs; review of existing data,
hardware and software; |
|
defined system architecture (hardware and software);
developed system prototype; |
|
develop customized software routines; implement,
test and deliver the system; |
|
prepare user documentation, online help and system
documentation; provide training to system administrators; and |
|
project management; liaison with the client. |
