Intermountain GIS Conference

This introductory course provides participants with a practical foundation in Coordinate Geometry (COGO) and traverse workflows within ArcGIS Pro. Designed for users who are new to COGO tools, the course emphasizes step-by-step workflows for entering bearings, distances, and curves; constructing traverses; validating geometry; and more.
Students will begin by learning the purpose of COGO in ArcGIS Pro and how to configure necessary and helpful Project settings before moving into feature creation and editing workflows. Hands-on exercises focus on using COGO-enabled tools, the Traverse pane, applying distance and direction-based edits, and ensuring accuracy through validation and adjustment methods. The course concludes with instruction on generating polygons from linework, providing a complete workflow from setup to output.
By the end of the course, students will be able to confidently apply COGO methods in ArcGIS Pro to create, edit, check, and document geometry defined by bearings, distances, and curves.

In the course of working on a non-spatial project that has an end product of an Experience with embedded Dashboards, I have been forced to learn methods, both documented and non-documented, to utilize these tools designed for spatial data to display and work with tabular data. These methods range from utilizing URL parameters to filter data in an Experience to passing through parameters to embedded dashboards to utilizing widgets in ways they weren't designed to do. I would explore these features and also address the bugs and quirks that come from using these platforms in a nontraditional way. 

The City of Twin Falls, ID took a unique path toward Utility Network implementation. After a UN planning project, Esri’s new migration toolset was released. Twin Falls leveraged it successfully for a Sewer UN migration but faced challenges with water pressure subnetworks. They then re-engaged with Timmons Group to seek advisory services to validate the approach and provide recommendations. This presentation compares the different needs of the utilities and their migration strategies, outlines the challenges of updating live apps and services with minimal downtime, and highlights lessons learned. We'll focus on how collaborative problem-solving supports successful Utility Network adoption in wet utilities.  This presentation will focus on technical challenges, decision-making processes, and how collaboration--using Esri Gold Business Partner Timmons Group's expertise--can help utilities navigate complex migrations.  Attendees will gain insight into practical strategies for successful migration, common pitfalls, and methods for adapting tools and workflows to meet unique system needs.

A trend of increasing wildfire frequency has necessitated the development of methods toidentify forested areas with heightened fire susceptibility. One specific concern in forested areas is susceptibility to canopy fires due to the presence of ladder fuels. Fuel reductiontreatments that target areas where ladder fuels are present are effective at mitigating canopy fires, but it is difficult to identify where ladder fuels exist within large forests. Past studies have demonstrated lidar (Light Detection and Ranging) technology can be used to detect the presence of ladder fuels. This study began with a literature review investigating current lidar applications for ladder fuel identification and subsequently led to the development of a model that quantifies ladder fuel density in forested areas. The model output is a raster image that can be used by land managers to help prioritize fuel load/ladder fuel reduction treatments. The accuracy of the model was field validated in the summer of 2025, demonstrating sites with predicted low estimated ladder fuel density (20%) do indeed exhibit low ladder fuel abundance in the field. Likewise, sites predicted as having high estimated ladder fuel density (66%) exhibited high ladder fuel abundance in the field.

This study investigated trends in aspen (Populus tremuloides) extent and distribution in southeast Idaho to inform targeted management decisions for Bureau of Land Management (BLM) project partners seeking to promote aspen stand health. Remotely sensed Landsat imagery combined with aerial imagery, topographic layers, and in situ observations were used to train a probabilistic decision forest model to model aspen at three scales: 1) a focused study area (FSA) scale, 2) a watershed basin scale, and 3) targeted regions of interest where active management has been conducted. Climatic datasets were used to interpret model results. Historic wildfire locations were used to better understand the study area’s disturbance regime. Model results suggest aspen has declined in extent across the FSA by approximately 50,000 acres (32%) between 2004 (163,356 acres) and 2025 (112,320 acres). Watershed basin analysis shows spatial variability with some basins exhibiting stable aspen extents while others show declines. Personal communications with land managers indicate the model overestimated aspen extent. Various interacting factors may be driving aspen decline including (1) lack of disturbance and infrequent fires affecting aspen in the northern section of the FSA, (2) rising Tmin, Tmax, growing degree days, and frost-free days causing prolonged periods of stress –especially during drought years-- leaving them susceptible to secondary disturbance factors like pests, pathogens, and increasing competition pressure with conifers. Even when considering model uncertainties, aspen are most likely experiencing a decline across eastern Idaho. Further research, monitoring, and management activities to promote aspen habitat is merited

Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve is a stark, challenging landscape that defends its beauty and wonder with rattlesnakes, razor-sharp rock, weather, and isolation. There are no roads. Horses cannot be used. Exploration and mapping of the vertical caves in the lavas requires long (sometimes multi-day) hikes over treacherous ground while carrying ridiculously heavy packs full of vertical gear, water, and camping equipment. Suffering is often a prerequisite for the desert to yield its secrets, and Edward Abbey may have said it best: "In the first place, you can't see anything from a car; you've got to get out of the goddamned contraption and walk, better yet crawl, on hands and knees, over the sandstone and through the thornbush and cactus. When traces of blood begin to mark your trail you'll begin to see something, maybe. Probably not."This presentation will focus on the exploration, mapping of caves, and efforts to expand Craters of the Moon National Monument during the 1990s. Cave-mapping techniques in the 90s were challenging, as conditions were dark, wet, cold, and frequently dangerous.  Mapping instruments consisted of a compass, clinometer, and tape measure. Drawing ability was necessary to sketch the cave on waterproof Mylar sheets. Data collection used the “LRUD” (Left, Right, Up, Down) method for measuring cross-sections, and maps were generated using early CAD software. In the late 1990s, laser technology and began to replace the tape measure.

Comic Sans, Arial, Calibri, Papyrus…does it matter which fonts you use in your map? Fonts—typefaces—have a powerful impact on the look and feel of a map, and can make the difference between an amateur and a professional document. In this presentation, I will show common pitfalls to avoid with font choice and label design, especially with respect to accessibility and legibility, and examples of what happens when these pitfalls are ignored. I will also demonstrate what to look for in a font, how fonts can have personalities, and help you navigate the surprising complexities of the font menu. 

High-resolution imagery is transforming how GIS professionals extract and maintain planimetric data, providing a scalable and consistent approach to mapping features that are traditionally time-intensive to collect in the field. Up-to-date, high-quality planimetric data is essential for infrastructure management, transportation planning, environmental analysis, and public safety.
This presentation explores how high-resolution aerial imagery can be leveraged to derive a wide range of planimetric features, including impervious surfaces, transportation networks, land cover classifications, and detailed pavement markings. We will also examine the practical benefits of imagery-derived datasets, such as improved accuracy, standardized feature attribution, and the ability to detect and quantify change over time.
Real-world examples will demonstrate how agencies are using imagery-derived planimetric data to support stormwater modeling, asset management, transportation safety, and land use planning. By integrating high-resolution imagery into routine GIS workflows, organizations can significantly enhance data quality, reduce collection costs, and build more resilient, data-driven communities.

The Broadband DATA Act provided a location level data set of where broadband is available today. Additionally, this dataset is and will be the base layer for all future funding programs. Using it you can determine availability of access to the internet today, advocate for better access tomorrow, and understand how access can impact a community over time. This presentation will overview the data available and give you all of the background that you need to get started using broadband data!