Prince William Sound, Alaska ESI: INDEX

This data set comprises the Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) data for Prince William Sound, Alaska. ESI data characterize estuarine environments and wildlife by their sensitivity to spilled oil. The ESI data include information for three main components: shoreline habitats, sensitive biological resources, and human-use resources. This data set contains the study area Index.

The ESI data were collected, mapped, and digitized to provide environmental data for oil spill planning and response. The Clean Water Act with amendments by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 requires response plans for immediate and effective protection of sensitive resources.

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Prepared by Research Planning, Inc., Columbia, South Carolina for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Ocean Service, Office of Response and Restoration, Hazardous Materials Response Division, Seattle, Washington; State of Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation; Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council; United States Coast Guard; Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council; and Prince William Sound Oil Spill Recovery Institute.

Although these data have been processed successfully on a computer system at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, no warranty, expressed or implied, is made by NOAA regarding the utility of the data on any other system, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. NOAA warrants the delivery of this product in computer-readable format, and will offer a replacement copy of the product when the product is determined unreadable by computer-input peripherals, or when the physical medium is delivered in damaged condition.

Contact NOAA for distribution options (see Distribution_Information).;

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DO NOT USE MAPS FOR NAVIGATIONAL PURPOSES. Besides the above warning, there are no use constraints on these data. Acknowledgment of the publishers and contributing sources listed in Data_Set_Credit (below) would be appreciated in products derived from these data.

The software packages used to develop the atlas are Environmental Systems Research Institute's ARC/INFO(r) (version 8.0.2) and ORACLE(r) RDBMS (version 8.0.5.0.0). The hardware configuration is Hewlett Packard workstations (models 715/50 and 712/80i with 4 X-terminals) with UNIX operating system (HP-UX Release A.10.20). The following files are included in the data set: bio_lut.e00, biofile.e00, biores.e00, birds.e00, breed.e00, breed_dt.e00, esi.e00, fish.e00, fishl.e00, hydro.e00, index.e00, invert.e00, m_mammal.e00, m_mampt.e00, nests.e00, seasonal.e00, soc_dat.e00, soc_lut.e00, socecon.e00, sources.e00, species.e00, status.e00.

The attribute accuracy is estimated to be "good" given the years of ESI experience, the data-input methodology, the quality control review sessions, and the digital logical consistency checks.

The INDEX map coverage was generated based on USGS 1:63,360 scale topographic maps. In some areas, the index was shifted or enlarged slightly so that it would encompass a small sliver of shoreline on an adjacent topographic map to optimize the number of maps generated. Names and dates of publication of the original topographic maps are included in the attribute information for each INDEX polygon.

The INDEX map coverage was generated at Research Planning, Inc. (RPI) based on the corner coordinates of the desired map areas. Under this project, new digital data sources were imported, projected, checked for quality control, and integrated into the spatial data structure (for selected resources). The data were checked using both digital and on-screen procedures. To finalize the data checking process, each coverage is checked using a standardized form by two GIS personnel (a technician and the GIS manager), and each attribute database is checked using several programs that test the files for missing or duplicate data, rules for proper coding, GIS topological consistencies (such as dangles, unnecessary nodes, etc.), and ORACLE(r) to ARC/INFO(r) consistencies. A final review is made by the GIS manager, where the data are written to tape and the metadata are written. ESI data are processed into multiple formats to make them useful to a wider community of GIS/mapping users. Distribution formats include ARC export, MOSS and Shape files, and MARPLOT map folders. An ArcView ESI project and ESI_Viewer product are also included on the CDs for ease of use of the ESI data. The database files are distributed both in the NOAA standard relational database format (see NOAA Technical Memorandum NOS ORCA 115) and in a simplified desktop flat file format. This metadata document includes information on both of these database formats. The section Spatial_Data_Organization_Information refers to the source files in ARC export format only.