GGH2602 - The Geography Of Services Provision-summary.

GGH2602 - The Geography Of Services Provision-summary.Geographers examine: 1. the location of phenomena 2. the spatial patterns that may exist or develop 3. the spatial processes that could lead to certain patterns 4. and the strategies that can be used to deal with geographical problems. 1. Absolute and Relative Location Absolute Location → Arbitrary grid of lines of longitude and latitude → Location = degrees, minutes (there are 60’ in a degree) and seconds (there are 60” in 1’). Example: The location of Cape Town is 34°S, 18°30’E. Relative Location → Location of a place relative to other places → Can change over time (e.g. if new roads improve centrality and accessibility, or if the infrastructure is damaged). The relative location of Cape Town can be described in different ways. For example: Page 1 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace 1. Cape Town is a city at the south-western tip of the African continent, between Table Mountain and the Cape of Good Hope. 2. Cape Town is approximately two hours by plane from OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg. 3. Cape Town is approximately 40 minutes by car from Stellenbosch (via the Stellenbosch arterial). 2. Spatial Patterns The term “spatial pattern” refers to the way in which phenomena are distributed and arranged in their relative location Components of spatial patterns are: 1. Location (where) 2. connections or linkages (how they are linked, e.g. with roads or communication networks) 3. shape (e.g. circular, rectangular, linear) 4. size (indicated by means of words such as large, medium or small, or measured in km2 or ha) 5. density (number of phenomena per km2) 6. time (when) Spatial patterns can be influenced by 1. distance, proximity or adjacency (phenomena are close or next to other phenomena) 2. connectivity (the way in which they are linked) 3. containment (when one phenomenon is inside another). 3. Spatial Processes Various spatial processes relating to services provision can be identified: Page 2 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace 1. The movement of people, goods and services between different places. 2. Planning for provision of services. 3. Immigration and emigration, including rural–urban migration and the inflow of refugees. 4. The inflow of water to and the removal of wastewater and sewage from a particular region. 5. Urban sprawl (expansion of a city). 6. Densification of suburbs (e.g. by the subdivision of large erven and the building of a second dwelling on a single plot). 7. Environmental degradation and its impact. 4. Spatial plans & Strategies → Spatial strategies relating to various resolutions can be implemented from regional to local level to deal with particular problems and to guide spatial development. Example: Open spaces can be protected through the development of a municipal open-space system (MOSS) that links various open spaces in order to maintain ecosystems and protect biodiversity. Geographical Methods, Tools and Instruments 1. Photographs and Videos →A great deal of information can be derived from photographs or videos, without the need for any additional comments. Questions to examine photographs: 1. What can you see in the foreground and in the background of Page 3 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace the photograph? 2. Is there anything to tell you in which season or at what time of day the photograph was taken? 3. Are there any people represented? 4. What are they doing? 5. Why? →Terrestrial photograph (a photograph taken from ground level) don’t always help. →Use aerial photographs and remote sensing images because they cover a larger area, but contain less detail. 2. Aerial photographs and remote sensing images When interpreting remote sensing images you need to evaluate the: 1. pattern, 2. texture, 3. context and 4. colour of the features on the image. When looking at the image you can identify objects by their 1. Shape 2. Size 3. Shadow 4. Pattern 5. Texture 6. Tone (shading) 7. Association with surrounding objects →Natural objects = irregular shapes →Human-made objects = symmetrical shapes and linear or regular patterns. →A straight line on a remote sensing image = infrastructure Page 4 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace such as: 1. A road, 2. a pipeline, 3. a fence or 4. a furrow rather than a natural phenomenon such as a river. →There is often vegetation visible on the image next to the curving or meandering lines of rivers. →Cultivated fields and orchards can be distinguished from natural vegetation on the basis of their rectangular or circular shapes and regular texture (which reflects the even pattern of vegetation planted in rows). We can use maps and remote sensing images as a basis for identifying 1. different regions (spatial differentiation) 2. the routes and networks involved in spatial interaction. →Technological development has made it easier to overlay maps and remote sensing images (e.g. on Google Earth) 3. Maps →Topographic maps are based on accurate surveys. →The word “topographic” is derived from the Greek topos, which means place, and graphos, which means to write. →The exact geographical location of physical and cultural phenomena is indicated by means of conventional map symbols on topographic maps. Suggested steps for reading a map: Page 5 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace 1. Read the title and text on the map: • Where is the place that is being represented? • What places are represented? • Is there an indication of when the map was drawn? • Was the map drawn for a particular context? 