Layer Methodology
Ecological Connectivity
A heuristic corridor score built from parks, hydro proximity, and wildlife diversity.
Map Role
A derived corridor score combining parks, blue infrastructure, and biodiversity signals.
What It Shows
This layer scores each dissemination area for how connected its surrounding ecological structure appears to be. It combines nearby parks, nearby hydro features, and wildlife species diversity into a single 0 to 100 score.
Sources
- Parks & Protected Areas ETL output
- Hydro Network ETL output
- iNaturalist wildlife observations
- Census dissemination areas from the equity layer
Method
- 1.Use dissemination areas as the base spatial unit for scoring.
- 2.Buffer each area by roughly 500 m to capture neighborhood-scale ecological context.
- 3.Score parks from nearby park count, hydro from nearby hydro features, and wildlife from unique observed species.
- 4.Compute the final score as 40% parks, 30% hydro, and 30% wildlife, then classify the result from isolated to well connected.
Refresh Cadence
Derived snapshot. Refresh when the upstream parks, hydro, wildlife, or census layers are rebuilt.
Coverage
Six-city dissemination areas with one composite score and component scores per polygon.
Key Fields
connectivity_score
Composite 0 to 100 ecological-connectivity score
connectivity_class
Class label from isolated to well connected
park_score
Normalized park component of the score
hydro_score
Normalized hydro component of the score
wildlife_score
Normalized wildlife diversity component of the score
Caveats
- This is a heuristic planning score, not a validated corridor model.
- Wildlife observations inherit strong reporting bias from community science.
- If an upstream input is missing, the derived score can degrade toward partial-input results.