The Channel Islands Regional GIS Collaborative, (CIRGIS),
is a regional collaborative for the collection, preparation and sharing of spatial
data. Its purpose is to facilitate the development and maintenance of an ongoing
public-private partnership for sharing and expanding the use of spatial data
to foster informed community decision making, innovative business development,
environmental management and education in the Channel Islands region of California.
http://www.cirgis.org/index.html
The Central Coast Joint Data Committee (CCJDC) is a partnership
of public and private agencies who agree to share spatial data about the 5-county
region of the Central Coast of California, from San Mateo through Santa Cruz,
San Benito and Monterey to San Luis Obispo County. Much of this data is used
in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and automated mapping for the purposes
of research, analysis, public review and action. Our primary goal at present
is to build a catalogue and guide to this data.
http://www.centralcoastdata.org/
The Pacific Basin Information Node (PBIN) - of the National
Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) is intended to address conservation
issues throughout the Pacific Basin. In the NBII community, PBIN is seen as
an example of 'how to do it right' - development of a strategic plan, coordinating
data development, and funding projects that benefit many natural resource organizations.
Follow the "Learn more about PBIN" link for a description on efforts
in pdf format.
http://pbin.nbii.gov/
The Hawaii Geographic Information Coordinating Council, (HIGICC),
is a non-profit body consisting of members of Hawai'i's GIS community. Their
goal is to provide coordination of GIS activities among a wide range of GIS
users in order to avoid duplication of effort, promote data sharing, and maintain
data standards throughout the state.
http://www.higicc.org/
The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) is designated
the Areawide Clearinghouse for the review of environmental documents and certain
grant applications for projects and programs to be conducted or located in the
San Diego region. SANDAG's designation is set under the intergovernmental review
regulations of the federal government and the State of California, the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA),
and SANDAG's Memorandum of Agreement with the Department of Defense. Specific
projects include the acquisition of digital aerial photography (DOQ) for San
Diego County in 2000 and the development of GIS tool and accounting system to
track habitat losses and gains within HCP/NCCPs.
http://www.sandag.cog.ca.us/
The Southern California Association of Gov'ts (SCAG) has
acquired a set of digital ortho-rectified photography for Riverside, Los Angeles,
Orange and San Bernardino Counties including Mexicali, Mexico. The information
was done at a 1-meter resolution for the urban portions of the region which
is equal to 9,133 square miles. The additional 29,000 square miles were done
at 2 meter resolution. The information collected as part of this effort will
be used in the creation of a regional land use database. The aerial photography
product can be used as a GIS analytical tool. As part of this effort a separate
seamless Digital Elevation Model (DEM) of the entire SCAG region was developed.
http://www.scag.ca.gov/
The Coachella Valley Assoc. of Gov'ts (CVAG) in 2002/2003 assisited in the development of species occurrences and models to implement HCP/NCCP.
The San Bernardino County Museum, Biological Science Division (BSD),
mission is to acquire, conserve, investigate, and interpret the natural heritage
of California and southwestern North America. Biological and zoological resources,
ecology and habitat are the concerns of the BSD, contracting with government
agencies, local agencies, and private concerns to perform assessments and mitigate
potentially adverse impacts to biological resources. Through research, collections,
education, and public exhibits, the Biological Science Division serves the state,
national, and international sciences programs.
http://www.co.san-bernardino.ca.us/museum/
NatureServe is leading the development of the National Vegetation
Classification System which was formally adopted as the Federal standard for
vegetation classification and mapping in October, 1997. This cooperative effort
is to fund, coordinate and complete key tasks necessary for the development
of a vegetation map for Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, Arizona. All
products produced will be based on implementation of the National Vegetation
Classification System (NVCS) protocols.
