The radiation reaching the earth’s surface can be represented in a number of different ways and one of the ways is through GHI determination. This study determined the Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI) in the Province of Bukidnon. GHI is the… More

The radiation reaching the earth’s surface can be represented in a number of different ways and one of the ways is through GHI determination. This study determined the Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI) in the Province of Bukidnon. GHI is the maximum concurrency of solar radiation at specific time and location on the surface of the earth. It was determined monthly from January to December 2014 using the R.sun model that runs in an open source Grass Geographical Information System (GIS) software which can compute direct (beam), diffuse and reflected solar irradiation raster maps for a given day, latitude, surface and atmospheric conditions. Inputs such as topography, location, Linke Turbidity and ground albedo, slope and aspect and sun’s declination were also taken into account in the calculation. The results suggest that the values of GHI in a clear sky condition differ by almost 90% greater than the real sky condition. The highest GHI values were recorded in the month of January and May for clear and real sky, respectively. Thus, the output of this study recognized and may utilize further to assess the solar energy potential of the Province in terms of GHIs. Less

Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) processed through the combined application of Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technologies were the most critical datasets to the success of surface hydrologic modelling applications. This study aims to extract the hydrologic features… More

Digital Elevation Models (DEMs) processed through the combined application of Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technologies were the most critical datasets to the success of surface hydrologic modelling applications. This study aims to extract the hydrologic features like drainage line, inland wetlands and irrigations of Cabulig watershed using available LiDAR datasets. WhiteboxGAT and QuantumGIS were used to extract wetlands and irrigation while ArcGIS software was used for streams. The extracted features were validated using ancillary maps and google earth while features that are not clear were assigned as Point of interest (POI) and were subjected for ground validation. Aside from POI, random sampling tool was used to generate points subject for field validation. The results showed that the extracted features havehigher average accuracy in comparison to the data obtained from the field regardless of specific type of hydrologic features. The extracted streams network using ArcGIS showed the highest accuracy while the extracted wetland features using the combined applications of WhiteboxGAT and QuantumGIS showed relatively lower accuracy. Therefore, this study was able to extract the hydrologic features of Cabulig watershed using LiDAR-derived DTMs with higher levels of accuracy compared to lower resolution DEMs. Less

Forest wildfires in the Philippines are all human-caused. Resource managers are dependent on accurate estimates and spatially accurate forest structure information to govern this kind of phenomena.This study presents methods of using airborne laser scanning data to acquire forest and… More

Forest wildfires in the Philippines are all human-caused. Resource managers are dependent on accurate estimates and spatially accurate forest structure information to govern this kind of phenomena.This study presents methods of using airborne laser scanning data to acquire forest and tree parameters that are critical in modelling forest fire behavior. The study aimed on assessing fuel models of a tree plantation through LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) point cloud data. The tree plantation under this study is located in the Municipality of Malitbog, Bukidnon that is managed by Bukidnon Forest Incorporated (BFI). Canopy fuel of Caribbean pine (Pinus caribaea) was determined through calculation of canopy bulk density (CBD), canopy base height (CBH), canopy fuel weight (CFW) and canopy height (CH), which are essential in mapping the spatial distribution and modelling fire behavior. The Canopy Fuel Estimator (CFE) software, developed by researchers from USDA Forest Service, was used in this study. The plantation’s mean value of canopy fuel was extracted from available LiDAR data, which was also compared to the field data. Findings show that Caribbean pine plantation has high CBH (11.8 m), CH (31.5 m), and CBD (1.5 kg/m2). This indicates higher risk of forest fire in the area. Furthermore, field data for canopy fuel (CBH = 17.9 m, CH = 27.9 m, CFW = 2.9 kg/ha, CBD = 0.6 kg/m2) was observed to be close to LiDAR data (CBH = 11.8 m, CH = 31.5, CFW = 1.5 kg/ha, CBD = 1.5 kg/m2). Therefore, this study indicates the reliability of LiDAR data in modeling canopy fuel in a homogenous tree plantation through CFE. The maps produced can be used in fire behavior prediction, fuel reduction treatment prioritization and during active fire elimination. Less