Urban Air Quality (AQI) Studies at a Local and Regional Level

Screen grab of AQICN’s Colombo page (based on US Embassy data on Tuesday 27 November 2018)

The issue of air quality has been in the news lately with the destructive Camp Fire in northern California and resulting air pollution in the San Francisco Bay area. Poor air quality is nothing new, of course, and has been a fixture of the less desirable side of urban development and agricultural practices. In our Asian neighborhood, cities like New Delhi and Beijing, have regularly been in the news for their frightening air pollution. South East Asia has faced serious problems from the clearing and burning of tropical forest for agricultural expansion (see the articles below by Adam Voiland). Colombo Sri Lanka, where I am based, has much less of a problem but there are development plans and changes that could contribute to an increase in poor air quality. The OSC IB Environmental Systems class is currently completing their internal assessment on air quality in topic 6 (Atmospheric Systems & Societies). This post considers and shares resources for monitoring air quality at a variety of scales that I have been exploring with the students. The goal is to document resources to understanding air quality measurements and work to reduce causes with interested readers, students and teachers.

MEASURING AQI

Many countries have been monitoring and reporting on air quality for some time.The Air Quality Index (AQI) is a measure used to measure and monitor the quality of air. However, there is not necessarily a common standard scale, even though most are called “AQI” (see Wikipedia’s page for a summary of the different AQIs). For example, India’s AQI is on a scale of 0-500 with eight different components measured (NAQI). The UK is on a scale of 0-10 with five major pollutants (UK AIR). China’s AQI measures six pollutants on a scale of 0-300. Thus, it has been difficult to compare values on a global scale.

For the purposes of our student work we have used the AQI established by the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) in the United States. It is based on measures of the following five pollutants.

• ground-level ozone (O₃)
• particle pollution (particulate matter) (PM₂ or PM₁₀)
• carbon monoxide (CO)
• sulfur dioxide (SO₂)
• nitrogen dioxide (NO₂)

Each of the pollution segments has a standard, set by the EPA. This is used to evaluate the quality of the air based on the measurement. The scale of the AQI runs from 0-500 but, in reality many cities are off these charts and getting close to 1,000! For example, today (November 27^th at 2:00 pm) Delhi has an AQI of 492 and several places in China in the Beijing area have an AQI of 999!

Screen grabs from India’s National AQI data portal (Chennai on 29 November 2018).

Screen grabs from India’s National AQI data portal (New Delhi on 29 November 2018).

US EMBASSY DATA

There are now  online tools to help students, teachers and other interested citizens become more aware of the spatial extent of the problem using a single AQI measure. The US State Department is recording and sharing AQI data at their global network of embassies and consulates. AirNow (of the EPA) has a website where the current data from these embassies and consulates is layered on an OpenStreetMap. If you click on this link you can input a city with a US embassy/consulate and then access both current and historical data. Many places have yearly data, collected every hour going back to 2015! This is an ideal resource for science teachers looking to find meaningful secondary data for students to use in analysis.

Screen grab of Colombo data showing hourly progression (15 November 2018).

Screen grab from AIR NOW’s US Embassy portal showing AQI in Dhaka Bangladesh (29 November 2018).

Portal to the World Air Quality Index site.

You can also look up global data sets at the World Air Quality Index project’s site at www.aqicn.org . This site, based in China, compiles AQI data from around the world and maps it. Thus far, I have not been able to download historical data from the site. They do have several useful links including an Asian forecast page.

Unfortunately, we live in a world where many people are exposed to dangerously high levels of air pollution, as the links above share. It is hoped that the data and the knowledge of these patterns will help our communities look for meaningful changes in our daily lives such that we reduce and eliminate the cause of human induced air pollution.

 

Special thanks to students Camille-anh Goulet and Jordan Wright and OSC parent Michael Cragun for sharing links and ideas that have contributed to our understanding of AQI.

REFERENCES

Al Mukhtar, Sarah et al. “Hell on Earth” New York Times. 18 November 2018. Web.

Camp Fire Spreads Foul Air in California. NASA Earth Observatory. 11 November 2018. Web.

India National Air Quality Index Portal. Web.

US Environmental Protection Agency. Air Now. Data Portal. Web.

US Environmental Protection Agency. Air Now: US Embassies & Consulates. Data Portal. Web.

Voiland, Adam. “It’s Fire Season in South East Asia.” NASA Earth Observatory. 1 March 2018. Web.

Voiland, Adam. “Smoke Blankets Indonesia. NASA Earth Observatory. 27 September 2015. Web.

World Air Pollution: Real Time Air Quality Index Portal. Web.

Sinharaja 2017 & 18 Geography IA Field Studies

Sinharaja’s rainforest canopy under the Milky Way- an unusual sight given that high humidity often prevents clear view of the heavens. (May 2017).

Two successful OSC Geography field studies have come and gone in the last 15 months. Both learning experiences gave an opportunity for small groups of motivated DP1 students to investigate an individual research question in a rural Sri Lankan landscape.  Sinharaja rainforest, a UNESCO-designated World Heritage site, is located the south-western “wet zone” of the country and is well known for its rich biodiversity. OSC classes have been conducting field work in Sinharaja since 2005. The location offers ideal conditions for student learning, inquiry and field work on socio-economic, tourist and land-use themes. Many years ago, we used to do more ecology/ecosystems studies but the changes in the DP Geography syllabus has influenced how students craft their research questions around human aspects of the landscape. On both trips we were privileged to stay at Martin’s Wijeysinghe’s Forest Lodge; it continues to offer an ideal base for student field work, with access to the protected area, a range of habitats and home gardens.

The Sinharaja canopy from Moulawella showing the extensive rainforest over the core part of the World Heritage Site. (May 2017)

May 2017 Experience

The Class of 2018 geography class included eight enthusiastic students representing a diverse range of countries (eight different nationalities, with half the class being dual nationals). They embraced the learning opportunities, didn’t complain about the leeches (it was relatively dry this year) and seemed to thoroughly enjoy the Sri Lankan cuisine cooked up by Martin’s daughter. In 2017 Kamila Sahideen provided support in the interviews and was once active with finding frogs and other forest creatures. We were also happy to have Salman Siddiqui (Malaika and Maha’s father) along for one night. With his role as the head of IWMI’s GIS unit, I appreciated having Salman’s insights on how we might better use GIS/RS & drones to emphasize spatial dimensions of our data collection.

