Spring Regional Meeting 2024

Optional Networking Event
The Grey Dog Axe Throwing

Learn - Practice - Network - Tournament!

Carrie Morrell, GIS/Land Information Coordinator - Clark County
Justin Meyer, County Surveyor/GIS Coordinator - Taylor County
Kate Drewek, GIS Coordinator - City of Merrill

Lunch

50/50 Raffle

Some may argue that fantasy isn’t “real,” but to Tolkien, the world he created has at least some truth to it. The world he created has a sense that it all existed in his imagination. He created this world because he needed a place and history for the three Elvish languages he created. He could tell you how tall the Misty Mountains or how vast the Dead Marshes were. There are fantastical elements to Middle Earth sure, but Tolkien drew many maps himself so his world and geography are based upon our world, and he would often draw from real life examples from his travels during World War I. Maps can help make a fantasy world tangible to us. Since ESRI now offers a Middle Earth “Style” labeled as “My Precious Style,” what better time to learn about some of the history and geography of Middle Earth. As Gandalf says, “all we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us,” so if you think you will enjoy the content, I hope you will spend your time with us.

Sarah Kussow, Watershed/GIS Specialist - Outagamie County Land Conservation

The session is for conservation professionals who are interested in learning more about using the ACPF model to improve their small watershed-based planning and implementation projects.

Every community in the State of Wisconsin is required to update their road ratings every other year. These are more commonly known as roadway PASER ratings. These ratings are very important to keep up with to help track roadway health and to ensure funding is properly distributed throughout the community. These rating are also one of the key components to any grant or funding opportunity for roadway projects. One of the most common ways to update these is by filling out a spreadsheet or making notes on a map. This presentation will help you ditch the paper and make these updates faster and help you track your data more accurately. This presentation will show you how to set up your own QuickCapture program for PASER ratings, automate updates to Wis DOT, and track historical ratings for funding purposes.

This presentation walks through the process of inspecting all the public use airports in the state for obstacles, for example trees growing up on the approach to a runway. Since 2021 he has incorporated a drone into his workflow, the use of photogrammetry and ESRI Site Scan has been a game changer. 

The ham radio link in emergency communications. In 2003, Myron earned his general class license and his extra in 2020. Myron has served as the AEC/PIO for Wood County ARES/RACES/AUXCOMM since 2012 and is a Volunteer Examiner for ARRL/VEC as well as Laurel VEC, and is an amateur radio license instructor. Myron is also a member of the FEMA Region 5 RECCWG, is a SHARES operator and is on the SEOC call list. Myron also has the distinction of being the first officially recognized Auxcomm operator by the state of Wisconsin. Professionally, Myron has been in public safety since 1998. He currently works as the Chief Medical Examiner for Juneau County, and worked as a Paramedic and firefighter from 1998-2020. He has also taken dozens of FEMA courses related to emergency management, emergency communication and public information. He is a licensed Paramedic with critical care and Tactical EMS endorsements and is a Diplomate level member of the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators. 

Transportation provided

Join us for a unique experience exploring the world of UAVs, commercial and personal, Learn to read flight charts, watch drone demos, and more!

Food will be served from 6:00 pm - 7:00 pm

Good times to follow in the hangar

Listen to seasoned conservationists give insight on how they’ve utilized GIS and other data and mapping tools in their watershed analysis and management efforts. The Big Eau Pleine Watershed in Central Wisconsin has been heavily studied for decades, due to many fish kills in its 70,000-acre reservoir that drains into the Upper Wisconsin River Basin. The speakers will summarize data from a first-of-its-kind pilot project that was implemented four years ago to incentivize producers to utilize conservation practices within the watershed.

Nutrient management mapping is key to making nutrient management plans for farms come to life. Determining where manure can and cannot go is serious business (and that's only part of the complexity)! Pam will show examples of the GIS work that she has done from nutrient management maps to interactive route maps – all over the state and some beyond!