We have determined there is a demand for this class of services through working closely with natural habitat preserve managers for several years. Our needs assessments conducted with these users repeatedly reveal the desire for cost-effective tools to monitor habitats. The combined powers of data collection through remote sensing and on-line, geo-spatial analysis through the Internet can significantly reduce the high cost and labor of field monitoring.

Although Southern California’s habitat conservation programs provide a ready test-market for this service, the potential market for these tools extends far beyond the regional community of natural habitat preserve managers. The need to monitor natural preserves using simple change detection methods is worldwide, and is fundamental to cost-effective management practices.

The Web-based mapping facilities proposed in this research can be integrated with wireless devices and Gobal Positioning Systems (GPS) in the future. With the progress of mobile computing and wireless communication, natural habitat preserve managers and scientists can access the Internet map servers via their mobile devices, such as Pocket PCs, Notebooks, or Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) during their field trips. The monitor and change detection of natural habitat areas can be accomplished in real time by integrating GPS, wireless communication, and Internet Mapping facilities. Also, distributed field workers can update the changes of natural habitat areas or create a new item by sending back their results in graphics to the Web map servers.

Moreover, these simple change detection tools and related capabilities extend to monitoring and management of resources other than natural habitat preserves, such as agricultural production and forestry. Specific recommendations for marketing to the larger share of users will be provided through a marketing study prepared by SDSU’s Business School as a part of this project.