- Reclamation
- R&D
- Research Projects
- Western U.S. T&E Species Locator Web Service
Western U.S. T&E Species Locator Web Service
Project ID: 843
Principal Investigator: Michael Beaty
Research Topic: Water Resource Data Analysis
Funded Fiscal Years:
2004
Keywords: None
Research Question
Reclamation water resource managers across the Western U.S. need to know the locations of listed threatened and endangered species to make informed decisions regarding potential conflicts with Reclamation lands and/or actions. The T&E Species Locator Web Service will investigate the benefits of adopting an enterprise business model, including national data standards, and developing web-based GIS services, including sensitive data controls, for Bureauwide access.
Need and Benefit
Although current information on the locations of listed threatened and endangered species is required Reclamation-wide, its current availability is highly fragmented, frequently incomplete or out-of-date, and isolated to GIS databases that are not readily accessible by managers and staff who need to know. Whether T&E location data is required for answering ad hoc questions or for more thorough studies and analyses, e.g. Water 2025 or ESA consultations, Reclamation managers and staff encounter numerous barriers in acquiring this critical information. Additionally, this location information is considered sensitive and data management is subject to a confusing patchwork of agreements and use constraints. For Reclamation managers this problem is compounded by the fact that, absent an enterprise model and agency data standard, the mapping of Reclamation owned lands is not available agencywide, i.e. one cannot readily determine the location of Reclamation lands. In sum, Reclamations current business practices for acquiring, managing, and distributing this vital information are both inefficient and ineffective. The T&E Species Locator Web Service project will research how an enterprise approach benefits both the producers, e.g. NatureServe, and consumers, e.g. Reclamation, of such decision supporting information. This project will partner with NatureServe to research and develop: 1. A national data agreement to acquire this information; 2. A national data standard for T&E species location biological information; 3. Data management controls and computer security measures to meet the producers' constraints and our legal requirements under ESA; and 4. GIS and web services technology for distributing this information on Reclamations Intranet. Additional research benefits of this project include partnering with BLM NILS (National Integrated Lands System) to research, adapt, and evaluate an agency data standard for the PLSS (Public Land Survey System) land grid and for locating Reclamation lands or other potentially affected land parcels using LR2000 legal descriptions.
Contributing Partners
Contact the Principal Investigator for information about partners.
