Imagine taking 2,200 pictures, then finding out they are useless. Ball State University geographical information system students are fixing that problem to help farmers in Delaware County.
Using Global Positioning Systems, a team of four Ball State students, with the help of geographical information system coordinator Paul Shanayda, are remapping Delaware County's drainage piping for farmers after an Indianapolis company made a mistake. When the company laid out aerial photos of Delaware County farms, the Delaware County Soil and Water Conservation District discovered the photos overlapped, he said.
The soil and water district chose Ball State University to map the drainage pipes using infrared and geographical information system technology so farmers can identify where broken pipes have left excess water, Shanayda said. The pipes, sometimes called tiles, are anywhere from one year to 40 years old, he said.
"Some of the old terra cotta tiles are so old that I've heard of some people going to the field, and when they uncover them, they just crumble," Shanayda said.
Another aim of the project includes replacing such pipes once they are identified, he said.
Every farm will be mapped, and the soil and water district will own the maps, Shanayda said. Farmers could have their own maps if they paid for the service, he said.?
When the project is completed, any residents can go to the soil and water district office and type in their addresses to view their properties and compare it to the drainage areas.
Nathan Pugh, a graduate student participating in the project, said he wants to work for the government using geographical information systems, so working on the project helps him stand out from other applicants.
"I can say, hey, I worked with it [infrared imagery] before; I understand how it works," Pugh said. "It's good to look at it and understand what you're looking at. If somebody just looks at it, they wouldn't know that that's a tile or what it is or why is this red."
Ball State is also working with another grant and is set to do a detailed study of four or five local farms using geographical information systems data, Shanayda said. Shanayda said he expects the project will be completed by the end of summer.?
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