May 2018 Experience

The Class of 2019 geography class was slightly smaller but no less enthusiastic. There were six students and we were supported by Sandali Handagama, OSC’s multi-talented math teacher (and a former student of OSC). We hired four Sinharaja guides each day and they were essential in translating the surveys and helping the students to better understand the area. We have now developed a strong relationships and they have played a key role in the success of OSC’s field work in Sinharaja. Most of the surveys were gathered on foot but at times we hired local jeeps to take us further away from the ticket office at Kudawa.

Each of the students explored an individual geographic research question but pooled all of their sub-questions into a single survey that all could run. The actual survey of 45-50 questions could take up to 20-30 minutes with introductions and a look around home garden properties. The respondents were gracious with their time and several OSC teams were invited to have tea. With several different teams going in different directions we collected 72 different interviews in 2017 and 42 in 2018. We collected responses using Survey 123 a GIS-enabled data gathering app that all the students could run off their phones (we also recorded every response on paper). This allows students to map their results and do basic spatial analysis on the findings using ArcGIS, the GIS software package that they learn to operate in my class.

The elusive and rarely seen Golden Civet Cat (Paradoxurus zeylonensis) making a short visit to Martin’s Lodge during the course of our final meal of idiyappam (string hoppers) and kiri hodi (potato curry).Food was dropped in a slightly messy panic in order to trigger the camera and flashes during its brief time with us.

Sri Lanka frogmouth (Batrachostomus moniliger) female on left and male on the right in a patch of tree ferns. These pictures are only possible-like almost any frogmouth image-with the sharp eyes of a guide! I was assisted by Thandula, Ratnasiri and several others. Students got impressive pictures with their phones. (May 2018).

In addition to conducting the surveys, students got a flavor of being ecotourists in a tropical forest. They walked the different forest trails, encountered mixed species feeding flocks, appreciated small rainforest creatures and soaked their feet in jungle streams. Looking for frogs, insects and snakes at night is always a special treat. On the 2017 trip the class had me wake them up in the middle of the night to take in the majesty of the Milky Way in unusually clear, moisture-free skies. A highlight of the 2018 trip was having an encounter with a rare Golden Civet Cat (Paradoxurus zeylonensis) while eating dinner at Martin’s. The shy nocturnal mammal graced us for a few brief minutes and fed on bananas put out by our hosts. We completed our Sinharaja visits with a hike up to Moulawella peak to take in the full extent of the Sinharaja rainforest landscape. The views in 2017 were especially clear but 2018 also offered the team a chance to take in this remarkable rainforest and home garden landscape.

OSC students walking through tea and cinnamon fields in a home garden.(May 2017).

Home garden overlooking the Kudawa village valley.(May 2017).

Relatively low income home garden. (May 2017).

Relatively high income home garden.(May 2017).

Paddy surrounded by mixed forests and home gardens.(May 2017).

Class of 2018 conducting surveys in Kudawa market area.

Class of 2018 collecting data on paper and on a phone (with Survey 123) in a home garden.

At a home garden about two kilometers away from the Kudawa market.

Yuki and Zoe collecting data from an areca and tea farmer who lives alone in a traditional adobe dwelling.

Taking a walk through the rainforest at the beginning of the study.

Devin and Sarah interviewing a tea farmer (and father of our guide) west of Kudawa.

Home Garden with both cement and adobe partitions.

Collecting data with Survey 123 loaded onto an iPhone (out of mobile signal reach).

Backing up the data on a paper survey

Dominic photographing a vine snake (Ahaetulla nasuta) on our way up to Martin’s on the first day.

Maha interviewing a young forest guard at the ticket counter.

Jordan, Lukas interviewing a forest guard with translation help from Sandali.

Class of 2019 DP Geography Class and several of the Sinharaja guides (May 2018).

Günther’s golden-backed frog (Hylarana temporalis). This species has undergone taxonomic revision and I may need to update the species name once I have better information.

Yellow-fronted barbets (Psilopogon flavifrons) adult and juvenille

The wedge or square-tailed bulbul (Hypsipetes ganeesa)

Green Pit Viper (Trimeresurus trigonocephalus) from under.

Land crap on the forest floor.

Green Pit Viper (Trimeresurus trigonocephalus) showing its tongue.

Sri Lanka grey hornbill (Ocyceros gingalensis) at Martin’s (while we were eating breakfast).

Sri Lanka Shining Gossamerwing (Euphaea splendens) at the Koskulana River that flows through Kudawa.

Sri Lanka Kangaroo Lizard (Otocryptis wiegmanni) male

Sri Lanka Kangaroo Lizard (Otocryptis wiegmanni) female

The Class of 2018 DP Geography Class with Martin at his Forest Lodge. Back Row: Easmond, Thiany, Aanaath, Zoe, Adrian & Ian.  Bottom Row: Malaika, Salman S, Martin, Kamila, Fatma & Yuki. (May 2017)

The Class of 2019 DP Geography Class with Martin at his Forest Lodge. Back Row: Joran, Dominic, Devin, Lukas, Martin’s grandson and granddaughter. Middle Row: Sandali, Martin, his wife and daughter. Bottom Row: Sarah, Maha and Ian (May 2018)

 

Past Blog Posts on Sinharaja

Geography IA Trip 2007

Geography IA Trip 2008

Geography IA Trip 2009

Geography IA Trip 2012

Geography IA Trip 2013

Geography IA Trip 2014

Geography IA Trip 2015

Geography IA Trip 2016

General Sinharaja Reflections

 

SELECTED REFERENCES

Abeywickrama. Asanga, Sinharaja Rainforest Sri Lanka. Web. 2009.

