GIS Analysis of Overlapping Layers

My friend is attempting to quantify the area of different landuse values for different areas that are upstream from her sample points.  This means she needs sample points, landuse, and upstream areas (i.e. sub-watersheds).  The problem is, her watersheds overlap, the buffer distances around the sample points overlap themselves AND the watersheds, and she then needs to summarize the results.  It’s actually a tricky problem due to the overlaps: GIS software doesn’t really like when features within a single layer overlap one another.  Also, if a buffer for a sample point overlaps two different watersheds, that becomes tricky too.

Sure you can solve it with a few for loops,  inserting the results into a new table, but that really is a hassle.  Also, I have to do it for different distances and different land cover types.

So, I once again turned to SQL – remember what I keep telling you – spatial is not special.  It’s just another data type.  This video steps you through performing a multi-ring buffer on overlapping objects from 3 different layers: sample points, watersheds, and land use.  As we step through the SQL, you’ll see how easy it is to put the query together.  And, at the end, you’ll see how flexible the query is should you want to change your objectives.  And, for good measure, we’ll throw in a little bit of parallel processing.