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The Nature Conservancy completed an extensive conservation assessment of west coast estuaries - GreenInfo was asked to help them create a virtual environment for the public to explore their estuary geodata.
The interactive map that GreenInfo created allows non-technical users to visualize the information, while GIS experts can use the site to access the spatial data for 146 estuaries and 27 variables that characterize key biophysical and human use parameters.
TNC describes the importance of this resource as follows:
"The land-sea interface is one of the most ecologically rich and complex areas on Earth. Occupying the unique zone where terrestrial, freshwater, and marine realms converge, estuaries are shaped by complex exchanges of energy, water, nutrients, sediments, and biota. They are enormously productive areas, providing habitat for an extraordinary array of fish, shellfish, birds, and mammals.
"Coastal areas where estuaries are found are also home to more than sixty percent of humanity. This isn't a coincidence: people gravitate toward coastal areas because they provide numerous ecosystem services upon which we depend. However, dense human habitation comes with a cost—temperate estuaries are some of the most degraded environments on the planet, making their protection and restoration a top conservation priority."
Focus: Conservation, Environment
Services: Interactive Solutions, Web Mapping
Tags: coast, estuaries, freshwater, Google Charts API, Google Earth, Google Maps API
Project Years: 2011