DeZoysa, Neela and Rhyana Raheem. Sinharaja: A Rainforest in Sri Lanka. Colombo: March for Conservation, 1990. Print.

Gunatilleke, C.V.S, et al. Ecology of Sinharaja Rain Forest and the Forest Dynamics Plot in Sri Lanka’s Natural World Heritage Site.Colombo: WHT Publications, 2004. Print.

Harrison, John. A Field Guide to the Birds of Sri Lanka. UK: Oxford University Press, 1999. Print.

Kotagama, Sarath W and Eben Goodale. “The composition and spatial organization of mixed-species flocks in a Sri Lankan rainforest.” Forktail. 2004. Print.

Lockwood, Ian. “Into the Wet: Field Notes From Sri Lanka’s Wet Zone.” Sanctuary Asia. August/September 2007. 3-11. Print. PDF.

Lockwood, Ian. “Montane Biodiversity in the Land of Serendipity.” Sanctuary Asia. July 2010. Print.

Sri Lanka Survey Department. Sheets 80_x & 81_x (1:10,000). Colombo: 2015. Maps & Spatial Data.

Warakagoda. Deepal et. al.  Birds of Sri Lanka (Helm Field Guides). London: Helms Guides, 2012. Print.

Wijeyeratne, Gehan de Silva.  Sri Lankan Wildlife (Bradt Guides). Bucks, England: Bradt Travel Ltd. 2007. Print.

Vigallon, S. The Sinharaja Guidebook for Eco-Tourists. Colombo: Stamford Lake Publications, 2007. Print.

Drone Mapping & Modeling in Pelawatte 101

3D model of the OSC created on DroneDeploy based on data from the April 6th flight (approximately 81 images).

For the last year or so it has been my goal to use drones to better study areas and analyze patterns of land use and vegetation cover. I was first inspired by the work that IWMI was doing to map crops, irrigation and drainage basins using their fixed wing drone (see articles below for references). During the last two years there has been a good deal of excitement of using drones/UAVs for geospatial applications and I am entering the field relatively late. One of the notable highlights of Sri Lanka’s first GIS Users conference held in February 2018 was a presentation on the use of consumer-level drones to map small areas. A Sri Lanka Ministry of Defense Research & Development team demonstrated in real time how easy it was to program a flight path, put a drone up, collect data and then process it so that it could be used for analysis using GIS. Based on their example and the advice of IWMI’s GIS team, I have been working to use the school’s Phantom III Advanced drone to map our campus as well as the nearby Diyasaru wetlands.  This post share some of the results as well as my workflow.

Poster of April 6th drone map of the OSC campus, created on ArcMap 10.5.1.

Results from the May 19th drone flights using PIX4D. This is a composite of two different flights, each with about 30-50 separate images that have been mosaiced and geo-referenced here. If you look closely you will see the OSC Class of 2019 DP Geography class on the west side of the field. Also note the missing large mahogany tree north of  the pool that was regrettably cut down by the neighbors between the two flights.

A Work Flow for OSC

• Step 1  Having a drone is essential and many of the common consumer models can be programed to fly a set flight plan. We used a DJI Phantom III Advanced model that is the older of our two drones (it has already had several major accidents and gone underwater at least twice). The drone needs to be working properly and the micro SD card should be formatted before running the mapping flight. We have been doing a very short test pre-flight on the DJI app that we control the drone with.
• Step 2 You need an app to establish the flight path and program the drone to fly and take pictures at established intervals. We started with a trial version of DroneDeploy and have now loaded in a trial version of PIX4D. Unfortunately, the licensed copies of both of these software bundles are prohibitively expensive for small non-commercial programs like ours and I will have to work out a long-term solution so that students can continue the mapping that we have started. The proposed mapping area needs to be loaded into the drone using the app. For DroneDeploy I made the flight plans on a desktop computer (in the DroneDeploy website) and then imported them onto the phone app that is hooked up to the controller. There are several parameters to pre-set such as the overlap flap area, flight altitude etc.  The higher the altitude, the more accurate and less distorted the stitched imagery but it is coarser (less detailed). For PIX4D I have been setting the flight area on my phone in the field.
• Step 3 At your location you can launch the drone from a cleared area. We use the school field where there is plenty of room and a clear line of sight between the controller and drone (though it is flying by GPS, apparently). When you have got the drone and controller (with a phone interface) unit set up, you are ready for the flight. On DroneDeploy you import the plan, it goes through a number of checks and then asks if you are ready to fly. With the click of a button, the drone hovers and then takes off to run its flight. You can see the images that it takes and the drone’s flight path. Our flights have been set to 75 meters height and they are supposed to be taking approximately 60-90 images for 2 hectares. Unfortunately, we have been having a lot of trouble with good flights but no images being recorded at the end. For this reason, we started using the Trial version of PIX4D and had more success.
• Step 4 After a relatively short flight (5-12 minutes for us) the drone returns and lands and it is time to check to see if the images were collected. If it has gone well, then DroneDeploy will show you a sample mosaiced thumbnail. You need to shut down the unit and then move back to the desktop computer to upload the imagery on to their website where it is mosaiced. It took two hours for them to make the mosaic on the cloud and if you have a license you will also get a 3D model and vegetation map. For PIX4D there is a process where the images are fed from the mini-SD card to the phone and then uploaded online. You can also take the card and load them on to the PIX4D desktop app. All of these steps depend on you having the software and again I am not sure what we are going to do after the trial versions are finished.
• Step 5. In the final step you should have several files to work with. DroneDeploy gives you the orthomosaic and a 3D digital surface model (DSF) as well as a 3D model that you view on the screen. They also provide a KML/KMZ which you can bring into Google Earth (see sample below). PIX4D provides a collection of files (including point clouds, DSFs and more) that can be downloaded. I was most interested in the orthomosaic since I can then pull that into ArcMap where I can use it for presentation and analysis (see above).

 

Getting the DJI Phantom ready to map the OSC campus

Mosaic of April flight overlaid in Google Earth as a KML file.

PIX4D plan as seen on the flight controller.

