RDI Resource Design Inc

RDI Resource Design Inc
3-D Resource Planning and Visualization

RDI Services

Integrated visual design has been at the heart of RDI Resource Design Inc's (RDIs) corporate philosophy since commencing operations in 1996. Ken Fairhurst, RDI's President and Registered Professional Forester, has been continuously involved in all aspects of visual resource management for 20 years. RDI has focused its efforts towards making a practical and basic 3-D resource planning model called the Visual Landscape System^©, or VLS^©. It has broad application in natural resource management and development over large and small landbases.

Ken Fairhurst 2008 Resume (pdf)

Four Stages of VLS

Visual Landscape Inventory

Visual Landscape Analysis and Planning

Visual Landscape Design and Visual Impact Assessment

Operational Implementation and Follow-up

Ask us about applying our VLS in your landbase.

All aspects of sustainable landscape planning and professional design are provided by RDI. Inventory mapping and evaluation of visible landscapes is conducted along travel corridors, and around towns and cities, and from recreation attractions. The landscape inventories are used to establish targets for landscape quality or integrity in broadscale plans which will influence the overall supply, quality and sustainability of the visual resource. Operational resource developments are guided by these same integrity targets to ensure they can be met. To achieve the targets, RDI implements a design procedure which uses a wide variety of tools specific to the resource, such as silvicultural techniques in forestry, or reconstruction and revegetation techniques in mining.

Often it is useful to plan the entire landscape rather than just an individual operation. Doing so can avoid conflicts in the short and longer term, and maximize the flow of products over time while minimizing the effect on visual quality, thus ensuring the sustainability of this prized resource.

RDI provides design and assessment services using Visual Nature Studio for simulations. We start with terrain models such as ArcAscii and add forest cover or other data to produce realistic imagery. Input data may be vector or raster (e.g. a colour map). Land-use changes can be easily redesigned to meet visual quality criteria while maximizing resource productivity. Land-use change over time can be simulated and animated. Growth curves can be used to drive vegetation heights, composition and densities.

Three-Dimensional (3-D) Spatial Resource Planning

Three-Dimensional (3-D) Spatial Planning is a both a strategic and tactical landscape-level planning procedure. It is also a useful operational planning approach. It provides the opportunity for comprehensive examination of structural and surficial information (e.g. operability, ecology, visual quality, recreation and wildlife), and uses the combined constraints and opportunities analysis to design and plan activities in a consistent manner for the short and long term. By incorporating the 3rd dimension, (and the 4th dimension - time), greater understanding is provided about processes, patterns, flows and relationships amongst resources that will help guide management decisions.

Visual Impact Assessment

Pemberton Valley VIA Project produced by RDI for B&B Forestry, 2005

Visual Impact Assessment (VIA) procedures are site level analyses conducted to test the adequacy of a forest development or other type of resource development of meeting Visual Quality Objectives (VQOs).

The influence of forest harvesting and other forest management and other resource management activities in the visual landscape is realistically predicted with 3-D visualization from the viewpoints that are important to public enjoyment and concern. By applying visual landscape design principles and procedures in combination with appropriate silvicultural systems, ecologically and socially appropriate activity can be designed. Many of our analyses are currently used as case studies at the University of British Columbia. The following link will take you to the course website: Forestry 491. Ken Fairhurst co-taught FRST 491 with Dr. Stephen Sheppard in Autumn 2007.