2. Look at the orientation of the map: →On most maps, north is to the top of the map, but this is not always the case. Remember = sun rises in the east and sets in the west. If you are standing with the map in front of you and the sun is rising on your right, you are facing north, and south is behind you. 3. Look at the map as a whole in order to determine what it is about: •What are the most important features of the map? •Can you, at a glance, identify different regions or patterns on the map? Example, are there any large green areas or a blue area on the map? •Is there a part of the map with a lot of brown lines close together? •Is there an area with some green circles next to a blue line? •Is there a very long blue or red line cutting across the map? 4. Refer to a list of symbols, together with text explaining what these symbols represent in the index of a particular map: Even though official topographical maps use standard map symbols, there is an index printed on the map to help the reader to understand what the points, lines, areas or icons on the map represent. 5. Determine the scale of the map in order to understand relative distances on the map: →Remember that the scale factor is the relationship between the Page 6 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace representation on the map sheet and reality , and indicates the extent to which reality has been reduced and generalised. →When you want to know the real distance (e.g. between two points), you simply measure the distance on the map and multiply it by the scale factor For example: 1:50 000 = 1cm on map represents 50 000cm in reality = 0.5km 6. Read the physical landscape by looking at the patterns created by (brown) contour lines and blue lines (representing rivers): →Contour lines drawn close together represent steep terrain; contour lines drawn far apart represent flat terrain. →By looking at the pattern of contour lines, you can derive the characteristics of the physical landscape – it is possible to identify features such as mountains, valleys, swamps or plains. 7. When interpreting the physical landscape you can also identify drainage systems. →In terms of water provision it is important to know where the rivers and dams are, where the catchment areas of rivers are and in what direction certain rivers flow. 8. Read the cultural landscape by identifying built-up areas and infrastructure. →Are human settlements or residential areas visible on the map? →Look for infrastructure such as roads, pipelines and power lines. →You can also look for indications of infrastructure for provision of Page 7 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace services (e.g. furrows and pipelines running from a dam to a village). →Can you see indications of agricultural, mining or industrial activities on the map? 9. Look for evidence of interaction between human activities and the natural environment. →Explain how the physical landscape influences human activities on the mapped area and how human activities change the physical landscape Data Analysis: Spatial Representation of social and economic data Key capabilities of geography is the spatial representation of: 1. social data (population, demographic patterns, emigration and immigration processes), 2. economic data (employment and unemployment trends, poverty trends and resources distribution patterns), 3. cultural data (language distribution, cultural practices), 4. political data (distribution of political parties by province and nationally) 5. environmental data (environmental changes and associated factors) →Data is also used to analyse situations and help in spatial investigations and the planning of services provision. →Data can be analysed by using statistical analysis and more sophisticated tools such as GIS. GIS: →Consist of computer software and hardware able to 1. import, Page 8 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace 2. store, 3. analyse 4. represent location-based (geo-referenced) data. →The database is the most important part of the GIS. →The GIS is able to use different layers of data simultaneously and create scenarios for particular contexts. →Need good quality, recent, accurate and reliable data. →A GIS cannot work without appropriate data and skilled people. An Approach to Dealing with Geographical Problems 1. APPLYING GEOGRAPHIC KNOWLEDGE →Incorporating geography into the decision-making process for organisations provides insights that will affect which approach is chosen and the outcome that is obtained. →The value of using a geographic framework for problemsolving increases as the scale and complexity of the problem increase. Challenges currently faced by society such as: l warming, 2. resource shortages, and 3. loss of biodiversity require considering competing interests and interdependencies. →Using geography as a framework for understanding and managing our relationship with the world has been called the geographic approach. 