OSC pool just before a pre-monsoon deluge.

Field and M block before the pre-monsoon deluge.

Drone Deploy plan for April flight

Conclusions

Drone mapping offers a new and dynamic way to visualize landscapes on a relatively large scale. Prices of drones have come down and the challenge is to acquire software that allows you to get your work done. Trial versions of PIX4D and DroneDeploy give you a chance to explore the possibilities and map out a few areas of interest. There are open source options that I need to explore once my trial licenses have run out. Anyone who knows my interests will realize that I am now itching to get drones into forest and mountain landscapes where they can be used to better map vegetation and land cover.

REFERENCES & FURTHER READING

Daniel, Smriti. “The Drone Buzz Over Sri Lanka.”  Sci Dev Net. 19 September 2015. Web.

Lockwood, Ian. GIS Developments at OSC in 2014.” Ian Lockwood Blog. 26 November 2014. Web. (this post features views of the OSC campus via GoogleEarth and ArcGIS).

Mason, Tony. “Put Your Drone to Work. Arc News. Summer 2016. Web.

Siddiqui, Salman. “Sri Lanka’s Drone Pioneers.” ICT Update.  18 April 2016. Web.

Sri Lanka’s Central Highlands WWW Experience 2018

OSC’s annual Sri Lanka Central Highlands trip, was once again an experience of significance with many important group and individual learning highlights. This choice WWW learning experience is part of the broader secondary school Week Without Walls program that I have had the privilege of coordinating since its inception. OSC’s WWW program was first run in January 2010 as an outgrowth of the MYP outdoor education program (2003-2010) and has now matured into a key experiential learning highlight for all of the secondary school. Through a variety of grade-level and choice experiences there are several goals that define the program:

• Fulfill the OSC mission statement of developing the whole person within a safe environment.
• Expose students to our host country Sri Lanka’s culture and environment.
• Enable opportunities for service learning and outdoor education.
• Use Interdisciplinary Units (IDUs) to support and strengthen existing secondary curriculum (including the DP CAS program) for the benefit of student learning.

Cloud forest at Horton Plains National Park

The five-day excursion into Sri Lanka’s high elevation interior exemplified some of the best outcomes of field-based learning beyond the normal confines of a classroom. The learning focus was on using photo documentation to better understand the ecology and landscape of Sri Lanka’s mountainous interior. This year we had a smaller sized group-10 students and three of us adults to guide them. I was supported by Kamila Sahideen and Desline Attanayake who both played key roles in organization and participating in all of our activities. We also had two veteran drivers from Yamuna Travels who got us to our different destinations safely. The students were enthusiastic and cooperative as we took on new challenges every day. Accommodation for the first three nights was on the cozy-rustic side of things, but on the last night the group was treated to very comfortable rooms in Nuwara Eliya’s St. Andrew’s Jetwing hotel.

Day I: Belihuloya stream hike

Belihuloya stream swim

DayII: Shopping for supplies at Haputale

Day II: Approaching Lanka Ella Falls

Day II: Reflection time at Mahaeliya in HPNP

Sri Pada (Adam’s Peak) under the profile of a cloud forest sentinel on the lower slopes of Pidurutalagala.

Sanjana and the curious telphone box at Mahaeliya.

Hiking by Rhododendron trees on the patana-cloud forest boundary along the path to Kirigalpotta.

The five-day excursion into Sri Lanka’s high elevation interior exemplified some of the best outcomes of field-based learning. The learning focus was on using photo documentation to better understand the ecology and landscape of Sri Lanka’s mountainous interior. All of the students had some sort of DSLR or point and shoot camera where they could learn basic controls and composition as we had different encounters. This year we had a smaller sized group-10 students and three of us adults to guide them. I was supported by Kamila Sahideen and Desline Attanayake who both played key roles in organization and participating in all of our activities. We also had two veteran drivers from Yamuna Travels who got us to our different destinations safely. The students were enthusiastic and cooperative as we took on new challenges every day. Accommodation for the first three nights was on the cozy-rustic side of things, but on the last night the group was treated to very comfortable rooms in Nuwara Eliya’s St. Andrew’s Jetwing hotel.

Weather in the Central Highlands is always hard to predict but this year we were blessed with classic, crisp winter conditions. There had been frost earlier in the month but by the time that we got to the high reaches of Mahaeliya bungalow in Horton Plains it was at least 10-15 degrees C° above freezing. The highlight of the time in Horton Plains was climbing the 2^nd and 3^rd highest mountains in Sri Lanka. Kirigalpotta (2,388 m) was the focus of a seven-hour round trip hike on Wednesday and Totupola Kanda (2,360m) was a short walk that we did on Thursday morning. For good measure we visited Sri Lanka’s highest peak Pidurutalagala (albeit by van, as walking is not allowed) on the final morning of the experience.

Grasshopper (Orthoptera sp.?) love fest near Lanka Ella Falls on Day 2 of the Highlands experience.

Rhino Horned Lizard (Ceratophora_stoddartii) at Horton Plains National Park on Day 3, views from the same image file.

Encounters with biodiversity were integral to the Highlands experience. On the first day as we hiked along the Belihuloya stream we had sighting of several eagles (Black, Crested Hawk and Serpent). In Horton Plains we appreciated cloud forest flora and endemic lizards (Rhino horned and). On our final afternoon we visited Victoria Park to observe Pied Thrushes and other rare birds. That evening before dinner Ishanda Senevirathna took us on the amazing frog tour behind St. Andrew’s. The students were extra enthusiastic and we were able to see all of the six highlighted endemic species. This has become a real highlight of the highlands WWW experience, something that has been written up in Ishanda’s newly published book The Peeping Frogs of Nuwara Eliya.

Pseudophilautus femoralis at St. Andrews/Pidurutalagala

Montane Hour Class Fog (Taruga eques) at St. Andrews/Pidurutalagala.

Montane Hour Class Fog (Taruga eques) at St. Andrews/Pidurutalagala.

Pseudophilautus femoralis at St. Andrews/Pidurutalagala

Montane Hour Class Fog (Taruga eques) at St. Andrews/Pidurutalagala.

