The aim of the project was to establish the suitability of aerial imagery taken from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) to investigate the spatial and temporal extent of bait digging at selected sites in Wales.

Sites were flown at low tides and ortho-rectified seamless mosaics produced. Shore survey and ground truthing was also undertaken, and control holes dug to investigate the persistence of bait digging evidence on different shores. The shores were revisited to assess whether the control holes were still visible, to give an indication of the persistence of damage. The ortho-rectified imagery was used to create bait digging intensity maps on a variety of shore types.

Further information from Crispin Flower.

NRW contracted Exegesis to establish a vegetation monitoring programme that would allow the development of the saltmarsh to be assessed and better understood. This involved:

• Collection of high-resolution aerial photography using out fixed-wing drone.
• The generation of an accurate height model.
• Capture of vegetation communities based on species dominance from the aerial photography and data collected in the field. The resolution of the aerial photography made sub-metre precision mapping possible.
• The selection of three transects across the main site.
• Detailed survey of a series of randomly located 2×2 metre quadrats along the transects, located using a high precision GPS.
• Photographs of transects, quadrats and features of interest.
• A full technical report detailing the methodology and results.

The report recommended repeat monitoring surveys following the same methodology and using the same quadrat locations, so that future vegetation change could be quantified and characterised.

Further information from Crispin Flower.

The dataset was based upon Ordnance Survey MasterMap data, filtered to remove features that were unlikely to be hedges and excluding built up areas as garden hedges were not being targeted. These were then reviewed on the aerial imagery and assigned to one of the following types:

• Not a hedge
• Intensively managed
• Trimmed & dense
• Overgrown
• Line of trees
• Defunct
• Newly planted
• Recently coppiced
• Recently laid
• Woodland
• Uncertain

Hedges not included in the MasterMap data were also added, leading to a dataset of 22,370 features of which 17,013 were thought to be hedges. This was all undertaken in an incredibly short timescale, with data attribution starting on the 15th and finishing on the 27th December 2016.

Further information from Crispin Flower.

The site of the path was steeply sloping with significant vegetation cover, making it difficult for standard GPS receivers to get an accurate fix.

Working with the National Park authority, exeGesIS used high-precision GPS equipment to mark the line of the path, achieving sub-metre accuracy. These GPS data were used to create a map layer that could be incorporated into the authority's CAMS and GIS applications.

Further information from Timothy Derbyshire.

Each of the statements and statutory declaration documents relating to a Section 31(6) Deposit was scanned into a separate PDF document. The boundary of each deposit was then digitised, with multiple boundaries created if the boundary changed between statements / statutory declarations. 

The digitised boundaries were then linked to the associated attribute data to produce a digital layer so that Powys staff can undertake spatial searches to check whether a planning application is affected by Section 31(6) deposits.

Further information from Claire Lush

To support local authorities in meeting their duty to provide route maps of existing safe footpaths and cycle-ways, Exegesis were contracted to specify the structure of datasets and design a web based data management system. At the same time Sustrans carried out an initial survey of existing paths and infrastructure to populate the system.

Exegesis created a structured national road and public rights of way network ready for the survey, then presented the survey data via a web mapping interface. The Sustrans survey data was added and thematically displayed. The LAs then defined their routes by clicking on the existing paths and roads and entering route details. The routes were inspected to assess the condition, hazards and suitability for an Active Travel route.

The resulting data could be visualised and edited on the web site by all of the Welsh LAs, minimising costs and helping to ensure that a consistent data set was created. The public consultation maps could then be printed directly from the website, providing consistently styled and annotated maps.

The Active Travel data set became the first national system for managing Active Travel paths and cycle-ways in the UK and will be used to improve the network and plan for the future.

Further information from Crispin Flower.

The work involved assessing data originally from the National Land Use Database of Previously Developed Land, British Geological Society BRITPITS data and Environment Agency Historic Landfill data. Each feature was interpreted on aerial photography to determine whether OMH was likely to be present. Where OMH was not thought to be present the feature was removed from the inventory. Where OMH was thought to be present the feature was replaced with an accurately mapped boundary. Attributes were recorded for each retained feature detailing the sources of information, the confidence that OMH was present and notes describing the reasons for any uncertainty.

The result was the first ever inventory that separated OMH from brownfield sites more generally. In total 141,153 features were checked, but only 8,410 (32,602 hectares) of these were believed to be possible OMH and were therefore retained in the inventory. Greater London was shown to have the highest density of possible OMH, though Middlesbrough and St Austell in Cornwall were also found to be hotspots (shown above).

The process of inventory creation and the results were recorded in a rule base and project report.

Further information from Claire Lush.

The FishMap Mon tool was redeveloped by Exegesis for Natural Resources Wales based upon ScotMap. The tool is an ArcGIS 9.3 map document that provides a series of forms and digitising tools that allow fishermen to draw fishing areas and enter the associated data. The data was stored in an ESRI Personal Geodatabase.

During this work the tool was further refined to capture:

• current and historical fishing areas
• hotspots
• migration routes
• nursery areas
• areas of conflict with other activities

In addition more detailed questions were added regarding the types of gear used by the fishermen, and functionality was added so that fishermen could rank the fishing areas and provide details on economic importance.

Further information from Claire Lush.