2. A BETTER APPROACH →Improving decision-making by applying the geographic Page 9 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace approach is one of the most compelling reasons to develop a GIS, particularly at the enterprise level and beyond. Traditional (non-spatial) decision-making processes typically involve six basic steps. 1 Identify the problem. 2 Gather information relevant to that problem. 3 Develop alternative solutions. 4 Evaluate these solutions. 5 Decide which solution best solves the problem. 6 Implement that solution and determine its effectiveness. →GIS furnishes digital tools for abstracting and organizing data, modelling geographic processes, and visualizing information that enables leaders to make meaningful and effective decisions. →With GIS, the analysis of problems can have greater depth as many layers of data relating to the physical and cultural world can be considered together. 3. FAVOURABLE FACTORS →Developments in data collection systems, GIS technology, geographic information science, and computing in the last decade have made the application of GIS to the decision-making process more feasible and attractive. The Hydrologic Information System (HIS): →Organizes and makes available water observation data collected by scientists working on many different projects. →This is accomplished through integrating observation data with GIS data, which provides the spatial context of watersheds, Page 10 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace aquifers, and stream networks. →The increase in remotely sensed data collected and its integration in a circular GIS workflow incorporating the Image extension for ArcGIS Server has greatly increased the availability of this valuable and timely data source for areas as large as countries or regions. →With enhanced geoprocessing tools; GIS professionals can create new information from these data sources. →Modelling data supplies a method for asking spatial questions that explore the relationships between different factors. →With the cartographic tools in GIS, this information can be displayed in a manner that communicates in a clear and compelling fashion not only to decision makers but also to the public. Enterprise technology and interenterprise systems now manage 1. more information, 2. support more applications, 3. provide more rapid access to information. The ascent of server GIS has generated applications that influence decision-making from the organizational to the individual level: 1. the growth of mashups; 2. the popularity of consumer information delivered as a map on a phone; 3. the availability of substantial prepackaged datasets such as the Esri Data Appliance; 4. and the delivery of globes, maps, and services by ArcGIS Page 11 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace Online. 4. TACKLING BIG PROBLEMS →Automated GIS process is creating a snapshot of biomass and carbon in U.S. forests”, illustrates how GIS is being used to address global climate change. →GIS allows decision makers to consider not only economic and political factors, but also ecological and cultural ones. For example It is difficult to discern the relationships between factors such as population density and freshwater supplies by just looking at a table. However, thematically mapping this data can make relationships apparent. Viewed in a geographic framework, dependencies and interactions are more apparent and the trade-offs between a variety of possible solutions can be modelled and evaluated. 5. SUPPORTING BETTER DECISIONS →GIS brings both depth and scope to the decision-making process. →Maps include up-to-date imagery of the landscape – maps that overlay population data, land use, wildlife habitat, and other forms of geographic information – to paint a more complete picture of our planet. (Kempthorne) Sustainable development →The concept of sustainable development relates to development which meets the needs of the current generation without Page 12 of 73 S - The study-notes marketplace Downloaded by: mkhizenhlaks | Distribution of this document is illegal S - The study-notes marketplace threatening the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. →Sustainable development requires that the use of resources be regulated in such a way that the greatest possible return is ensured for the largest number of consumers over the longest period. →Culturally and technologically specific, and a strategy which ensures sustainable development in a developed country cannot necessarily be applied “as is” in a developing country . →Sustainable development is defined as “the integration of social, economic and environmental factors into planning, implementation and decision-making so as to ensure that development serves present and future generations” →Agenda 21 = contains more detailed guidelines on sustainable development.