http://www.natureserve.org/
The University of Minnesota Department of Forest Resources
is working cooperatively with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Region
3 to develop geospatial data and analysis tools for use in wildlife refuge management
and planning activities. Region 3 includes the eight states of Minnesota, Wisconsin,
Michigan, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Missouri. Region 3 is expanding
its efforts to complete detailed management plans (Comprehensive Conservation
Plans or CCPs) for each of its over 50 National Wildlife Refuges and wetland
management districts, including Waterfowl Production Areas. Geospatial data,
analytical tools, and data presentation modules are being provided to aid in
CCP development and implementation.
http://gis.umn.edu/fws/
USFWS has an agreement with the North Carolina Natural Heritage program
to create a web - based Threatened and Endangered Species spatial data entry
program for Statewide subscribers to the Natural Heritage Database (Flexfund
proposal grant) . The application server is based on Linux, Apache, University
of Minnesota Mapserver, and Postgresql/PostGIS.
http://www.ils.unc.edu/parkproject/nhp/
USFWS, North Carolina offices also has a data sharing agreement with our county GIS office (Dare County, NC). They are working on one for Pocosin Lakes NWR with Washington County, NC also.
St. Marks NWR have an agreement with the Florida Trail
Association (FTA) to share services of a GIS specialist. The FTA is
a private, non-profit, volunteer organization founded in 1966. FTA volunteers
are responsible for building and maintaining the continuous footpath, as well
as numerous loop and side trails throughout the state. Designated as one of
eight National Scenic Trails in 1983, the Florida Trail provides more than 1300
miles of hiking trail through Florida’s tropical and semi-tropical ecosystems,
utilizing public lands when possible and developed under agreements with private
landowners elsewhere.
http://saintmarks.fws.gov/
http://www.florida-trail.org
The Region 5 Office has formed a data sharing partnership with the New
York State GIS Clearinghouse. We will soon be receiving recent, high
resolution digital orthophotography for FWS areas of interest in NY through
this partnership. The purpose of the Statewide Digital Orthoimagery Program
(DOP) is to produce high-resolution digital orthoimagery for the State of New
York on an ongoing annual basis. It is anticipated that the entire state will
be covered every 4-5 years. Orthoimagery combines the image characteristics
of a photograph with the geometric qualities of a map. The DOP will include
data collection, data processing, and quality assurance/quality control.
http://www.nysgis.state.ny.us/
The Regional Office, in partnership with the US Army Corps of Engineers,
New England District, has jointly sponsored GIS software training with
ESRI instructors. This has enabled FWS to receive excellent instruction at a
significantly reduced cost, since FWS gets the group training rate and holds
the classes at the Regional Office, thereby avoiding travel costs for FWS employees.
FWS has also shared data and expertise with USACE colleagues by attending each
other's GIS workshops.
http://www.nae.usace.army.mil/
The Regional Office works with the Maine Atlantic Salmon Commission
on habitat surveys throughout the state. FWS processes their rover files, creates
coverages, and distributes atlases and datasets. FWS also provides this information
to local conservation groups and provides technical training to numerous land
trusts and agencies. The information is used for fisheries management, habitat
protection and education projects.
http://www.state.me.us/asa/
The Gulf of Maine Coastal Program is working in partnership with multiple Maine state agencies and non-government organizations to distribute important habitat data to Maine towns and land trusts for their use in local/regional planning and habitat protection. Habitat data is distributed via maps and digitally on CDs. Participants also receive a presentation of the material along with a notebook containing information that can help guide conservation of valuable habitats. Partners include ME Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, ME Natural Areas Program, ME State Planning Office, The Nature Conservancy, Maine Audubon Society, Maine Coast Heritage Trust and regional planning commissions. http://beginningwithhabitat.org
The Montana GIS community has endorsed the Office of Management
and Budget's (OMB) I-Team concept for assessing the status of the Federal Geographic
Data Committee's (FGDC)Framework Data Themes (Cadastral, Digital Orthoimagery,
Elevation & Bathymetry, Geodetic Control, Governmental Units, Hydrography,
Transportation). Montana has initially identified four additional data themes
(Geology, Hydrologic Units, Land Cover, Soils) which are important to Geographic
Information Professionals throughout the state. MGIC, ITWG, and MLGGC continue
to review potential themes for inclusion in the I-Team process. The goal of
this exercise is to devise a plan for the development, distribution, and long-term
maintenance of each theme.
