Highlights for February 26, 1998
USGS Center for Biological Informatics

I. Key Department News:

• DoD Joins MO-GAP: The USGS Gap Analysis Program (GAP) has included an aquatic component since 1993, beginning with pilot projects in New York and Missouri. In FY 1998, the Department of Defense -- one of the program's major supporters -- joined the effort by providing $103,000 to develop statewide GAP data for aquatic environments in Missouri. This ongoing GAP project, MO-GAP, is the first effort in the United States to break the land-water "barrier" by generating biological information about both systems that is inherently integrated. The project will produce a set of conservation priorities for the state not constrained by artificial "terrestrial" or "aquatic" boundaries and will provide a predictive and interactive information capability. GAP is a proactive geographic approach to protecting biodiversity. Satellite remote sensing and geographic information system technologies are used to identify unprotected "gaps" that may be filled by applying alternative conservation strategies. The program is coordinated by the USGS BRD and is managed by CBI. (Mike Jennings, Moscow, Idaho, 208/885-3555)

• GAP Used in British Coursework: Professor Alan Fielding of Manchester Metropolitan University in Manchester, England, has asked for assistance in developing a geographic information systems unit for a conservation biology master's course. Professor Fielding is using material from the GAP Home Page <http://www.gap.uidaho.edu/gap/> to build course exercises. The course will debut next September. Fielding also expressed an interest in developing additional course modules based on GAP, including pragmatic applications of the data. GAP is a proactive geographic approach to protecting biodiversity. Satellite remote sensing and geographic information system technologies are used to identify unprotected "gaps" that may be filled by applying alternative conservation strategies. The program is coordinated by the USGS BRD and is managed by CBI. (Mike Jennings, Moscow, Idaho, 208/885-3555).

• GAP and University of Wyoming Debut County-Based Biological Decision Support System: On February 18-20, Patrick Crist, (CBI/University of Idaho), and Tom Kohley, (University of Wyoming Spatial Data Visualization Center), presented their county-based Biological Decision Support System (BDSS) at the Interagency Workshop on Decision Support Systems at the Denver Federal Center. The desktop system is designed to make consideration of biodiversity by local government land use planners as simple and routine as other planning considerations such as scenic views and stormwater management. Crist and Kohley received enthusiastic response for creating a simple, inexpensive, and easy to implement system. The beta version will be demonstrated this spring in Teton County, Wyoming. There is already substantial interest in the BDSS in other parts of the country. GAP is a proactive geographic approach to protecting biodiversity. Satellite remote sensing and geographic information system technologies are used to identify unprotected "gaps" that may be filled by applying alternative conservation strategies. The program is coordinated by the USGS BRD and is managed by CBI. (Patrick Crist, Moscow, Idaho, 208/885-3901).

• USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program Tests New Standards and Protocols: On February 18-19, the USGS-NPS Vegetation Mapping Program hosted a meeting in Denver to discuss mapping issues that have arisen with the many standards and protocols developed and tested at one of the Program's pilot project locations, Scotts Bluff National Monument. Two organizations mapped the Monument independently using the new standards and protocols to test the uniformity of products. This meeting was held to discuss differences in the resulting datasets and actions that will ensure the production of a final vegetation database that will meet Program accuracy requirements. Attendees represented various NPS offices, including Scotts Bluff National Monument; CBI; the Bureau of Reclamation; The Nature Conservancy; and AIS, a private contractor. (Tom Owens, Denver, 303/202-4259)

• GPS Briefing on Military-Grade Receivers: On April 6, Karl Brown, (CBI), will provide a Global Positioning System briefing to custodians of military-grade receivers in the Reston area in conjunction with travel to meetings of the Coast Guard and Federal Geodetic Control Subcommittee of the FGDC. The briefing will be open to all of DOI and is intended to cover crypto rekeying, out-of-country travel, follow-on purchasing after the PLGR+96 contract, and any operational questions from the group. Room seating is limited to 40. (Karl Brown, Denver, 303/202-4240)

III. Notable Congressional Activity: No report

IV. Press/Media Inquiries: No report