Because of the biodiversity importance of OMH the habitat was identified as a Biodiversity Action Plan habitat in 2007. However, such sites are threatened by redevelopment (due to their usual status as brownfield sites), inappropriate ‘restoration’, inappropriate management or natural succession. There is very little knowledge of the distribution of OMH, as there is no data that identifies OMH sites at a national level.

exeGesIS were awarded this project in 2011, which has increased understanding of OMH in England and Wales by identifying the key features that are found within such habitats and enhancing knowledge of the distribution of such sites. This involved the development of a new survey methodology and a survey of 98 survey sites to identify OMH habitat, as well as a survey of invertebrates on 50 of the sites - the largest single survey of its kind in the UK. These surveys provided invaluable information on the importance of OMH sites to conservation and the recognition of important sites remotely and in the field.

The results of this work were:

• A handbook for the identification and survey of OMH sites.
• A provisional national inventory of OMH sites in England and Wales, along with an inventory data capture rule base.
• An integrated OMH survey website, including a map of OMH sites and survey data entry forms.
• Field survey data supplied to the NBN Gateway.

Further information from Crispin Flower.

Over three separate contracts between 2012 and 2016 exeGesIS collated maps of GI delivery and captured the information, which was supplied in ESRI ArcGIS format. Maps were collated from local planning authority websites or the relevant Natural England casework officer. Collated maps were registered in GIS and areas of UK Biodiversity Action Plan habitats and other GI were separately mapped and attributed. In total, 753 cases were mapped amounting to 3,485 polygons (21,342 ha). As part of the first contract, the dominant land use was also extracted from Land Cover Map 2007 to indicate the habitat present prior to GI delivery. Brief reports were produced detailing the process and results, and summarising gaps in the information where maps were not available.

Further information from Crispin Flower.

The objective of this project was to process licence data from their legacy database to improve the accuracy of the spatial information. This was completed using a series of data validation rules.

For sites with no spatial object, the location description was used to geocode each license so that they could be analysed spatially.

In addition, many licences require survey data to be collated and supplied to the MMO. A list of keywords were identified and used to tag the survey metadata to improve searches for similar surveys within a specified radius. The keywords significantly improve the results returned and allow data to be compared over time.

Further information from Claire Lush.

The NBMP comprises seven distinct surveys, which will be built over several years. The database and website have been designed in a modular way, allowing each survey to be fully implemented without dependencies on the others. So far, the roost, hibernation, field and waterway surveys have been implemented.

Each survey includes recording forms, site mapping, data downloads and reports for NBMP volunteers. The mapping varies in complexity from a simple dot map for roost locations to sectioned transect editing for field and waterway surveys (pictured). In addition, there are tools to help BCT staff run the programme, including administration pages, email notifications for volunteer activity, as well as an Access administration client that connects to the database remotely.

Further information from Andy Brewer.

exeGesIS has worked closely with Powys County Council over several years to provide this service. The process involves analysis of the current network’s state to create a 5% sample, preparation and organisation pre-survey plus supplying and supporting the surveyors whilst they are out in the field.

A 5% sample of the Powys Path Network is approximately 420km. exeGesIS surveyors complete this within a few weeks. The data is then processed and imported back into the PCC CAMS and reports are provided to indicate the condition of the network. 

For more information, please contact Simon Allen or Timothy Derbyshire. 

In keeping with established BVPI standards, exeGesIS worked with a team at Ceredigion to analyse and create a 5% sample of the Rights of Way network. A straightforward task when completed within CAMS.

After establishing a sample of approximately 130km in length, exeGesIS provided professional surveyors and completed the fieldwork promptly.

Post survey, exeGesIS analysed the condition data and produced reports to help Ceredigion prioritise their tasks and structure a workplan for the following year.

The raw survey data was also returned to the Ceredigion Rights of Way team and imported into their live CAMS. This allowed them to get up-to-date summaries about any furniture with poor condition or outstanding problems within the network they needed to respond to.

For more information, please contact Simon Allen or Timothy Derbyshire. 

The task required analysing approximately 1500km of path network around the coastline of Wales. A route was supplied by NRW, this was then split and labelled with attributes according to the surface of the path, the requirements of NRW and BS7666 guidelines.

The path was redrafted several times to improve accuracy and reflect changes agreed between landowners and the NRW that occurred during the project. The end result was a path digitised to OS Mastermap data to an accuracy of <5m. 

For more information, please contact Simon Allen. 

Over successive years these data were assessed to refine the boundary and attribute information associated with each polygon in the inventory and additional data were sourced regionally for inclusion. A data capture rule base was created and maintained throughout these projects, to act as a guide to wood-pasture and parkland assessment. Data were assessed against historic maps and aerial photography, as well as modern data sources. Ground truthing was undertaken in the west midlands and south west, through which the inventory data capture rule base was refined to ensure the best assessment of available datasets.

The resulting provisional inventory mapped 156,838 ha of wood-pasture and parkland, though this was known to overestimate the actual extent, and it was estimated to include over 5,000 sites made up of over 7,500 polygons.

Further information from Claire Lush.

Further information from Claire Lush.

In order to create the indicative map we combined all relevant datasets into a single ArcGIS personal geodatabase containing over 1.8 million polygons. This geodatabase was linked to an Access database application that assessed the likely habitat based upon the reliability of each source dataset and suggested the most likely habitat for each input polygon. The assessment was made based upon an agreed rule base. Using this assessment the application generated a new personal geodatabase that incorporated the classification of each polygon by likely habitat and an indication of the reliability of the assessment. In this way we were able to incorporate all available data in the assessment of each polygon, rather than prioritising the data contained in certain datasets over others.

Click on the map to the right for a larger image.

Further information from Crispin Flower.