Jamie Black, RPF
Forestry Supervisor & LiDAR Operational Planning Lead
Tel: 778-256-3097
Email: jblack@forsite.ca
Overview
Forsite has both the operational forestry knowledge and the technology skills to ensure our clients realize maximum value from LiDAR based operational planning work. We provide efficient planning using detailed point feature information from LiDAR data combined to increase efficiency and reduce the costs of operational planning.
We calculate individual tree volumes and species identification in combination with terrain tools to design roads, stream crossings, locate cutblock boundaries based on timber values and engineering constraints and account for stream and riparian locations with a high degree of confidence and accuracy.
Here are the tools we use to harness your LiDAR.
RoadEng
Road construction is one of the biggest cost items with respect to cut block development, and even more so in steep terrain, where the use of LiDAR shines brightest. With RoadEng, we can create a very detailed, site specific estimation of where exactly a road is best located and a close approximation of how much it could cost to build.
ArcMap
With the use of LiDAR derivatives, such as canopy height models or slope, and the spatial power of ArcMap, we can easily design total chance plans that include overarching, landscape level constraints all the way down to site specific concerns such as inoperable terrain, or areas where timber height indicate immature or undesirable volume. Visit here to learn more about Forsite’s custom ArcMap Add-In Tools.
Advantage
The technology tools available today to support operational planning have changed the way we do business. Detailed point cloud information from LiDAR data allows you to stand in the forest while working at your desk.
Leveraging LiDAR data and derivative products (e.g. slope themes, 1m contours, Digital Elevation Models, Canopy Height Models, etc.) enables our planners to understand the terrain and drainage patterns in an area of interest before a site visit occurs, allowing them to create operationally realistic road locations and block boundaries that can then be field checked. Where detailed forest inventory information from LiDAR data is also available, an even higher level of planning certainty can be realized in the office.
The planner’s ability to review highly detailed data in the office greatly reduces the need for recce, and the ease at which alternatives can be assessed ensures that the best possible plan is implemented - considering cost, safety, and environmental issues. Using LiDAR planning tools you can expect to save 25-35% of your layout costs.
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