GRASSROOTS AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY: MAPPING THE BP OIL DISASTER

Grassrootsmapping.org has worked with communities to create maps from photographs in South America, North America, and Europe for use in territorial disputes and environmental monitoring. Seeking to invert the traditional power structure of cartography, the grassroots mappers loft their own “community satellites” made with a set of novel “do-it-yourself” tools that include inexpensive cameras attached to helium balloons and kites that take aerial photos from up to 1500ft. The resulting images are georeferenced and stitched into maps which can have higher resolution and greater coverage than those offered by Google, at an extremely low cost.

Using these methods, a large effort to monitor impacts of the BP oil disaster is currently underway in the Gulf of Mexico through a partnership with the New Orleans based non-profit Louisiana Bucket Brigade (LABB). Volunteers collect imagery and the images are processed by Gonzo Earth in California and stitched into maps. Current map uses include environmental monitoring, assessment and public education. This data will additionally be vital in the years of litigation following the disaster. The utility of this approach is highlighted by recent media blackouts and censorship of the disaster, inspiring Grassrootsmapping.org and LABB to release all imagery into the public domain without restriction.