| Monitoring movement through remote and sensitive areas remains challenging using conventional equipment and techniques. Sensor network design rarely consider the environmental contamination caused by sensors or if the surrounding environment would physically affect the sensors or sensor communication during operations. This thesis explores a pre-implementation approach to quantify and minimize the potential for contamination caused by abandoned sensors as well as model the effect of landform and meteorological conditions on sensor network operations to minimize the number of sensors. Quantifying potential contamination was accomplished by using a modified Life Cycle Assessment of the commercially available sensor components with additional consideration of current Resource Conservation and Recovery Act regulations. A geospatial approach that included Boolean exceedance criteria was used to design a sensor network and evaluate sensor placement against meteorological, topological, and land cover factors. These results were used as input to the SPreAD model (acoustic propagation model) determine the detection distance for each sensor. This approach facilitated design by limiting the number of deployed sensors in a network by identifying areas where sensors were not likely to function (depressions subject to standing water or flooding) or where adjusting sensor spacing was required to assure movement detection (steep topography or dense forest). While this thesis explored a specific system requirement, this approach and framework for considering environmental impacts and operational requirements in the design stage, it can be applied to other networks to reduce the environmental impact in remote or sensitive areas. |