Pseudophilautus alto at St. Andrews/Pidurutalagala.

Calotes nigrilabris at the summit of Pidurutalagala.

Calotes nigrilabris baby at the summit of Kirigalpotta.

Frog poster at Jetwings St. Andrew’s wetlands.

Pied Thrush (Geokichla wardii) a rare winter visitor to Sri Lanka. Photographed at Nuwara Eliya’s Victoria Park feeding on a Mahonia leschenaultia tree that is endemic to the Western Ghats (and apparently not Sri Lanka).

Odanata species from Belihuloya.

Creatures of the night in the Pidurutalagala forests edges.

2018 Highlands group on Totupola Kanda (2,360m)  with view to Ambawella, Pidurutalagala and the north behind them.

The Horton Plains area as seen with a Planet Dove 3m multi-spectral satellite. Imagery acquired soon after our visit and then processed by the author to emphasize vegetation and land use patterns.

PAST WWW TRIPS

• WWW 2013 Sinharaja
• WWW 2014 Dry Zone
• WWW 2015 Sri Lanka Highlands
• WWW 2016 Sri Lanka Highlands
• WWW 2017 Sri Lanka Highlands

EXEMPLARY STUDENT CAS REFLECTIONS (HIGHLANDS)

• Pabasha
• Sanjana
• Sarah
• Tavin

FURTHER READING & REFERENCES

Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF). Western Ghats and Sri Lanka Biodiversity Hotspot. May 2007. Web.

De Silva, Anslem and Kanisha Ukuwela. A Naturalist’s Guide to the Reptiles of Sri Lanka. Colombo: Vijitha Yapa Publications, 2017. Print.

De Silva, Anslem. The Diversity of Horton Plains National Park. Colombo: Vijitha Yapa Publications, 2007. Print.

Pethiyagoda, Rohan. Horton Plains: Sri Lanka’s Cloud Forest National Park. Colombo: WHT, 2013. Print.

Rodrigo, Malaka. “Lanka’s central highlands win heritage battle”. The Sunday Times. 8 August 2010. Web.

Senevirathna, Ishanda. The Peeping Frogs of Nuwara Eliya. Colombo: Jetwings, 2018. Print.

Somaweera, Ruchira & Nilusha. Lizards of Sri Lanka: A Colour Guide With Field Keys. Frankfurt: Edition Chimaira 2009. Print.

Werner, Wolfgang. Sri Lanka’s Magnificent Cloud Forests. Colombo: Wildlife Heritage Trust, 2001. Print.

GIS Developments at OSC in 2017

GIS as a tool for teaching and learning in the DP Geography program (the field, Survey Department and in a final Geography EE map).

November 15^th marked GIS Day, a time set aside to recognize the important role of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) in our lives. With a theme of GIS as the “science of where” it seems like a good time to look at ways in which we are using GIS as a tool for teaching and learning at OSC. Ten years ago, I put in the first proposals to adopt a GIS program at OSC as a part of our MYP and DP Geography courses. Since then the school’s small program has grown steadily while there have also been enormous leaps in the technology. This post reviews the newer applications and data sources that I am using as a tool for geospatial teaching and learning in the OSC environment.

Curricular Links in the International Baccalaureate DP

As far as I know, there are no explicit requirements that GIS skills be taught in any IB course. There are references made to GIS in the revised DP Geography, First Examinations May 2019 syllabus though they are not required (unfortunately, from my perspective). On page 19 it says “it is recognized that the ability to use GIS as a tool is a valuable geographic skill that goes beyond many of those listed below. Where GIS is accessible and practical, its use is encouraged.” Of course, there are many geographic skills listed in the guide that can be taught using a GIS platform. The Environmental Systems & Societies, First Examinations 2017 syllabus in the Investigating Ecosystems (2.5) section mentions GIS as a tool to use when tracking land use change (see p. 38).

At OSC I take time to teach several basic GIS lessons in DP Geography that allows students to use it as a tool for case studies and work on the internal assessment. In the past, I have worked with MYP students to introduce them to skills and methods for using our ArcGIS software. This year we are once again introducing GIS skills for MY 5 so that they can map spatial patterns from their Galle socio-economic survey work.

Starting out from Martin’s for field work in the valley at Kudawa town

A typical home garden on the boundary of Sinharaja. Like most plots tea is the key crop.

Conducting a survey in a Kudawa tea shop.

Collecting data on paper and on a phone using Survey 123

Conducting a survey in a home garden.

Collecting data on a phone and on paper (as a backup).

Mobile Data Collection & Tracking

The advent of wide spread use of smartphones and improved 4G cellphone networks has opened up opportunities to use mobile data gathering apps on phones. There are a variety of options including open source apps (Open Data Kit, etc.). I am using ESRI’s Survey123 which comes with our ArcGIS site license. For the first time this year we recorded all of the DP Geography Sinharaja field surveys on Survey123. The class set up a common survey with questions about gender, housing, water access, land use and other variables. Before we went to the field we trialed a simpler version in Colombo. In the field, every student had a phone but we also backed it up with paper copies. At times, there was no cell phone access. We were able to upload the data later when we had cell phone connectivity (this worked quite well although photographs attached to the survey slowed down the uploads considerably). It was a much better way to tabulate the data (there were more than 70 individual respondents in total) and the class could map the data points since each had a spatial reference.

At the same time, I have been experimenting with using phone apps to track and record hikes and trails that we walk on CAS experiences. Strava, a fitness oriented app, offers an excellent way to record tracks. I am exporting GPX trails and then putting them onto Google my maps and sharing them with participants. I’ve taught students how to use them as a way to record key paths on their CAS blogs (see Maha’s Off the Grid post or my Mannar account for an example of this). We are currently using Google My Maps for this and layering the GPX trails onto a map that we make public. I would like to use an Openstreetmap for the base layer but this requires a WordPress plugin and $$$.

