GIS 5100 Coastal Flooding

 This was by far our most challenging lab. The first portion of the lab we examined data from New Jersey pre and post hurricane Sandy. We started by creating DEM's, utilizing LAS Dataset to TIN, TIN to Raster and the Raster Calculator. We examined the changes in different areas within the map and cross references with the newer imagery basemap to see if any rebuilding had taken place. Additional calculations were made to determine the percentage of Cape May County that might have been affected by the 2-meter storm surge. Below is my change layer map.

The second portion of the lab was the analysis of storm surge in Collier county Florida. We utilized a variety of tools to tabulate how many buildings of each type were impacted in each DEM (USGS and LiDAR). We were also instructed to calculate the Errors of Omission and Errors of Commission. Our final map was to include a table listing the results of the above calculations as well as a may illustrating flood zones and buildings. The map shows buildings in each DEM, those in both DEMs as well as those not flooded. 

This assignment showed us some of the benefits of storms urge mapping for things like evacuation, search and rescue and even damage assessment for insurance claims. We were also introduced to some of the many factors that need to be considered to create the most realistic and accurate storm surge maps.