Released October 22, 2009
OAK GROVE, La. – West Carroll Parish is on the map.
The Community Asset Mapping Program – CAMP – which provided students with training in geographic information system technology applications, has been finished in West Carroll.
Three students, who have been in 4-H, worked with local leaders to create digital maps of community infrastructure to improve coordination of local services, James Barnes, director of the LSU AgCenter’s Delta Rural Development Center, said Oct. 23.
CAMP is a signature project of the Louisiana Delta Initiative, a regional network of community and economic development organizations led by the LSU AgCenter to improve the economic conditions in 12 parishes in northeast Louisiana.
Barnes, R. L. Frazier, Dennis Burns, Keith Morris and Myrl Sistrunk, LSU AgCenter county agent for West Carroll Parish, led the development of the mapping project. Frazier and Burns are regional GIS specialists for the LSU AgCenter.
Forest High School students Seth Strong, Dustin Waits and Charles Dupree were trained in GIS technology and created fire district maps of West Carroll Parish, Barnes explained.
“These students have done something that has not been done in this country,” Barnes said. “This started two years ago on a cold January morning when the students went to get 4-H training on GIS in Baton Rouge. It sparked an interest for this type of work.”
Over the summer they collected data points for every fire hydrant in West Carroll Parish, Barnes said. Fire chiefs gave them feedback along the way.
“They have surpassed any expectation of mapping,” Barnes said.
He thanked Sen. Francis Thompson, Sen. Mike Walsworth, Rep. Bubba Chaney and Rep. Sam Little for funding the program along with Entergy Louisiana. The LSU AgCenter provided the seed money, Barnes said.
“This is a true partnership that the delta needs to be proud of,” said Dwight Landreneau, LSU AgCenter associate vice chancellor. “When the community wants something to happen in the delta, it happens. This will save property, time and most importantly, lives.”
The project was completed Sept. 11, and the maps in the forms of framed posters and compact discs were presented to fire chiefs in eight districts.
“We are excited about this,” said Mike Berry, fire chief in Forest. “We can have a map of every district for our automatic aid agreement. Shared information is always a good thing.”
“I had no idea there were this many fire hydrants,” Chaney said. “This is a tremendous amount of work, and the product shows you were dedicated to it,” he told the students.
Chaney and Delhi Mayor Lynn Lewis asked if Richland Parish could be next.
“We need to find more grant funding for that,” Barnes said.
“We need to help you continue programs like this,” Landreneau said. “We need to look at economic development, whether agriculture, consumer sciences or youth programs. This project shows the depth and reach of the AgCenter. Thank you for letting us be a part of this historic project.”
Waits said he had a good feeling about doing a project that can save lives, and Strong said he will add the project to his resume. The high school senior now plans to major in civil engineering in college.
Dupree, a high school freshman, said the computer skills he learned have moved him to “the head of the class” in Word and Excel computer programs.
The students started mapping cellular service, capturing the strength of the signal at locations in West Carroll and East Carroll parishes. “If we are going to grow small business, we’re going to have to use the Internet,” Barnes said.
Information about the LSU AgCenter’s Delta Rural Development Center projects is available on the Internet at http://www.lsuagcenter.com/DRDC and at http://www.louisianadeltainitiative.blogspot.com.
--30--