Hardware & Online Software

In terms of hardware we are operating a basic system with a server/desktop and then four lab desktops (each with decent specs-16 GB RAM, fast processors, graphics cards, large (2tb) drives and wide HD monitors. Geography students have access to ArcGIS Online on their laptops (both OSC and Windows platforms). When it comes to working with imagery I find it easier to use the desktops where I have spatial data stored for specific class assignments.

There are a variety of software options for using GIS as an educational tool. The most widely used open source GIS software package must surely be QGIS. It has an OSX version and the interface is quite similar to ArcGIS. At the school we continue to use the industry-standard, proprietary ArcGIS group of applications and have maintained an advanced license for over the last eight years through GIS Solutions here in Colombo. I am able to get technical advice from IWMI’s GIS lab when there are new operations or application that we want to put to test. I have also developed relationships with other major GIS users who are working on environmental issues in Sri Lanka.

Openstreet Map Contributions

In the last two years we have been using Openstreet Maps and have made minor contributions in our neighborhood and areas of interest. I value the idea of an open platform wiki space where users can contribute spatial knowledge. It is also an excellent source for downloading shapefiles of houses, building, roads, and other features in our Sri Lankan study areas. This data is often more update to shapefiles that are commercially available. We have had students download OSM data and then use the shape files to design studies of land use in the Colombo CBD (see attached image).

DP 1 Geography IA locational map of Sinharaja by Anaath (OSC Class of 2018)

DP 1 Geography EE map of Syria/Lebanon by Anjulie (OSC Class of 2017)

DP 1 Geography EE map of the Kelani river basin by Arnold (OSC Class of 2016)

DP 1 Geography poverty study map of Bangladesh by Sarah using World Bank data (OSC Class of 2019)

DP 1 Geography locational map of Bangladesh by Sarah (OSC Class of 2019)

DP 1 Geography EE map of Colombo CBD Sadira using Open Street data and ArcGIS (OSC Class of 2016)

DP 1 Geography case study map of Zimbabwe by Jordan (OSC Class of 2019)

Recent OSC Student GIS work

Support from Local Contacts

OSC’s GIS initiatives continue to enjoy support for several key Colombo-based players. The International Water Management Institute’s (IWMI) GIS lab has been our main resource. They provide us with technical guidance and share public data that can be used for student learning. Their Water Data Portal is an important source of publically available spatial data.

Dr. Ajith Gunawadena at the Central Environment Authority’s Research and Development (GIS) unit  has become a good friend. He has helped me understand the ways in which the CEA and other government agencies are using GIS to tackle a range of national challenges. He helped guide the production of district level spatial databases (resource profiles).

I have developed good relations at the Sri Lankan Forest Department. Their GIS unit is working on updating the forestry map of Sri Lanka (last completed in 2010) and I have had a chance to see how they are using remoted sensed imagery to inventory different types of forest cover. The best way to access their basic forest data is on the FAO-sponsored REDD+ National Forest Monitory System portal. At the invitation of Anura Sathurasinghe, several of our DP2 students and I participated in the recently held 27^th Asia Pacific Forestry Commission meetings here in Colombo.

Colombo is now growing rapidly and this has given students an opportunity to study process of urbanization and urban environments first hand. The port city project, still controversial but speeding ahead, is moving at a rapid pace. While the Urban Development Authority used to be the key agency for getting urban data, the Western Region Megapolis Planning Project  now seems to be the main agency with data and information about Colombo’s urban projects. Master plans are available on their website for download.

SL Survey Department Developments

The Sri Lankan Survey Department continues to be a remarkable government agency that supports geographic teaching and learning in the country. I have always appreciated their open view to public access to maps and spatial data. At the GIS Day 2017 event several of their team members spoke about developments at the SLSD. Sarath Jayatilaka and N. Wijeyanayake, traced the historical development of mapping at the department. Mr. Sivanantharajah bought the audience up to date with new developments in remote sensing including the use of lidar to generate highly accurate elevation models. The Survey Department is at work on a National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) platform but this is expected to be another six months or a year before it is unveiled to the public. Meanwhile some of their maps and data can be viewed on an interactive portal and their land information system. What would be nice is if Sri Lanka’s larger neighbors would be willing to learn from the island nation’s open approach to making spatial data and maps available to the public to improve overall geographic knowledge and understanding!

Cover of CEA’s district spatial database (on CD).

Global Forest Watch screen grab of South and South East Asia

REDD+ National Monitoring System for Sri Lanka.

Accessing Population, Development, Environmental, Energy & Poverty Data

When addressing core concepts of the Geography and ES&S syllabi there are now an amazing variety of map-based data portals to access up-to-date statistical data.

• I have been using the Washington DC-based Population Reference Bureau data tables to study and analyze population patterns for nearly 20 years in my teaching and they now are accompanied by interactive map portal.
• World Resources is sponsoring a useful Data portal on deforestation called the Global Forest Watch. Their data is built on a Google Earth Engine
• World Bank data, a leading source of data on economic development and poverty, can be found on their data portal. DP1 students made an important discovery when they accessed the Interactive Bangladesh Map. We were able to download the GIS-ready data and then view and manipulate it in an ArcGIS environment. I understand that they will be doing similar sites for country and global data.
• For data on the Himalayan region ICMOD maintains the Mountain Geoportal.
• The Sri Lanka Census & Statistics department has always been a good source of data. They now have an interactive geoportal to access some of this data. It is layered on an Openstreet base map.

PAST GIS BLOG POSTS

• GIS Developments at OSC in 2015 January 2015.
• GIS Developments at OSC in 2014 November 2014
• Using Remote Sensing Imagery for Teaching & Learning in the IB  August 2013
• GIS Developments at OSC in 2012 December 2012
• GIS Developments at OSC in 2011 January 2012
• The Home & the World: GIS Developments at OSC in 2010 November 2010
• Using GIS in the OSC Geography Curriculum           March 2010

REFERENCES FOR GIS TEACHING & LEARNING (2017 Update)

Bolstad, Paul. GIS Fundamentals: A First Text on Geographic Information Systems, Fifth Edition. Acton, MA,Xanedu, 2016. Print. Web Resource Link, (GIS lessons).

