Project Work Plan

Greater Everglades Science Program: Place-Based Studies

Project Work Plan FY 2003

A. GENERAL INFORMATION:

Project Title: South Florida Information Access (SOFIA) Website
Project start date: April 1996 Project end date: to be determined
Project Funding: PBS
Principal Investigator: Heather S. Henkel
Email address: hhenkel@usgs.gov
Phone: (727) 803-8747 x3028 Fax: (727) 803-2032
Mail address: 600 4^th St. South, St. Petersburg, FL 33701
Other Investigator(s): (none)

Project Summary: Website: http://sofia.usgs.gov/. The South Florida restoration effort requires multidisciplinary information relating to present and historical conditions for use in responsible decision-making. The U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) began a research program in support of the restoration of the Everglades and South Florida ecosystem in 1995. USGS personnel have been conducting research projects designed to provide sound scientific information on which resource managers can base their decisions. The USGS also has recognized the need for a central site to provide all interested parties with information from this research and access to these data. The South Florida Information Access web site (SOFIA) was created as a 'one-stop-shopping' access point for research on South Florida. All USGS South Florida Place-Based Studies research projects, ranging from mercury contamination in the Everglades to coral reef decline, are online at this site. The site provides project descriptions, proposals, publications, references, data (through the data exchange site), metadata, presentations, and contact information, as well as general interest items, such as photographs and posters. In addition, the SOFIA site has an educational section which displays the work SOFIA is doing with the Academy of Science and Technology in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Project Objectives and Strategy: The objectives of the SOFIA website are to continue to provide a usable and Section-508-compliant website that provides direct access to all south Florida Place-Based Studies information. The initial version of the site was specifically tailored for scientists, managers and decision-makers. More recent and expanded versions of the site have added educational materials and general outreach items designed for the general public. The number of visitors to the site has increased from just under 80 per day in 1998 to almost 800 per day in 2001. The SOFIA site has grown tremendously since 1995 and currently contains over 2400 pages.

Potential Impacts and Major Products: The SOFIA site provides a single access point for a variety of scientific information including data, publications, project proposals and contact information. New information is added daily to the site, as results and products become available. The website is the major product.

Collaborators: None at the present time

Clients: National Park Service, South Florida Water Management District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, all USGS disciplines, Federal, State, and local policy and decision-makers and managers.

B. WORK PLAN

Title of Task 1: SOFIA Web Portal
Task Funding: Place-Based Studies
Task Leaders: Heather S. Henkel
Phone: (727) 803-8747 x3028
Fax: (727) 803-2032
Task Status (proposed or active): Active
Task priority: High
Task Personnel: Heather S. Henkel, Kathy Pegram (contract), Tracy Enright (contract)

Task Summary and Objectives: The task summary is the same as the project summary. The SOFIA site will continue to add new data, publications, project information (including proposals), and other related south Florida information. Our objectives are to continue to provide a robust, accurate, and accessible website for the south Florida Place-Based Study program.

Work to be undertaken during the proposal year and a description of the methods and procedures: Work will continue on the creation of new materials for the SOFIA site. This will involve creating new project pages, adding publications, and posting materials for the next science forum (scheduled for 2003). We will also continue to add relevant south Florida information, including materials from sources outside of the PBS program.

Planned Outreach: As in previous years, demonstrations of the website will be given at various meetings, conferences, and open houses. In addition, the SOFIA site staff works with the students of the Academy of Science and Technology at Forest Hill High School in West Palm Beach, Florida, helping to create and post research projects and related educational information. Please see http://sofia.usgs.gov/forest_hill/.

Title of Task 2: Data Dissemination
Task Funding: Place-Based Studies
Task Leaders: Heather S. Henkel
Phone: (727) 803-8747 x3028
Fax: (727) 803-2032
Task Status (proposed or active): Active
Task priority: High
Task Personnel: Heather S. Henkel, Kathy Pegram (contract)

Task Summary and Objectives: In addition to the project and publication information provided on the SOFIA site, we also provide easy access to data and metadata. The data exchange site (http://sofia.usgs.gov/exchange/) provides direct access to a variety of data sets within the SOFIA program. These data sets are organized by topic and include site maps and methodology information. Access to Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC)-compliant metadata is made available through both the SOFIA site (http://sofia.usgs.gov/metadata) and a National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) node. Our objectives are to continue to add all available data and metadata to the SOFIA site.

Work to be undertaken during the proposal year and a description of the methods and procedures: Work will continue with the addition of metadata records in cooperation with Jo Anne Stapleton (SOFIA Metadata project). New and previously created data sets will also be added to the site. We also plan on enhancing the data exchange site to help better organize the information provided.

Planned Outreach: The data exchange and metadata portions of the SOFIA site will be demonstrated alongside the rest of the website at a variety of conferences, forums, and workshops.