CEDA wraps up WA state mapping project

The WA Committee for the Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) has completed its project to map the state’s development, after wrapping up 12 forum sessions for its Inventing the Future project.

The project relied on a planning mega-map developed by Esri Australia to provide a visual representation of key issues facing WA over the next 40 years, and was based on Geographical Information System (GIS) technology.

Esri Australia Western Australian business manager, Tom Gardner, said the map provided those participating in the forums with the visual and geographical context of the wide range of topics that were discussed

“For example, with the state’s population projected to reach 3.5 million by 2050, we need to ensure there are enough hospital beds, classrooms, roads and ports — not to mention energy and water resources,” Gardner said.

“The Inventing the Future map contains, in one application, the locations of major resource projects, demographic data, energy and water assets, and other important information on infrastructure.”

Gardner said that the project has pinpointed issues that the state will face over the next 40 years, with the mega-map providing a visual representation of these.

“Many of the issues the state is facing — providing infrastructure, workforce distribution, resource management — relate to the geographical isolation and distribution of these assets,” he said.

“As the map clearly demonstrates, location intelligence can bring together often disparate and complex pieces of information and expose patterns and correlations that enable more informed decision-making.”

Esri last year announced it had created a mapping application designed to improve road works in Victoria for government agency VicRoads.

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