Brown, Clint and Christian Harder Eds. The ArcGIS Imagery Book: New View. New Vision. Redlands, CA: ESRI Press. 2016. Print (Web version).

ESRI. Advancing STEM Education with GIS. Redlands, CA. 2012.   Web.

ESRI. K-12 Education portal. Web.

Harder, Christian and Clint Brown, Eds. The ArcGIS Book, 2^nd Edition. Redlands, CA: ESRI Press. 2017. Web. PDF.

Jensen, John R. Introductory Digital Image Processing: A Remote Sensing Perspective, 4^th Edition. Glenview, IL: Pearson GIS, 2016. Print.

Keranen, Kathyrn & Lyn Malone. Instructional Guide for the ArcGIS Book. Redlands, CA: ESRI Press, 2016. Print (Web version).

Kimerling, A. Jon. et al. Map Use, Eighth Edition. Redlands, ESRI Press, 2016. Print. Web Link. Review by Daniel G. Cole.

O’ Connor, Peter. GIS for A-level geography. Geographical Association/ESRI, 2008. Print.

Sri Lanka’s Central Highlands WWW Experience 2017

Afternoon composite view of Sri Pada from Horton Plains National Park.

Last week during the surprising, but welcome, return of monsoon conditions OSC’s secondary school set out across our island home to experience Sri Lanka as part of the annual Week Without Walls program. Students and teachers spent the week learning in unconventional classrooms that emphasized Sri Lankan culture, history and ecology as well as service and outdoor education. I had the privilege of leading a modest-sized group of MYP5/DP1 travelers on a circuitous tour of the Central Highlands. The learning focus of this “microtrip” was on photo documentation to better understand the ecology and landscape of Sri Lanka’s mountainous interior.

Montane forest canopy at @ 1,300 meters near to Belihuloya.

Pied Thrush (Geokichla wardii) a rare winter visitor to Sri Lanka. Photographed at Nuwara Eliya’s Victoria Park feeding on a tree () that is also found in the Western Ghats.

This is the third year that I have led the Highlands WWW experience. Once again we had a group of enthusiastic students who didn’t’ mind getting up early or living in somewhat primitive conditions while we were on the adventure. We spent the first night in tents at Belhihuloya followed by two nights in a basic dormitory on the Horton Plains plateau. Our final night was spent in comfort in Nuwara Eliya where students and teachers were able to clean up, use their phones, eat well and then participate in several frog and bird outings. A wet snap caused by a low-pressure system in the Bay of Bengal gave us rain (and precious little sunlight) on almost every day. We were able to do almost all the walks but were not able to hike to Kirigalpotta because of wet and windy conditions. I used the extra time to go deeper into the ecology of HPNP and teach photographic skills to the group. All the students brought functioning cameras and they were able to experiment with composition, lighting and photographing lizards, birds and moving water. Joshua, an MYP5 student, got several impressive night shots during a rare clearing of the night skies above Mahaeliya bungalow in HPNP.

From a biodiversity spotting point of view we did well. This year we saw and photographed both the Rhino Horned Lizard (Ceratophora stoddartii) and Pygmy (Cophotis ceylanica) in HPNP. While in Nuwara Eliya we did the wonderful frog walk with Ishanda Senevirathna. Aside from some of the usual endemic species we spotted the Nest Frog (Pseudophillauts femoralis) that we had not seen last year. Bird-wise the whole group got to see the rare winter visiting Pied Thrush (Geokichla wardii) in Nuwara Eliya’s Vitoria Park. At HPNP we saw the Dull Blue Flycatcher (Eumyias sordida), SL Whiteeye (Zosterops ceylonensis), SL Wood Pigeon (Columba torringtoniae), plenty of Yellow Eared Bulbuls (Pycnonotus penicillatus) and several other species. On a damp, misty hike up Totupola Kanda (Sri Lanka’s 3^rd highest peak at 2,360 m), we came across at least three different piles of leopard scat and observed scratch marks on tree bark!

One of the new developments this year was to use a drone to better view some of the areas that we were visiting. There were rules against using it in HPNP but we were able to do an excellent series of flights over forest near Lanka Ella falls. The Phantom 3 recorded some amazing scenes of the forest canopy with a new flush of leaves. DP1 student Anaath Jacob did the piloting while I directed the forest sequences. I am now learning how to pilot the drone and look forward to better understanding forest landscapes using this important new tool.

Up close and personal to a female sambar (Rusa unicolor) deer in Horton Plains. They have become habituated to people thanks to the propensity of visitors feeding them (against park regulations).

Endemic cloud forest lizaed species from Sri Lanka’s Central Highlands. Left (& possibly center): the Pygmy lizard (Cophotis ceylanica). Right: the Rhino Horned Lizard (Ceratophora stoddartii).

Cloud forest on Pidurutalagala (Sri Lanka’s highest peak) .

Pseudophillauts femoralis, a rare endemic shrub frog from Sri Lanka’s cloud forest. Identification courtesy of Ishanda Senevirathna of St. Andrew’s.

More diversity from the Highlands WW: Montane Hourglass Frog (Taruga eques), fungi (Phallus indusiatus) at Belihuloya and the endemic Yellow Eared Bulbul (Pycnonotus penicillatus) in Nuwara Eliya.

2017 WWW group at (Left) Baker’s falls in Horton Plains and (right) on the 2nd day on the way to Lanka Ella falls.

2017 Sri Lanka Highlands WWW group photographed at the strange telephone booth in Horton Plains National Park. Note the dry grass-a result of a severe drought and failed North East Monsoon in the months prior to our arrival.

 

PAST WWW TRIPS

• WWW 2013 Sinharaja
• WWW 2014 Dry Zone
• WWW 2015 Sri Lanka Highlands
• WWW 2016 Sri Lanka Highlands

FURTHER READING & REFERENCES

Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF). Western Ghats and Sri Lanka Biodiversity Hotspot. May 2007. Web.

De Silva, Anslem. The Diversity of Horton Plains National Park. Colombo: Vijitha Yapa Publications, 2007. Print.

