Imagery/Transportation/Parcels/Elevation for the Nation

Most of these are concepts; only Imagery for the Nation (ITFN) is “real” in the sense of being a mature idea. All, however, were part of the policy agenda discussions at the NSGIC midyear. The ideas are so simple: let’s “get together” as a nation and create/collect these datasets for the common good (and to save money).

Imagery for the Nation

ITFN is quite mature. Much research has been done by a NSGIC committee. Some key ideas:

Each level of government participating gets some benefit for participating (that is, by “giving up” funding that might have gone to imagery in the past)

This is a new model for working together which can trasfer to other efforts (transportation/parcels/etc.)

The program needs sustainable funding - and thus needs dependable partnerships.

The program would deliver 1’ imagery with a 6” “buy up” option

Bottom line: ITFN should be line item in the federal budget for $95.6 million/year to be managed by FGDC. It would bring 2200 high tech jobs to the nation.

Most of the Phase 1 (nearterm steps) are well underway:
goal: institutionalize NAIP funding - MOU between USDA and DOI in development
goal: plan for urban area imagery - part of high resolution component in conjunction with USGS/NGA
goal: draft plan - feedback from NSGIC board received in December, new draft in development

Transportation for the Nation

A presentation by Skip Parker of NAVTEQ laid out the idea. Still, TFTN still seems like an idea, rather than a must have. That said, a later presentation by new US Dept of Transportation GIO Steve Lewis clearly showed support for it from him and related transportation agencies.

Parcels (Cadastre) for the Nation

Nancy Von Meyer provided a convincing and entertaining look at why we need a national cadastre. She highlighted lessons learned from when such infrastructure is not in place (you have to put in the fire houses before the fire!) and how such a base map might have served as an “early warning system” for the mortgage crisis. (Why are mortgages mapped to ZIP Codes anyway?) She noted, too, that efforts to study a national cadastre, for as long as its been studied total $0.5 million. The big news on cadastre front is the movement of the state cadastre inventory from a stand alone system into NSGIC online Ramona tool, which serves as a repository of local geodata information.

Elevation for the Nation

This is also just an idea - one coined in a National Research Council report (APB coverage( funded to look at elevation data and flood issues. It got a potential boost today as the Washington Post reported that some of the USGS stimulus money may go to LiDAR (APB coverage).