Arctic GIS Workshop Poster Abstract

22-24 January 2001
Bell Harbor International Conference Center
Seattle, Washington

ReMoTe: A Geospatial Management Information System for Planning, Monitoring, and Evaluating Environmental Restoration in Alaska

Joel D. Schlagel¹ and Daniel E. Lawson²
Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL)
¹U.S Army Engineer Research and Development Center Hanover, NH
²Anchorage, AK

ReMoTe is a geo-spatial management information system for planning, monitoring, and evaluating complex environmental investigation, remediation, and restoration activities. ReMoTe software was developed by CRREL to support environmental restoration activities being conducted by the U.S. Army Alaska at Fort Wainwright and Fort Richardson. Using ReMoTe, geophysical, hydrological, site management information (history, status, funding, etc), chemical data, two- and three-dimensional models, and full document texts are managed in a centralized database. ReMoTe integrates data from RDBMS, CAD, GIS, document management and modeling packages, allowing these data to be displayed and analyzed with an easy-to-use, intuitive graphical interface. Our basic philosophy in developing the software was that information must be accessible in 5 mouse clicks or less. ReMoTe provides analytical tools for managers, regulators, investigators, and contractors to compare and analyze data-sets of diverse types. For instance, managers can easily and quickly see where Institutional Controls are in place each time an Excavation Clearance Request is submitted. They can then advise contractors of any restrictions that apply for a site. Contractors can access existing analytical and geotechnical data prior to undertaking new work, thereby minimizing duplication of effort. Regulators can display maps indicating areas requiring remediation under different target cleanup levels. Using ReMoTe investigators can monitor short-and long-term changes in contaminant plume extent and concentrations, or monitor real-time data from in-situ sensors such as the CRREL Ground Water Flow System, or any other instrument package as part of site monitoring. ReMoTe can be used to display data at public meetings or make data available to the public via the World Wide Web.