Transcript Document

"A popular Government without popular information or the means of acquiring it,
is but a Prologue to a Farce or a Tragedy or perhaps both. Knowledge will forever
govern ignorance, and a people who mean to be their own Governors, must arm
themselves with the power knowledge gives." -- James Madison
Access to Information
&
Geospatial Data Clearinghouses—
The Pennsylvania Experience
In this presentation…
Background on the evolution of the clearinghouse movement & the
PA clearinghouse
Past and current challenges and initiatives for Pennsylvania
Other projects supported by free access to data
FTP
&
Metadata
Relational Database
Development
Map Services
&
Customization
Tools
Background on the clearinghouse movement…
A number of astronauts, and then all of us who saw the photography from space, marveled
at how much the Florida peninsula, meandering Mississippi, the islands of Britain, and the
boot of Italy resembled the maps everyone had grown up with. We had taken it for granted
that maps were faithful reflections of reality; but we were somehow amazed when reality
turned out to be true to the maps.
—John Noble Wilford, The Mapmakers
In the US, there is the expectation of free access to information—”The
Right to Know”.
Historically, US government and most state government information is
provided to the public.
Digital information, such as GIS data, is no exception.
However, sharing digital data is a complex process! Distributed
computer networks, intricate programming languages, communication
protocols, relational database architectures, user interfaces, and
metadata standards must be established and implemented.
The National Spatial Data Infrastructure—NSDI
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The NSDI was established by executive order under President Clinton as a means
to eliminate redundancy in data creation and streamline government operations
and cooperation.
The NSDI was a gateway to distributed networks hosting spatial (GIS) data.
The NSDI enabled search and retrieval of information (using Z39.50 protocol)
much like a library catalog shows what books and articles are available.
The Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) was given the task of
developing standards for data sharing for use in the NSDI. These included
metadata standards and implementation of the NSDI by creating partnerships with
spatial data providers such as state governments.
To participate in the NSDI, partners had to establish a spatial data clearinghouse
that contained metadata based on FGDC standards and utilized the Z39.50
protocol to allow users to search from the national gateway.
How do these things relate to the
“Pennsylvania Experience”?
Pennsylvania Spatial Data Access (PASDA):
The Geospatial Data Clearinghouse for the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
What is PASDA?
PASDA is the Commonwealth’s node on the
NSDI, participates in GOS, the Geography
Network, and the NBII
Serves as a resource
for locating data
throughout PA
Provides widespread
sharing of
Geospatial data
Eliminates the
creation of
redundant data sets
PASDA Background
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PASDA was initiated in 1996 as a partnership between Penn State University and the PA
Department of Environmental Protection.
PASDA was established in the Penn State University Library and was a collaborative project of
the library, the Geography Department, and the PSU Institutes of Energy and the Environment.
The program was originally coordinated by the PSU Maps Librarian who managed the data
partnerships, metadata development, and data organization.
PASDA is currently funded by the Governor’s Office of Administration, Geospatial Technologies
Office, and is under PSU Institutes of Energy and the Environment.
PASDA, which began by serving 35 datasets, currently provides access to 50,000 data files,
numerous web GIS applications, and data customization tools. It is the largest state spatial
data clearinghouse in the United States.
PASDA Services
• Our services include:
Data Storage
and Access
Users
Data &
Metad
ata
PASDA
Metadata
Outreach
Training & Assistance
Planar Distance Units:meters
Geodetic Model:
Horizontal
Datum
Name:North American
Planar
Distance
Units:meters
Datum ofModel:
1927
Geodetic
Ellipsoid
Name:Clarke
Horizontal
Datum
Name:North American
Planar Distance Units:meters
Datum ofModel:
1927
Geodetic
Ellipsoid
Name:Clarke
Horizontal
Datum
Name:North American
Planar Distance Units:meters
Datum ofModel:
1927
Geodetic
Ellipsoid
Name:Clarke
Horizontal
Datum
Name:North American
Planar
Distance
Units:meters
Datum ofModel:
1927
Geodetic
Ellipsoid
Name:Clarke
Horizontal
Datum Name:North American
Datum of 1927
Ellipsoid Name:Clarke
•PASDA info.
•GIS tutorials
How PASDA Works:
•PASDA is about Partnerships
•PASDA works with data providers to acquire data and develop data distribution plan and
metadata.
•Data acquisition and maintaining partnerships is one of the most difficult and dynamic
of a clearinghouse.
