546
R.A. Longhorn
The will for good cooperation and of sharing ideas about infrastructure
architectures and solutions between the nations was very evident at the meeting.
However, because there was no formal mandate involved, and no fixed budget
available for this initiative from national, regional or global institutions, advancement
of the GSDI concepts, further communication and investigations into the issues, and
practical work such as setting up Web sites to exchange experiences, must be effected
on a purely voluntary basis. Fortunately, several participants were in the position to
use their own project funds to help in this regard. A summary report of the first GSDI
meeting can be found on the EUROGI
Web
site
at
URL
http://www.frw.ruu.nl/eurogi/eurogi.html.
The second meeting of the GSDI Forum will be held in North Carolina, USA,
19-21 October 1996, again under the patronage of EU Commissioner Dr. Martin
Bangemann, hosted by the Governor of North Carolina, chaired by Mr. Michael Brand
(details on URL http://www.gov.state.nc.us/GSDI97).
Coastal Zone Management and Marine Research in the GSDI Agenda.
It goes without saying that much CZM and marine research and development is global
in scale. Much of the work required in globalizing” marine GI relates to standards and
to analysis of practical experiences in collecting, using (i.e. in various models) and
disseminating marine GI, especially on a regional and/or global basis.
MARINE GI STANDARDS.
As to marine GI standards, a major player is the IHO. At the September 1996 GSDI
Forum meeting, a presentation on the issues surrounding a Marine GSDI (Anderson
and Evangelatos, 1996) focused primarily on the achievements of the International
Hydrographic Organization (IHO), whose membership includes 60 countries of the 130
coastal states in the world. The IHO produced the first global series of bathymetric
maps - the General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans, the latest edition of which was
produced by Canada. Several countries are now producing digital versions of this
important body of marine GI.
The IHO’s International Hydrographic Bureau, in Monaco has also achieved
the IHO S-57 spatial data standard for use in Electronic Chart Display and Information
Systems (ECDIS). Harmonisation work is also underway between IHO’s S-57
standards and those of NATO’s Digital Geographic Information Working Group
(DGIWG) DIGEST exchange standard, via a joint IHO/DGWIG Technical Committee.
The work of both these organisations has also been made available to ISO’s TC 211
which is now working on GI metadata and interoperability standards.
The IHO also created a committee in 1992 to bring together national and
regional Electronic Navigation Charts (ENC) infrastructure with the view to creating a
global ENC infrastructure. The current concept is that Regional Electronic Navigation
Chart Centres (RENC) will eventually be interconnected to form the global system.
IHO’s ultimate goal is to develop standards to provide the basis for all hydrographic
R.A. Longhorn
The will for good cooperation and of sharing ideas about infrastructure
architectures and solutions between the nations was very evident at the meeting.
However, because there was no formal mandate involved, and no fixed budget
available for this initiative from national, regional or global institutions, advancement
of the GSDI concepts, further communication and investigations into the issues, and
practical work such as setting up Web sites to exchange experiences, must be effected
on a purely voluntary basis. Fortunately, several participants were in the position to
use their own project funds to help in this regard. A summary report of the first GSDI
meeting can be found on the EUROGI
Web
site
at
URL
http://www.frw.ruu.nl/eurogi/eurogi.html.
The second meeting of the GSDI Forum will be held in North Carolina, USA,
19-21 October 1996, again under the patronage of EU Commissioner Dr. Martin
Bangemann, hosted by the Governor of North Carolina, chaired by Mr. Michael Brand
(details on URL http://www.gov.state.nc.us/GSDI97).
Coastal Zone Management and Marine Research in the GSDI Agenda.
It goes without saying that much CZM and marine research and development is global
in scale. Much of the work required in globalizing” marine GI relates to standards and
to analysis of practical experiences in collecting, using (i.e. in various models) and
disseminating marine GI, especially on a regional and/or global basis.
MARINE GI STANDARDS.
As to marine GI standards, a major player is the IHO. At the September 1996 GSDI
Forum meeting, a presentation on the issues surrounding a Marine GSDI (Anderson
and Evangelatos, 1996) focused primarily on the achievements of the International
Hydrographic Organization (IHO), whose membership includes 60 countries of the 130
coastal states in the world. The IHO produced the first global series of bathymetric
maps - the General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans, the latest edition of which was
produced by Canada. Several countries are now producing digital versions of this
important body of marine GI.
The IHO’s International Hydrographic Bureau, in Monaco has also achieved
the IHO S-57 spatial data standard for use in Electronic Chart Display and Information
Systems (ECDIS). Harmonisation work is also underway between IHO’s S-57
standards and those of NATO’s Digital Geographic Information Working Group
(DGIWG) DIGEST exchange standard, via a joint IHO/DGWIG Technical Committee.
The work of both these organisations has also been made available to ISO’s TC 211
which is now working on GI metadata and interoperability standards.
The IHO also created a committee in 1992 to bring together national and
regional Electronic Navigation Charts (ENC) infrastructure with the view to creating a
global ENC infrastructure. The current concept is that Regional Electronic Navigation
Chart Centres (RENC) will eventually be interconnected to form the global system.
IHO’s ultimate goal is to develop standards to provide the basis for all hydrographic