--- title: "Short note: GIS and its applications" subject: "Surveying II" chapter: 10 key: "semester_4/surveying_ii:gis-applications-civil" source: https://www.bctengineer.com/q/semester_4/surveying_ii/gis-applications-civil site: BCT Engineering --- # Short note: GIS and its applications Surveying II · Chapter 10: Geographic Information System (GIS) - Asked in: 2078 Chaitra, 4 marks; 2078 Poush; 2078 Baisakh; 2077 Chaitra, 4 marks; 2074 Bhadra, 4 marks (asked 5 times) - Video: [SUP&CC Module 7: Application of GIS and RS in Urban Planning and Management](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7PJscXvdIKo) — BECK-PSTU Online Education - Answer checked by Claude Opus 5.5 (high effort) on 2026-10-14 - Page: https://www.bctengineer.com/q/semester_4/surveying_ii/gis-applications-civil - Whole chapter: https://www.bctengineer.com/md/semester_4/surveying_ii/chapter-10 ## Question Write a short note on GIS and its application in civil engineering. ## Short answer GIS captures, stores, manages, analyzes, and displays geographic data by linking maps to attribute tables. Civil engineering uses include route and site selection, urban planning, utility network management, flood and landslide hazard mapping, water resource analysis, transportation, and environmental impact assessment. ## Answer A **Geographic Information System (GIS)** is a computer-based system to capture, store, manage, analyse and present geographically referenced data. It links spatial data (maps) with attribute data (tables) and allows overlay and analysis of many layers, such as terrain, soil, land use, roads and drainage. #### Applications in civil engineering - **Route and site selection:** overlay of slope, geology, land use and cost layers to find the best alignment of roads, canals, pipelines or the site of a dam or bridge. - **Urban planning and land use:** zoning, growth monitoring, infrastructure planning, cadastral and land records. - **Water resources and hydrology:** catchment delineation, drainage network and flood modelling, irrigation planning. - **Utility management:** mapping and maintenance of water supply, sewer, power and telecom networks. - **Hazard and disaster management:** flood, landslide and earthquake risk mapping; evacuation planning. - **Transportation:** traffic and accident analysis, network and shortest path analysis. - **Environmental impact assessment** of projects. - **Construction:** terrain models, cut and fill estimation and project monitoring. ## Check yourself The answer's key points as multiple-choice questions, with the correct option and why. 1. What does GIS link? A. Only photographs with captions B. Only satellites with receivers C. Spatial data (maps) with attribute data (tables), allowing overlay of many layers D. Only tables with no location Answer: C. GIS links maps and tables and allows layer analysis. (Key point: GIS definition) 2. How is GIS used in route or site selection? A. By measuring the route with a chain B. By using only one layer, the road map C. By drawing contours by hand D. By overlaying slope, geology, land use and cost layers to find the best alignment Answer: D. Overlay analysis combines layers to find the best alignment or site. (Key point: Route selection) 3. Which is another civil application of GIS? A. Hazard maps for flood and landslide and utility network management B. Testing of cement C. Design of reinforcement D. Measuring soil settlement in the lab Answer: A. GIS supports hazard mapping and utility mapping. 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