This volume presents a set of papers on Digital Terrain Modelling oriented towards applications for Policy Support. It is a compilation of research results by international groups, mostly based at the European Commission's Joint Research Centre, providing scientific support to the development and implementation of EU environmental policy. The first six papers describe recent advances in the theories and foundations as well as the practical techniques for developing and tailoring digital terrain models for their intended purposes, while the following papers focus on specific applications. Applications include the pan- European River and Catchment Database, European Flood Alert System, European Digital Soil Database and solar energy resource assessment, all discussed in a GIS framework in the context of the INfrastructure for SPatial InfoRmation in Europe (INSPIRE). This practice-oriented book is recommended to environmental modelers and GIS experts working on regional planning and policy support applications.

The Springer publisher web site is here.

G. Jordan and M. D’Alessandro (Eds.) 2004. Mining, Mining Waste and Related Environmental Issues: Problems and Solutions in the Central and Eastern European Candidate Countries. Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Ispra. LB-NA-20868-EN-C, 208 p.

This publication is a result of the PECOMINES project, which contributes to the Enlargement Action launched by the JRC to support the implementation of the acquis communautaire through focused research initiatives. Country reports have been contributed by national experts of the PECOMINES Steering Committee. Country reports are an important tool of the PECOMINES mine waste inventory methodology: they provide a means of including expert knowledge in the inventory both at the national and site scales. The ten contributions together with the introduction and concluding chapters in this book give the reader an overview of the status of mining, mining waste and related environmental problems and solutions in Central and Eastern European Candidate Countries.

The JRC publisher web site is here.

Jordan G. 2004. Terrain Modelling with GIS for Tectonic Geomorphology: Numerical Methods and Applications. Comprenhesive Summaries of Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Sciences and Technology 1031. Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. Uppsala Unicersity, Uppsala. ISBN: 91-554-6072-0

The objective of the thesis is to develop numerical methods and a consistent GIS methodology for tectonic geomorphology and apply it to test sites. Based on the study of landforms related to faults, geomorphological characteristics are translated into mathematical and numerical algorithms. Basic geometric attributes (elevation, slope, aspect and curvatures) are complemented with the automatic extraction of ridge and valley lines and surface specific points. General geomorphometry is extended with texture (spatial) analysis methods such as trend, autocorrelation, spectral, wavelet and network analysis. Digital terrain modelling uses (1) general geomorphometry, (2) digital drainage network analysis, (3) digital image processing, (4) lineament analysis, (5) spatial and statistical analysis and (6) DEM specific digital methods such as 3D surface modelling. Geological data of various sources are integrated in a GIS database.

The Uppsala Univeristy publisher web site is here.