SoS - Agency Partnerships Initiative

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

Project Update

Vision

A data serving and visualization web site will provide public access to critical salmon and aquatic habitat data as well as help ODFW management & recovery staff to efficiently and clearly report on their progress in meeting conservation goals for coastal Coho.
» View scope of work diagram.

Sponsors

Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife, State of the Salmon Program (Ecotrust & Wild Salmon Center)

Team

Coordinators
Cathy Kellon, SoS
Jeff Rodgers, ODFW

Developers
Tim Welch, Ecotrust – Web developer
Greg Robillard, Independent consultant – Database developer
Andrew Fuller, Ecotrust – Graphic designer

Customers

ODFW recovery/management staff
State of the Salmon Program

Stakeholders

Managers and decision-makers: e.g.OWEB, Governor's office, Oregon Plan Implementation Team
Research community
Interested public: e.g., watershed councils, local decision-makers

Status (last update: 5/26/09)

We started working with the ODFW Research Lab in Corvallis in July 2008 to develop a web-based data serving for coho, steelhead, and aquatic habitat information in coastal Oregon and the lower Columbia River to satisfy ODFW business needs as well as improve information sharing and understanding among stakeholder groups. The intent is to create a template that will eventually include all conservation and recovery plans for Pacific salmon around the state.

July 2008 — February 2009
The project kicked off with an articulation of the project's vision. Over the winter a data model was developed and a needs assessment survey was developed and distributed to future users of the system including ODFW project staff, NOAA and the State of the Salmon. Results were summarized and used to inform the creation of a software specification. Matching funds were secured.

February — March 2009
A formal software specification was developed including a requirements document using the input to date from the needs assessment surveys.

March — April 2009
A development server was setup at Ecotrust for ongoing development of the web application. Discussions began with the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission to host the final application.

April — May 2009
The database for this web application is actively being developed. It will support multiple species and regions allowing as much as possible for it to scale statewide. The database attempts to implement design patterns that align with nascent regional standards such as NOAA's data dictionary for the Northwest Environmental Information Sharing Executive Summit. An alpha version of the web application has been made available to ODFW and SoS demonstrating the website’s hierarchy and features such as data querying, maps, charts, site registration and administration.

July — December 2009
In close collaboration with ODFW and SoS, the application will iterate over the second half of the year to integrate new features and datasets. A beta launch will be announced later this summer to solicit and incorporate user feedback. The project is scheduled for completion at the close of 2009 with a public launch of the web site.

Project Overviews

Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

We're working with the ODFW Research Lab in Corvallis to create a web and database system to:

• Make it easier for ODFW staff to track their progress towards meeting conservation goals for coastal coho.

• Provide public access to frequently requested data and information on salmon and aquatic habitat in coastal Oregon and the Lower Columbia region.

Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Canada

We're working with DFO staff at the Pacific Biological Station in Nanaimo to develop a summarized catch and escapement data set by Conservation Unit (CU) to:

• Ensure DFO researchers have ready access to standard, core information needed to assess biological status of CUs.

• Establish the groundwork for eventual public access to escapement, catch rate, and CU status information in BC and Yukon

Alaska Department of Fish and Game

We're working with ADF&G's Copper River and Prince William Sound Commercial Fisheries staff in Cordova to create web and database systems to:

• Make it easier for ADF&G staff to enter, edit, retrieve, and analyze escapement, age, sex, size and harvest data.

• Provide public access to frequently requested data and information.