Pethiyagoda, Rohan. Horton Plains: Sri Lanka’s Cloud Forest National Park. Colombo: WHT, 2013. Print.

Rodrigo, Malaka. “Lanka’s central highlands win heritage battle”. The Sunday Times. 8 August 2010. Web.

Werner, Wolfgang. Sri Lanka’s Magnificent Cloud Forests. Colombo: Wildlife Heritage Trust, 2001. Print.

Sri Pada Field Study 2016

Montane Hourglass frog (Taruga eques) in dying bamboo groves (@ 1,800 m) on the montane forest trail to Sri Pada. Found by DP1 students Jannuda and Aryaman.

This year’s annual DP1 science field trips went out slightly earlier than in past years-luckily with no drastic weather consequences. The DP Physics students investigated hydroelectricity near Norton Bridge and the DP Biology class did field ecology exercises on Castlereigh Lake. Meanwhile, I took the Environmental Systems & Societies (ES&S) group up to Peak Wilderness for a study of biodiversity and human impact. It was a relatively small group (eight students), supported by Rebecca Morse our new language acquisition teacher. Together we enjoyed three days of learning, basic accommodation and the traditional hike up to the summit of Sri Pada (Adam’s Peak).

Once again we focused on four broad themes related to the Environmental Systems & Societies syllabus.

• Theme 1: Land Use Variation (anthropocentric vs. natural ecosystems, plantation agriculture etc.)
• Theme 2: Forest & Vegetation Types (lowland, montane tropical forests, cloud forests)
• Theme 3: Vertical Zonation
• Theme 4: Biodiversity in a ‘Biodiversity Hotspot’

This year’s group proved to be particularly good at finding frogs and I also encountered several notable bird species that are highlighted in the pictures in this post. The Peak Wilderness area, now designated as a World Heritage Site, is rich in amphibian diversity with new species being described in recent years (see links below). The design of our day hike to the peak is such that it allows the group to stop, look and record examples of biodiversity. The Peak Wilderness area is, of course, very different than what the Colombo area hosts and much of what we see in plants, amphibians, fungi etc. needed to be properly identified with the aid of guide books. The other themes were reinforced both on the hike and the days getting to the Fishing Hut and back. The trip is not designed to be data-driven and the focus of the three short days is on observations and experiencing the guiding themes. Walking up to the peak is a rather physically demanding aspect that distinguishes the ES&S trip from the other science field studies.  Most of the class was hobbling around campus on the two remaining school days of the week when we returned. This was my 18^th trip, if my calculations are correct, and along with the rest of the group I returned with a sense of accomplishment, awe in the beauty of nature and concern for the way that our species is treating this sacred mountain.

Human impact in the Central Highlands (Eucalyptus plantation, pine plantation and cleared tea fields, tea estate and slopes above Maskeliya).

Frogs of different sizes and colors  in montane forest on the forest trail to Sri Pada. IDs to be added shortly.

Male Kashmir Flycatcher (Ficedula subrubra), a rare winter visitor to Sri Lanka’s Central Highlands photographed in montane forest at 1,400 meters.

Biodiversity photographed near the Fishing Hut (1.400m): From Left to Right: Indian Blue Robin (Luscinia brunnea),the common but endemicToque Macaque (Macaca sinica) and the endemic Sri Lanka Scaly Thrush (Zoothera imbricata).

Plastic waste collected but then left (and partly burnt) on the forest trail to Sri Pada. The growing amounts of non- biodegradable waste on the sacred slopes is an eyesore that is hard to ignore. The situation has encouraged new moves to “ban plastics” this pilgrimage season (see links below). Starting with a “pack it in, pack it out” approach would be one sensible idea. We collected the waste pictured here and brought it back to Colombo.

OSC’s class of 2018 at the Kitulgala Resthouse shortly before we went three separate directions in pursuit of different science goals.

On the way to the summit: Class of 2018 ES&S class (+ Julius) at Laxapana Falls (left) and on the trail to Sri Pada (right).

Climbing the steep stairs to Sri Pada with clear views and no rain. The elderly woman from nearby Maskeliya, seen to the left here, said she had been up 250 times!! There was little reason to doubt her… the students stopped complaining after we talked to her.

Starting back down to the Fishing Hut from the Sri Pada summit temple. The patch of tea near the hut is in the distance far below. The hut area is off to the mid-right of the frame but the clearing is visible in the forest canopy. It took us about four to five hours to get up and about three to get back down. Our purpose was to go slow and see as much as possible…

“The (Hatton) Way to Adam’s Peak”: a map mural from Wathsala Inn. Our trail to the peak came out of the forest on the middle left of the map.

PAST SRI PADA STUDIES

• OSC Class of 2010 (Sri Pada 2008trip)
• OSC Class of 2011 (Sri Pada 2009trip)
• OSC Class of 2012 (Sri Pada 2010trip)
• OSC Class of 2013 (Sri Pada 2011trip)
• OSC Class of 2014 (Sri Pada 2012trip)
• OSC Class of 2015 (Sri Pada 2013 trip)
• OSC Class of 2016 (Sri Pada 2014 trip)
• OSC Class of 2017 (Sri Pada 2015 trip)

FURTHER READING & REFERENCES

Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF). Western Ghats and Sri Lanka Biodiversity Hotspot. May 2007. Web.

Pethiyagoda, Rohan. Horton Plains: Sri Lanka’s Cloud Forest National Park. Colombo: WHT, 2013. Print.

Rodrigo, Malaka. “Eight new shrub frogs discovered from the Peak Wilderness.” Sunday Times. 2013. Web.

Rodrigo, Malaka. “Lanka’s central highlands win heritage battle”. The Sunday Times. 8 August 2010. Web.

“Taking polythene and plastic water bottles to sacred Sri Pada Mountain banned during season.” Colombo Page. 13 December 2016. Web.

Werner, Wolfgang. Sri Lanka’s Magnificent Cloud Forests. Colombo: Wildlife Heritage Trust, 2001. Print.