ACTION PLAN
The
Charter of the Northern Rockies Coordinating Group (NRCG) GIS Task Group
(GIS TG) requires that an annual Action Plan be presented to the NRCG. This
Action Plan communicates the tasks and projects the GIS TG plans to engage
in for Fiscal Year 2000. Approval by the NRCG authorizes the GIS TG
to continue or begin work on the tasks and projects outlined in the Action
Plan. The Action Plan ensures both accountability for and effective
accomplishment of NRCG assigned and/or authorized tasks. FY 00 continuing
tasks include:
I.
Team Management
II. Geospatial Data Library & Standards
III. Communication and Networking
IV. Training
Tasks(s):
1. Receive interagency, geospatial information management assignments
from the NRCG as identified in the NRCG GIS TG charter.
2. Identify and report priorities to NRCG for future geospatial issues
and actions.
Problem:
The GIS TG will provide the NRCG and all of the associated Working Teams
with quality information and advice concerning the use of geospatial data,
applications, and processes in support of interagency wildland fire management.
To carry out this charter and assist the NRCG, some degree of team
business activity must be undertaken.
Process:
1. Conduct four team meetings a year.
2. Coordinate with Team Liaison for NRCG.
3. Coordinate with Team Liaison for NWCG Information Resource Management
Geospatial Task Group
4. Pursue liaison
relationships with other GIS working groups within Region and Nationally
5. Develop annual Action Plan including budget.
Schedule:
FY 00 GIS TG Meetings:
Conference Call 1st wk of June
To be announced: telephone/video conferences as business warrants.
Responsibility:
GIS Task Group Chair & V. Chair
Budget:
None
II. Geospatial Data Library & Standards
Task: Compile & catalog regionally available Geospatial data from cooperating
agencies. Identify standard format to the effect of a NRCG wildland fire
GIS library. Estimate the cost for development, distribution;
including design and implementation of a web-based clearinghouse, and maintenance
of a library for use by all agencies.
Problem: All of the government agencies that are involved with wildland fire
management are in the midst of implementing systems (hardware and software)
to facilitate the use of geospatial data for natural resource and land management
purposes. Most of these government agencies are also developing the
geospatial data needed to drive these systems. A problem arises when
neighboring agencies try to join spatial data sets across agency
boundaries. Because no data standard was in place during the development
of the data, the data varies considerably in quality and scale. For
this data to be useful for wildland fire management, it must be consistent
across all agency boundaries.
Process:
1. Identify the geospatial data needed to support the NRCG area.
Suggested areas of investigation include but are not limited to:
a. Hazard Reduction and/or, Fire Use
b. Fire / Resource Management Planning
c. Fire Behavior Modeling
d. Suppression; Tactical & Strategic
e.
Dispatching
2. Propose a common
data standard for each of the areas of investigation.
a. Identify NRCG
Projection
b. Identify lowest
desired scale
c. Require FGDC compliant
metadata
d. Identify transfer
standard
Schedule: Have Agency Representatives gather information or metadata
about local data sets to develop a geospatial data
dictionary.
Responsibility: GIS TG members
Budget: To be determined and requested.
Task(s): Create a coordinated dialogue between geospatial technology
experts from the local to national scale to support interagency wildland
fire management. Communicate with the Fire Community on accomplishments
and objectives. The communication plan focuses on two areas:
facilitated discussions, and web-based information sharing.
Problem: The use of geospatial
technology is quickly changing the way Wildland Fire Managers and Incident
Commanders evaluate situations, plan actions, and deploy resources.
However, many agencies and units do not have the data or trained personnel
needed to implement geospatial applications for fire management. There is
no clear vision of how geospatial technology should be integrated into Fire
Management Planning and Operations. There is also a tendency for users
to reinvent applications or duplicate the efforts of other agencies, divisions,
or units.
Process:
1. Participate with and include other working groups, teams & individuals
toward implementation of geospatial data.
Schedule:
a. Initiate coordinated
dialogue between geospatial technology experts and users within the Fire
Community.
b. Develop a presentation
about NRCG GIS TG and GIS applications to Fire Management activities with
the Northern Rockies for team members to use to communicate with
others.
Responsibility: GIS TG members
Budget: To be
determined
IV. Training
Tasks:
Develop a cadre of Fire GIS subject relative trainers within the Northern
Rockies. Attend training opportunities with the intention of sharing learned
skills.
Problem: There is a lack of GIS
skills and thus participation at the local level. For the workers of the
Northern Rockies area to embrace the functionality of GIS they must be provided
with the knowledge necessary to participate in the use of this technology.
Knowledge of how to generate, and what to do with, data housed in a geospatial
library instills ownership. The dependency of GIS specialists to provide
all products is not efficient. Tools exist that can enable ground forces
to provide geospatial end products for themselves.
Schedule:
Course 1: Field Applications of GPS for Fire Management,
Boise, ID, May 8 – 12, 2000
Course 2: ICS Mapping Applications for GIS Technical
Specialists
Camarillo, CA, May 15 –
19, 2000
Ione, CA, July 17 –
21, 2000
Responsibility: Two members will
attend each session with ‘train the trainers’ responsibilities.
Classes will be held winter 2001. Agencies will provide for Fire Managers
and Field Crews to attend.
Budget: To be supported by Local Unit
Conclusion: The involvement of the GIS TG in the above mentioned activities
has been agreed upon by the team members as initial activities that can be
successfully accomplished from a newly formed working team. Certainly
discussions exist that support the GIS TG involvement in GIS data development
such as regional fire regimes data sets or the development of fuels layers
necessary to run the Farsite fire behavior model. Discussions support
greater web-based applications for dissemination of tools, and acquisition
of data for a more cost effective implementation of GIS. Lastly, the
GIS TG supported the development of a seamless USGS DRG layer to be used
as a standard backdrop for incident planning applications. The NRCG
GIS TG considered the tasks and resulting products included in this Action
Plan as a good base from which to move forward on.