GIS mapping topic of SWOAM session

SOUTH PARIS — GIS mapping will be the topic of the Saturday, January 22 workshop sponsored by the western Maine chapter of the Small Woodland Owners Association of Maine.

Michele Windsor of the Oxford County Soil & Water Conservation District and Region 11 Technical School forestry instructor Al Schaeffer will demonstrate features of Geographic Information Systems mapping and how they can be used for woodlots. Features include boundaries, brooks and streams, timber types, roads and trails, deer yards, potential or actual harvest areas, etc. Basic introduction to GPS will also be included in the three-hour session.

This is the first of a two-part program planned this winter. The January meeting will focus on free mapping software such as Google Earth. The next meeting, set for February 19, will look at more advanced features provided through such programs as ArcGIS.

The Saturday meeting, free and open to the public, will be held from 9 a.m. to noon in room 215 at Oxford Hills Comprehensive High School. Coffee and doughnuts will be available.

For more information, contact chapter President Bill Haynes at 583-2963 or Merle Ring at 441-3276.