Adding value to Copernicus services with member states reference data

61 member organisations from 46 countries of Europe responsible for official geodetic land registry cadastral and mapping activities

What is EuroGeographics for? to further the development of the European Spatial Data Infrastructure through collaboration in the area of geographic information and the representation of the EuroGeographics membership and its capabilities

Synopsis National geospatial reference datasets have a lot to offer Copernicus services Getting those reference data into Copernicus services has not been straightforward INSPIRE helps and collaborative approaches are starting to bear fruit The future looks promising: New EuroGeographics/EEA agreements European Location Services coming soon to a portal near you

What makes Copernicus uniquely valuable? 1. Combining earth observation with in situ data to provide solutions: (Space component)+(in situ component) = Services for users 2. Envisaging downstream services from the outset

However Earth observation and in situ communities have rather different perspectives ESA and plenty of opportunities for misunderstanding! Total Surveys Ltd

Top-down vs ground-up Image-based data Seamless, borderless Consistent specification and quality Uniform usage rights / licensing Object-based data Detailed attribution Non-physical features - such as borders included Discontinuous Diverse specifications and quality Variable usage rights / licensing

Combining data in the search for meaning Earth observation generates huge data volumes Users need help to make sense of them In situ data provides: context (e.g. position, place names, boundaries, height) and thematic information (soils, facilities, land cover, habitats, environmental conditions) to aid interpretation and analysis

Two categories of in situ data 1. Thematic environmental data from sensors on the ground, in the sea and in the air 2. Reference data e.g. height, hydrography & hydrology, transport networks, administrative boundaries, demographic and socio-economic data

Reference data: where to obtain it? Collect new data? Able to specify for purpose Uniform specification and quality Ownership Use existing national sources? Avoidance of duplication Consistent with member states existing practice Maintained into the future

Reference data for Copernicus services: how did we get where we are today? Early difficulties Uncertainty about the reference data needs of GMES/Copernicus services Concerns among MS bodies about unrestricted downstream re-use of reference data Technical and licensing complexities led to Commission s commercial tender for height and hydrography data

Then we started to make progress GMES and Copernicus Regulations

Article 5(2) of the Copernicus Regulation (No 377/2014) The provision of the services shall take into account the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, be costeffective and decentralised where appropriate, integrating at European level existing space, in situ and reference data and capacities in Member States, thereby avoiding duplication. Procurement of new data that duplicate existing sources shall be avoided, unless the use of existing or upgradable data sets is not technically feasible, costeffective or possible in a timely manner.

Then we started to make progress GMES and Copernicus Regulations EEA GISC project clarified services needs for in situ reference data Necessary focus on specific services led to greater pragmatism on all sides Key example: joint EEA/EuroGeographics approach to mapping agencies on behalf of the Copernicus Emergency Management Service

Copernicus EMS 2012 joint letter to EuroGeographics members (extract)

EMS data requirements and access Orthophotos at accuracy 0,5 m Raster topographical maps at scale 1:50 000 Georeferenced datasets in vector format at scale 1:50 000 Digital elevation models at resolution 1m 25m 32 NMCAs signed 24 established online access Agreement renewed 2016 - letter going out now But this remains an interim solution

ELF to the rescue?

ELF to the rescue! The gateway to pan-european maps, geographic & land information from national sources A single source of official, qualityassured data from Europe s National Mapping, Cadastral & Land Registry Authorities (NMCAs) A single point of access for licensing official data from different agencies & different countries

ELF the project A consortium of 40 partners, including EuroGeographics, Open Geospatial Consortium, private companies, academic organisations & NMCAs 24 NMCA data providers Co-funded by the ICT Policy Support Programme of the Competitiveness & Innovation Framework Programme (CIP)

Why is it important? The European Location Framework provides: Harmonised data quality, specifications & standards Harmonised pricing & licensing Harmonised access to NMCA data and ELF builds on INSPIRE

Achievements Technical infrastructure To enable users to incorporate data into application environment Test Services Offers pilot products & services to defined international standards Tools For data harmonisation & edge-matching For identifying areas of interest & products Practical example of INSPIRE implementation Supporting the delivery of national web feature services Providing valuable feedback on data specifications

Download (pilot) services: WFS 1. Administrative Units 2. Addresses 3. Geographical Names, 4. Hydrography (physical waters, network) 5. Land Cover 6. Transport Networks (air, road, rail, cable, water) 7. Elevation 8. Buildings (2D, 2D Extended) 9. Cadastral parcels 10. Protected Sites 11. Sea Regions 12. Geology Cascading WFS Query distribution Content aggregation WFS NATIONAL DATA WFS WFS NATIONAL DATA NATIONAL DATA

ELF showcase application https://demo.locationframework.eu

ELF: transition to European Location Services Project 2013-2016 Transition to an operational service - starting 1 November 2016 European Location Services

Stronger collaboration EuroGeographics Copernicus Knowledge Exchange Network An open network of NMCA experts to facilitate access to geospatial reference information EEA EuroGeographics Partnership Agreement Framework for strengthening cooperation between the European Environment Agency and EuroGeographics with a view to improving the Copernicus programme s access to, and use of, in situ geospatial data

The future is bright(er)! Copernicus services need geospatial reference data Member States are the source of choice using authoritative data, where available, combined with other (crowd source) information ELF & ELS provide a solid technological base assuring online access to authoritative geospatial reference data from NMCAs Data policy still an issue: policy on open data varies We must continue to break down barriers between communities, for the benefit of users and citizens