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EXCHANGING AND INTEGRATING DATA FOR REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENTS IN THE MID-ATLANTIC REGION
Citation:
Hale, S S., M Bradley, AND J. Rosen. EXCHANGING AND INTEGRATING DATA FOR REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENTS IN THE MID-ATLANTIC REGION. Presented at Estuarine Research Federation '99, New Orleans LA, August 25, 1999.
Description:
To answer questions posed by the Mid-Atlantic Integrated Assessment (MAlA) regarding the health of estuaries in the coastal U.S. mid-Atlantic region, researchers need data from several databases, operated by different organizations in various formats for their own purposes. Analyses of estuarine condition need to be continuously updated as new monitoring data become available. MAlA uses a variety of data management approaches, including data directories, inventories, clearinghouses, and warehouses. We constructed a summary analytical database to hold estuarine data from several partners and to provide data analysts with a common source. Encouraging data owners to move toward common standards, directories, and data descriptions for databases with distributed ownership makes it easier to find, download, understand, and integrate data of interest. Although hardware, software, and standards used for managing data continually improve, we must work to overcome cultural and political barriers to data sharing and integration. Our experience shows that partnerships of geographic initiatives, where each partner benefits from the exchange of data with the others, can be effective.