Web Site Accessibility

The World Wide Web (WWW) makes it possible for individuals to interact as never before. It is a tremendous resource for accessing information, especially with government web sites. However, the form and format of information on a web site can either help or hinder access for people, especially so for those with disabilities. It is very important to present information in a manner that ensures access by a diverse audience.

The Pacific Northwest Region of the US Forest Service committed to implement a web accessibility monitoring program to manage Section 508 compliance with all Region 6 web sites. In cooperation with the R6 Civil Rights Office, R6 Data Resources Management staff is using its R6 Web Team to implement the Region 6 Web Accessibility Monitoring Program (R6WAMP) for all web sites in the Region. The R6 Web Team is responsible for the administrative and technical oversight, and management for all R6 web sites.

This web site is subject to the Region 6 Web Accessibility Monitoring Program. If you experience any accessibility issues with this web site, please contact the Region 6 Webmaster.

Accessibilty & Usability Features of This Web Site

Site Features

• Consistent navigation
• Scalable text
• Clearly labelled graphics
• No flickering, strobing or animated graphics
• Cross browser compatible

Text Size

This site uses only relative font sizes. It is compatible with the user-specified text size option in visual browsers.

• Internet Explorer Users - The text size can be changed in Internet Explorer through the View Text Size menu.
• Mozilla / Firefox Users - The text size can be changed in Mozilla/Firefox, through the View Text Zoom menu. There are additional key combinations which may also be used, including <CTRL> to increase text size, <CTRL> - to decrease text size, and <CTRL> 0 to return the text size back to its default setting.

Bear in mind there are limitations with this web design which are out of our control.

Alt Text

All images that are used to illustrate content include the alt attribute to provide descriptive text alternatives.

Site Color & Design

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 requires that foreground and background color combinations provide sufficient contrast when viewed by someone having color deficits, or when viewed on a black and white screen. Two colors provide good color visibility if the brightness difference and the color difference between the two colors are greater than a set range. They suggest a color contrast algorithm , which is used in this test. This web site exceeds all color contrast requirements for a WCAG 1.0 AAA rating.

Link Titles

A title attribute has been added to links which describe the link in greater detail. All web site main navigation links utilize the title attribute. For content links, if the text of the link provides a clear explanation of the 'target' then the title attribute has not been used.

Javascript

The site currently uses JavaScript to enhance alternating colors and a hover color for tables and tabular data. This enhancement degrades gracefully if a web user has JavaScript disabled, or if a web user may be using a non-standards-compliant web browser.

Download Icons

This site currently uses a set of visual icons for all downloadable files and external links for web users using a standards compliant web browser. These files enhance a web user's accessibility and usability requirements when using a standards-compliant web browser, such as Firefox or Safari. Internet Explorer users cannot see these download icons because IE is not a standards-compliant web browser. The following is a list of the most frequently used download icons:

• Document File - Adobe .pdf File Format - 13k
• Document File - Word .doc File Format - 26k
• Document File - Word .rtf File Format - 10k
• Image File - .jpg File Format - 284k
• Presentation File - Powerpoint .pps File Format - 346k
• Presentation File - Powerpoint .ppt File Format - 346k
• Spreadsheet File - Excel .xls File Fortmat - 14k
• Application File - .exe File Format - 362k
• Zipped File - WinZip .zip File Format - 294k

Accessible Download Documents, Files & Maps

If you find that a downloadable document does not meet Section 508 accessibility requirements, please contact us so that we may put you in touch with the content owner who will provide you with an accessible and/or alternate version of the content.

Web Standards

This site uses cascading style sheets for visual layout and is designed to W3C standards. The XHTML and CSS is valid and the site has been built according to the W3C's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 (WCAG) level AAA. The WCAG 1.0 accessibility standard is broader and more comprehensive than the required Section 508 accessibility standard.

Browser Compatibility

This site is built and tested using Mozilla Firefox, Netscape, Opera, Safari, and Internet Explorer 6x. All pages on this site use structured semantic markup. If your browser or browsing device does not support modern coding techniques, the content of each page is still readable and is presented in a logical order.

Please Note: Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.