PASDA workscomponents
with
Partners on:
-Data Acquisition
-Distribution Issues
-Documentation
PASDA Provides:
-Storage
-Management
-Access tools
-Assistance
Data Distribution Via the Web—
Available for Anyone to Use
Typical advanced
GIS user
Some Quick Questions…
 Why is it so difficult to obtain data?
Legal issues
Territorial issues
Questions about accuracy
Other reasons?
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Who do you think PASDA partners might be?
State agencies such as PennDOT
Local governments such as the City of Philadelphia
Non-profit organizations such as the Western PA
Conservancy
Academic institutions like PSU
I mentioned metadata, what is it and why do you think it might be important?

What is Metadata? Here is the official answer…
Description:
Originator:U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency/Office of
Water/OST Basins
Abstract:The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency's (EPA) Reach Files
are a series of hydrographic databases
of the surface waters of the
continental United States …
Time Period of Content:
Metadata…
Time Period Information:
Single Date/Time:
Calendar Date:1994
Currentness Reference:publication date
Status:
Progress:Complete
Maintenance and Update Frequency:None planned
Spatial Domain:
Bounding Coordinates:
Title:USEPA/OW River Reach
File 3 (RF3) Alpha for CONUS,
Hawaii,
Puerto Rico, and the
Indirect Spatial
U.S. Reference:English-Salmon
Virgin Islands
- New
West Bounding Coordinate:-74.739
East Bounding Coordinate:-73.652
North Bounding Coordinate:45.156
South Bounding Coordinate:44.496
Keywords:
Theme:
Theme Keyword Thesaurus:None
Info about the data
Theme Keyword:RF3 alpha Hydrography River Reach streams stream network rivers
hydrography ArcInfo navigation drainage
Place:
Place Keyword Thesaurus:Geographic Names Information System
Place Keyword:New York NY New York English-Salmon
Access Constraints:none
Use Constraints:none
Calendar Date:1994
Point of Contact:
York
Contact Information:
Contact Organization Primary:
Contact Organization:U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Contact Person:Dan Parker
Direct Spatial Reference
Method:Vector
Contact Address:
Address Type:mailing and physical address
Address:401 M Street SW (4503F)
City:Washington
State or Province:DC
Postal Code:20460
Country:United States
Contact Voice Telephone:1-800-424-9067
Data Set Credit:McKay, Lucinda; Sue Hanson; Robert Horn; Richard Dulaney; Alan Cahoon; Mark
Olsen; and Thomas Dewald, 1994. The U.S. EPA Reach File Version 3.0 Alpha Release (RF3-Alpha)
Technical Reference. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC
Spatial Domain:
Bounding Coordinates:
West Bounding Coordinate:-74.739
East Bounding Coordinate:-73.652
Planar Distance Units:meters
Geodetic Model:
Horizontal Datum Name:North
American
Datum of 1927
Ellipsoid Name:Clarke 1866
More Questions…
 What types of data do you think would be available through a spatial data
clearinghouse?
•Digital elevation models
•Digital Aerial Photos
•Digital Topo Maps
•Vector Data—
•Streams, roads, boundaries
•Tabular data such as Census data
•Temporal data such as weather data
•Others?
Who uses PASDA?
•Government Agencies
•Emergency Response Teams
•Non-profits and Conservancies
•Consulting and Engineering Firms
•Academic Institutions
•Citizens
•K-12 Schools
Some of our users and data partners…
PASDA Clearinghouse Applications and Utilities
•The PASDA Data Cart
•The PASDA Data Wizard
•Map Services
•Web GIS applications and viewers
Clip &
Reproject
WMS
MapServices
ArcIMS
MapServices
Google
Earth
FTP
.ZIP Files
WebGIS
Applications
NSDI – GOS
Harvesting
Current Architecture…
Central table drives the Website and integrates all services
Website
Direct
Download
FTP
.zip
Clip, Reproject
& Download
SDE
Central
Table
Metadata
xml
MapServices
xml
xml
WebGIS
NSDI -- Geospatial One-Stop
ArcIMS -- WMS --Google Earth
Data Access Tools & Utilities
View &
Census 2000
Imagery Viewer & Download Tool
Zoom to a County, Place, Address, or
Quad
Real Time Weather Data from the
National Weather Service
Integrated with Google Earth
Why is GIS Data Sharing Important…
After Katrina
Why is GIS Data Sharing Important
Continued….
What Can be done with GIS Data?
What else can GIS Data be used for?
Questions?