Multiple GPS Tracking Systems to Quantify Vehicle Distribution and Terrain Impacts.

Management of over 6M hectares (14M acres) for live-fire and maneuver training presents a unique challenge for the US Army.  Vast landscapes and diverse terrain make identification and estimation of where actual impacts occur from military training difficult.  Using a combination of off-the-shelf global positioning systems (GPSs), in conjunction with military unique systems, the Army’s Engineer Research and Development Center, Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (ERDC-CERL) has quantified distribution and disturbance patterns in relation to specific training events.  Linking Vehicle Impact Models (VIMs) to the tracked data within a geographic information system (GIS) environment provides Army land managers with the ability to more quickly evaluate, in a temporal and spatial manner, where impacts occurred during a training event.  Rapid detection of extensive terrain damage or impact to threatened and endangered species (TES) habitat can significantly reduce labor costs associated with repair and monitoring requirements, improving the Army’s ability to rapidly mitigate damage and sustain training.  This paper will focus on the intermediate steps taken to assess impacts from military vehicles.