http://mtgeo.org/Framework/msdi.html
The Habitat and Population Evaluation Team is collaborating with Ducks Unlimited, North Dakota Game and Fish Departments, South Dakota Game, Fish, and Parks, and the USDA Agricultural Statistics folks in Fargo, North Dakota to obtain TM data (most of which was acquired during is 2002), collect ground truth data, and classify upland vegetation in the Prairie Pothole Region portions of North and South Dakota and the 3 northeastern counties in Montana.
Region 6, Realty Office, currently has a partnership with
Metro State College of Denver. Their GIS program is currently
working with Region 6 to obtain imagery and data for Browns Park NWR, CO. They
are also doing mapping and GIS projects as part of their class projects.
http://brownspark.fws.gov/
http://www.mscd.edu/~gis/
The Conservation Fund (TCF) is a national conservation organization,
established in 1985, whose mission is to seek sustainable conservation solutions
for the 21st century, emphasizing the integration of economics and environmental
goals. In 1995, TCF’s GIS Director (Will Allen) began discussions with
NCTC’s Technical Training Chief (Glenn Gravatt) concerning a potential
partnership on GIS training at NCTC. The mutual objective of both parties was
to provide unique opportunities for both private and public sector GIS students
to learn together. In real life, the voluminous data requirements of GIS systems
requires that spatial information on natural resources be collected by multiple
agencies and private organizations, and then shared. It was felt by both TCF
and NCTC that often public and private sector students could be trained together,
increasing the likelihood of future partnerships, data standardization, and
joint resource decisions.
http://www.conservationfund.org/
The U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service (FWS) collaborated in establishng the Bird Conservation Node as part
of the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII). The Bird Conservation
Node provides access to bird population and habitat information relevent to
population management, conservation planning, and evaluation. In order to make
important agency databases available through the Bird Conservation Node, the
FWS and USGS formed this Migratory Bird Data Center. Building upon complementary
capabilities of the FWS and the USGS, the objectives of this Center are to:
(1) assemble and document bird population and habitat data maintained by these
agencies at their finest levels of spatial and temporal resolution; (2) assure
that databases remain current through periodic update; and (3) provide web-based
access to the data by researchers and managers for strategic planning and evaluation
of avian conservation strategies.
http://birddata.fws.gov/background_dc.html
The National Realty Office is partnering with USGS to provide
digital boundaries of the NWRS for use in the National Atlas and National Map
projects. The National Atlas of the United States® is intended to provide
a comprehensive, map-like view into the enormous wealth of data collected by
the Federal Government.
The process includes working with them in the QA/QC process.
http://www.nationalatlas.gov/
The Realty Office is also working with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) to provide digital boundaries of the NWRS for
use in the Marine Managed Area program. The Departments of Commerce and the
Interior are developing an inventory of marine managed areas (MMAs) in the United
States that are currently protected and managed under federal, state, territorial,
tribal or local laws. The completed Marine Managed Area Inventory (MMA Inventory)
will contain information on each site to provide a picture of the current collection
of MMAs in the United States. The Inventory will provide the information base
for the requirements stated in the MPA Executive Order 13158 to better understand
the distribution, characteristics and effectiveness of existing U.S. marine
managed areas (for more information on Executive Order 13158 see The National
MPA Initiative).
http://mpa.gov/
The National Wildlife Refuge System is supporting a one-year
position to provide liaison services between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(FWS) National Wildlife Refuge System, Division of Conservation Planning and
Policy (DCPP) and the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Biological Informatics
Office, which manages the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII)
and the Gap Analysis Program (GAP). The main function is to help DCPP use GAP
and NBII products for planning within the National Wildlife Refuge System. The
staff person is providing data, information, and analysis to help prioritize
strategic growth in the National Wildlife Refuge System based on scientifically
sound principles of habitat and biodiversity conservation.
http://www.gap.uidaho.edu/