Implementation of a GIS-based data collection form for waterfalls in Bulgaria

Waterfalls are significant geographical sites with ecological, tourist and scientific significance. The use of geographic information systems (GIS) and spatial databases (SDB) can provide an integrated and effective approach to data management and access, which can support both monitoring and research on waterfalls, as well as partial dissemination of the information to a wider range of users. Most of these unique natural sites are in hard-to-reach places, which makes the work of collecting geospatial and other data about them a task that requires attention and good planning. For this purpose, the so-called “Waterfall Logbook” was initially developed on paper, and with its help, data collection from direct field measurements and observations can be organized more completely and systematically. The problem comes from the fact that when working with the logbook, the information from it must then be entered manually into an SQL database in order to be further processed for publishing through GIS. This way, more time is wasted, and there is also a possibility of making mistakes when transferring the data into digital form. The purpose of this paper is to present a developed GIS-based mobile form for collecting data on waterfalls, based on the “Waterfall Logbook” and implemented as a mobile application. It solves many of the problems observed in collecting and transferring data. The form itself is used in a QField environment, with the possibility of direct synchronization with a QGIS project, which facilitates and improves the transfer of information “from the terrain” to the database.