The Viewer has three sections.
- The Map Window where the map is displayed.
- The Map Contents and “Legend” panels which float over the right side of the map window and list the data that can be selected to view in the map window.
- The Tool Bar, located along the top which gives the users some tools and controls for navigation and analysis.
The viewer opens centered on the jurisdiction with the jurisdiction boundary shown in gray. Please wait for the viewer to fully load (the jurisdiction boundary will be displayed) before you initiate any actions.
The default image you see in the background is from the ESRI WorldView database. The imagery is selected because it is a uniform scale throughout the region. The data presented in this viewer and the data used in the models are NOT derived from this product. Data are derived from the MOST RECENT image sources available at the time of the shoreline inventory. See the metadata file(s) for specific information on dates.
To close the welcome pane, click on the in the upper right corner of this pane.
Map Contents:
From the panels on the right titled “Map Contents” and “Legend”, the user may check various attribute layers on or off. As layers are turned on, their legends appear in the lower Legend panel. Use the scroll bars to view more content in the panels. The panel windows can be closed by clicking on the buttons to the right of “Map Contents” and “Legend” headers. To restore the map contents panel, click on the
. To re-open the legend panel, click the
button. These buttons appear in the tool bar when the map contents and legend panels are closed.
View Map Contents:
To view map contents in the map window select your attribute layers of interest in the right panel as indicated above. The layers will be displayed in the map window. If the layer has solid filled polygons, a transparency slider will also appear. Move the transparency handle to the left to increase transparency. Zoom to an area of interest. For details at any site, click on a location in the map window. From the pop-up window that appears, use the white arrow button (top right of popup window) to page through the layers returned. Note: information can only be retrieved for layers that are selected in the map content panel.
Shoreline Conditions Layers: Shoreline conditions are surveyed using field surveys and remote sensing techniques. The conditions observed during those surveys can be viewed here by selecting the features of interest. The digital data can be downloaded from the William & Mary Publish CCRM GIS data site or click here to return to the “Virginia Coastal Zone Locality Portals” page and select “Prince William County”.
Preferred Shoreline Best Management Practices (BMP): These practices, delineated along the shoreline, reflect the preferred approach for erosion control based on observed shoreline conditions at the time of the analysis. The delineation was developed from a geo-spatial model that accounts for site characteristics such as presence of marsh, beach, and submerged aquatic vegetation, nearshore depth, exposure to waves, and location of primary structures (e.g. homes). The recommendations reflect the Commonwealth's preferred approach for shoreline stabilization; using living shoreline treatments wherever adequate erosion control can be achieved.
The assessment was conducted at parcel level scale but the output represents a reach based or cumulative approach to shoreline management. In some instances, specific site conditions, including the presence of existing erosion control structure, lot size, or proximity of primary buildings to the shoreline, may alter the recommendation. For more explicit, on-site decision making refer to the Decision Tree Shoreline Management Options. The Decision Trees lead users through a series of questions about shoreline characteristics and result in recommendations of environmentally preferable treatments for the shoreline. For more information and to view the Decision Trees please click here.
Sea Level Rise High Scenario: This scenario is one of three sea level rise scenarios that are presented in the Sea Level Rise Risk and Vulnerability Tool (see the Toolbox). These scenarios are based on projections reported in the 2014 National Climate Assessment. The “High” scenario shown here is based on the upper end of projections from semi-empirical models using statistical relationships in global observations of sea level and air temperature. The rate of sea level rise through time is non-linear and adjusts for anticipated acceleration. For more information see The Sea Level Rise Inundation Tool - User Guide, 2017 on the Sea Level Rise Risk and Vulnerability Tool website.
To view the Sea Level Rise Scenario, click the check box to the left of "Sea Level Rise High Scenario in the Map Contents panel. The upper slide bar controls the layer transparency. The lower bar is the time slider. Click the play button to the left of the time slider to view water inundation progression through 6 time periods (2012, 2020, 2040, 2060, 2080, and 2100). The buttons to the right of the time slider allow the user to step through the time periods (forward or backward). The slider thumb button can also be dragged to move to the time period of choice.
Other Layers: Additional layers that may be of interest to the user are found here. These layers may vary depending upon locality and could include hydrology, submerged aquatic vegetation(SAV), conservation lands, resource protection areas, bathymetry, private lease boundaries, photographs, etc.
Base and Imagery Layers: Virginia Base Map (VBMP) imagery and ESRI base maps are provided should the user desire a different background. VBMP imagery displays at a scale of 1:2,257 and above. It will disappear at a scale of 1:1,128. The ESRI base imagery, Streets, and World Topo Map will display at a scale of 1:1,128 and above. Light Gray Canvas displays at 1:9,027 and above. The current map scale is displayed in the bottom left corner of the map window.
Top Tool Bar:
Navigation:
Use the navigation buttons near the upper left of the map to zoom in, zoom out, go to previous extent, go to last extent, and pan. To return to the original (default) extent, click the home icon in the upper left map corner.
Clear Graphics:
Clears any graphic that was added to the map.
River System Pie Charts:
These pie charts display distribution statistics of riparian land use and shoreline hardening for water bodies selected from the drop down menu in the upper left. The selected river will be highlighted in blue on the map. Jurisdiction-wide statistics for both metrics can be viewed by selecting the buttons at the bottom of the window. Click on the Prince William Summary PDF button to open a new window that display more detailed results in table format. To close this window click the “River System Pie Charts” button in the tool bar or click the in the upper right corner of the Pie Charts pane. Click the “Clear Graphics” button to remove the highlighted area from the map. Clearing the graphics will not alter the pie chart.
Information/Help:
Click the down arrow to the right of “Information/Help” to open a dropdown menu. The “Getting Started” button reopens this window at any time. “Metadata” contains information about the data layers in the Map Contents along with links to metadata. The “ShlInv Glossary” button links to a glossary defining attributes contained within the “Shoreline Condition Layers”. Click the “BMP Glossary” button for a glossary defining the preferred shoreline best management practices.
Address Locator:
Click the “Find Address” button and enter an address in the search tool. Click the magnifying glass button to search for the address. If an address is found, the map will zoom to the location and mark the spot with a blue symbol. To close the tool, click on the “Close Address” button in the top tool bar. To clear the address and the marker, click the “X” in the search tool (only appears if the user has entered text), or click the Clear Graphics button on the tool bar.
This tool can also be used to search by x,y coordinates (decimal degrees). Enter the longitude and latitude (ex.: -77.52, 38.54).
Measure:
Opens the Measurement widget. Tools are provided to measure area and distance, or determine the x,y coordinate location. Click the desired measurement tool then click the map. A second click on the tool button will disable the measurement tool. Click “Measure” located on the tool bar to hide the Measurement widget or click the in the upper right corner of the Measurements pane.
Swipe Tool:
Opens the Swipe Tool widget. Choose an image to swipe by clicking on the circle to the left of the image name. The image chosen will display on top of all layers checked on in the Map Contents. The swipe image is preset to 90% opacity. Click the Swipe button to enable the swipe widget. The chosen imagery will always display on the left side of the swipe bar. The Hide Swipe button clears the swipe image and hides the swipe bar. To close the Swipe Tool, click “Swipe Tool” located on the tool bar or click the in the upper right corner of the Swipe Tool pane.
Printing:
Click the “Print” button to open a print configuration window. Enter a name for the map in the text box. Select the map layout from the dropdown menu. Choices are landscape or portrait. Click the “Print Map” button. Be patient, there may be a short wait before a pdf of the map opens in a new tab. Make sure your browser allows pop-ups.