A Map is Worth a Thousand Words

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Dwayne Desjarlais, Economic Development Officer with the Fort McMurray First Nation is excited about the latest trend in resource management. Desjarlais recently attended a two-day workshop sponsored by the Canadian Forest Service, which provided an introduction to Geographical Information Systems (GIS) in Forest Management.

"Forget pages of description and endless columns of figures," said Desjarlais. "Take a computer, a Geographic Information System and MapInfo ? a desktop mapping tool ? and you're in business."

Michael Gartrell, a GIS program analyst with the Canadian Forest Service, and one of the instructors at the workshop explains the system. "A GIS uses a computer and software to store and analyse all forms of geographically referenced data. A GIS will tell you what is at a particular location or find a location where certain conditions exist. A GIS can illustrate trends by showing the differences within an area over time. It can identify patterns and will answer "what if" questions ? what if a road is added to a particular area or a pipeline built?"

To take an example from forest management: a First Nation community using a GIS could generate a map which would show were certain species of trees grow, which trees grow closest to existing roads, which are the oldest and highest trees, which pose the greatest risk of fire and so on. If a traditional land use study has been done in the community, the map can also show the presence of trails, cabins, birds, fur-bearing animals, big game animals, berries, medicine and minerals.

"What I think is the great advantage of this system," says Desjarlais, "is its visual component. Instead of struggling through pages of data looking for relevant information, the GIS collects, analyses and manipulates large amounts of information, maps this information and provides a picture of a complex situation at a glance."

In an economy in which the dollar is shrinking, competition is increased internationally, and in which the demand for natural resources is high, the importance to First Nations' communities of up-to-date, accurate and thorough information is vital. What is also vital is a concise and professional way of presenting this information.

"I would highly recommend this system for other First Nations," says Desjarlais. "The course at Hinton was particularly good, because we had extensive hands-on experience with the system and the instructors knew how to apply the system to First Nations' needs. It was a small class so we had a lot of one on one instruction as well."

The Canadian Forest Service offered three of these two-day workshops this past fall. More workshops may be held if funding becomes available.