Cartographic portal
The study of the different possible solutions for the project crossing corridors of the “New Trans-Pyrenean High-Capacity Railway Axis (TGC-P)” between Spain and France was mainly based on the identification of environmental aspects in a large study area on both sides of the border. These issues, taken from public databases, were the subject of precise and detailed mapping. The methodology used to identify environmental values, then classify and finally prioritize them is presented in the environmental study summaries (page “The Studies”) in the following link :https://nctp.eu/en/preliminary-studies-new-pyrenees-crossing-project/
The cartographic portal reconstructs the environmental issues within the area of study according to three levels of precision, each centred on the seven pairs of valleys selected at the end of the studies.
A pair of valleys is defined by the two entrances to a base tunnel, one in a Spanish valley and the other in a French valley. The tunnel portal in Spain is identified by a letter and a pictogram in red, and the entrance to the tunnel in France is identified by a number and a pictogram in blue. For example, the pair D2 valley corresponds to the “Valle de Canfranc / Valle d’Aspe” valley pair.
The three levels of representation of environmental data by the increasing degree of precision and detail are as follows :
- Level 1: consultation of the fourteen pairs of valleys selected according to the altitude of the tunnel entrances in the study area: 7 pairs of valleys for the altitud of the base tunnel entrances at 1,000 m (from the environmental studies of 2014) and 7 pairs of valleys for the altitud of the base tunnel entrances at 800 m (from the update of the 2019 environmental studies).
- Level 2: consultation of the summary of environmental issues with hierarchy: the issues with ranking, all topics combined, are classified according to a scale ranging from the highest importance (level I) to the lowest (level V).
- Level 3: see gross environmental values, grouped into three broad categories: human environment, natural environment and physical environment.
Each level consists of :
- a dynamic map section (focused on the study area) with navigation (zoom, scrolling) and selection (information display) functionalities;
- a legend section (located at the top left of each page) describing the visible data per level with the possibility of showing/hiding the data if necessary (e.g. to display only a part of the valley pairs selected for comparison);
- a geographical narrative section, or “story map” (located at the top right of each page), which describes rich interactive content for each level (e.g., showing the descriptive page for a pair of selected valleys);
- help to explore the map portal, through a tutorial located in the banner at the top right of each page.
To enter the cartographic portal, click on the following link https://geoportal.nctp.eu/ or on the icon below :