AVLDA releases final GIS landscape map

THE Allah Valley Landscape Development Alliance (AVLDA) has recently released its final output for the Geographical Information System (GIS) Landscape Mapping Project covering the Allah Valley area.

In a formal output presentation, AVLDA officials opened the maps to members of alliance's technical working group for validation, further editing, analysis and evaluation.
The GIS landscape mapping was an offshoot of a memorandum of agreement forged by the AVLDA with Environmental Science for Social Change (ESSC) last year.

The agreement primarily seeks the ESSC's technical expertise in providing maps, particularly the community-based resource maps of four pilot areas in South Cotabato and Sultan Kudarat provinces and the GIS landscape map of Allah Valley.

The AVLDA approved such undertaking through a resolution it passed in August 2004.

The project covers the “consultancy services for Allah Valley landscape resource mapping and community-based resource assessment and mapping, which seeks to establish appropriate and functional mechanisms for the sustainable management of natural resources within the Allah Valley Landscape using a watershed management approach.
The AVLDA board of directors approved an appropriation of P2.5 million for the implementation of the project.

ESSC, a non-profit research organization headed by Fr. Peter Walpole, implemented the one-year project starting February last year. The project is worth P2.4 million.

The ESSC launched the landscape updating and mapping project using the Geographical Information System and the Remote Sensing Technology.

AVLDA, in the preliminary activity, established its data sets of information to characterize the Allah Valley landscape watershed relative to its biophysical circumstances, specifically the land forms, vegetation, forest covers, water resources and topography, through aerial validation and satellite imagery, interpretation and map analysis.

A community-based resource assessment and mapping project in four pilot communities was also undertaken to enhance their capacities in determining their specific local watershed circumstances and capability to undertake doable actions to improve the situations.

The Allah Valley landscape updating and mapping using GIS and Remote Sensing Technology is an actual mapping of the whole Allah Valley landscape, establishment of boundaries of watershed areas, updating of the present land cover such as the forest cover, agriculture areas and other land uses.

It also seeks to identify thematic maps and issue maps concerning the status of the remaining resources in the communities within the Allah Valley landscape.

The community mapping and resource assessment employs the community-based resource assessment method, which facilitates the involvement of community stakeholders in the management and utilization of their resources.

The community maps also serve as information provider for the sub-watershed management.

The alliance's board of directors headed by South Cotabato Gov. daisy Avance-Fuentes and Sultan Kudarat Gov. Pax Mangudadatu formally accepted and approved the final output last March 16.

By: Dennis G. Domingo II