DRAFT Coordinated Assessments Phase VI Work PlanNovember 19, 2013
Draft
Coordinated Assessments for Salmon and Steelhead
Phase VI Work Plan
The Coordinated Assessments (CA) Project is an effort to develop efficient, consistent, and transparent data-sharing among the co-managers (fish and wildlife agencies and Tribes) and regulatory/funding agencies (BPA & NOAA) of the Columbia River Basin (CRB) foranadromous fish related data. The project has been coordinated by the Pacific Northwest Aquatic Monitoring Partnership (PNAMP) and the Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Authority (CBFWA), with support from the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission (PSMFC) StreamNet project. Oversight is provided through the Coordinated Assessments Planning Group (CAPG) which consists of Kasey Bliesner, ODFW; Cedric Cooney, ODFW; Brodie Cox, WDFW; Henry Franzoni, CRITFC; Jim Geiselman, BPA; Lance Hebdon, IDFG; Jay Hesse, NPT; Nancy Leonard, NPCC; Dan Rawding, WDFW; Phil Roger, CRITFC; Katie Barnas, NOAA; Stacy Schumacher, CTUIR; and Russell Scranton, BPA. Facilitation and support areprovided through the Coordinated Assessments Core Team (Jen Bayer, PNAMP; Tom Iverson, CBFWF; and Bruce Schmidt, StreamNet). It is important to note here that Chris Wheaton will replace Bruce Schmidt as the PSMFC representative and a private contract will replace Tom Iverson for implementation of this work plan. The CA project involves nearly a hundred biologists and data managers across the Columbia River Basin, representing essentially all agencies and tribes with an interest in anadromous fish management and recovery.
This proposed workplan builds from the earlier CA workplans and identifies the next steps and expected activities required to implement the Columbia River Basin Collaborative Data Sharing Strategy for Salmon and Steelhead Population Abundance and Productivity Indicators (Strategy) and initiate data sharing consistent with the initial Data Exchange Standard (DES) for those indicators.
Accomplishments to Date
This work plan is the sixth in a series of work plans for the Coordinated Assessments Project. The project has been implemented in a step-wise fashion, building on each preceding success. Details of previous phases may be found on the PNAMP website: (
The initial CA work plan was adopted in July 2010 and described near, medium, and long term plans for developing the components of a data exchange network for salmon and steelhead data (the ongoing, ultimate goal of the project). In the first months of the project, the co-managers vetted the work plan within their agencies and tribes and conducted internal reconnaissance to understand existing data sources, status, and intentions of managing data within existing monitoring projects. A workshop was held in October 2010 to review and approve proof-of-concept materials including a preliminary Data Exchange Template (DET, since renamed the Data Exchange Standard - DES) and Data Flow Diagrams. The CA Workgroup (workshop attendees) agreed to move forward with performing data management assessments for three VSP indicators (Abundance of natural spawning adults, Adult to adult return rate, and Smolt to adult return rate) within each of the three state agencies and six tribes and the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission that manage salmon data in the CRB.
Phase II of the CA project focused on performing a Gaps, Needs, and Priorities assessmentfor data management within each of the agencies and tribes based on the three priority indicators. Temporary technicians were hired to assist the agencies and tribes in completing data flow analysis diagrams and draft data exchange templates for as many populations as was necessary for each entity to adequately evaluate their data sharing capabilities. Workshops were convened at the beginning and end of the data management assessments to ensure continuity among the agencies and tribes. The agencies and tribes developed individual Data Management and Sharing Strategies for Three Viable Salmonid Population (VSP) Indicators (Strategies). The individual Strategies were integrated into a basin-wide Strategy.
The Phase III work plan, adopted at the September 2011 workshop,sought to move the Strategies to sponsoring agencies for adoption and to identify priority projects that will advance their agency or tribe and the Basin towards the goals outlined in the overall Strategy. Specifically, Phase III results included thedevelopment of the first ever complete Data Exchange Standard (DES) for four fish population (VSP) indicators (juveniles per spawner were included in the final draft), and prioritized needs for BPA and other funding.
Phase IV began in August 2012 with an emphasis within the individual agencies and tribes to begin incorporating the DES into their common data management business practices. The agencies and tribes also worked toward staffing essential elements of their data management Strategies as best they could; however, funding remains a primary limiting factor for implementation. CA participants engaged withNPCC and BPA through the Program Evaluation and Review Committee (PERC) and the proposed BPA Data Management Framework, resulting in recommendations from NPCC and priorities identified by BPA. A grant application was also developed and submitted to EPA to fund essential elements of the Strategies, emphasizing infrastructure needs.
For the duration of the Phase V Work Plan, from April 2013 through December 2013, the CA partners focused on incremental internal investment and integration of the DES guidelines into the state and tribal data bases. A workshop was held in the Spring 2013 to discuss progress towards implementation of the existing DES, potential new DES tasks, and to confirmthe work plan for the project’snext phase (Phase V). Some funding was made available to the tribes for data stewards to assist with their participation in the CA project. A CA database was developed as a means to store and serve out the CA indicators and supporting metrics. The EPA grant was awarded to WDFW for implementation of data flow based on the CA DES and overall vision. With this new influx of funding within the individual participants and accomplishment of initial data flows to the CA database, the following Phase VI CA Work Plan was created.
Phase VI Work Plan
Goals/Activities/Deliverables
1) Continue Phased Approach to Facilitation Implementation of Coordinated Assessments Project:
- Maintain tiered-model for facilitating and managing CA project: Core Team/CA Planning Group/CA Workgroup (periodic teleconferences, infrequent workshops)
- The CA Core Team will meet weekly, as appropriate,to manage the project; CAPG will meet approximately bi-monthly or as necessary to implement Phase VI Work Plan; and approximately two workshops will be held to inform and interact with the CA Workgroup
- Continue development of phased work plans as milestones are completed and assist agencies and tribes in developing implementation plans to support their individual data sharing Strategies
- Outreach to policy and technical staff at agencies and tribes to encourage continued participation when possible
Deliverable: Maintain progress in developing consistent salmon and steelhead data sharing systems across agencies and tribes within the Columbia River Basin to the degree the data management Strategies can be implemented with existing funding; maintain communication between data providers and data users to make data sharing more efficient; and, enable discussion and communication among interested parties for salmon and steelhead data.
2) Expand the initial DES to include hatchery indicators:
- Due to work being done in the Snake River Basin, the agencies and tribes have agreed the next priority for developing a DES should include a limited set of hatchery indicators.
- Facilitate CAPG review of the list of hatchery indicators from Hatchery Science Review Group report(s) and the Ad-hoc Supplementation Work Group’s recommendations and prioritize a suite of indicators and metrics for the next iteration of the DES
- Working with biologists and data managers, develop a hatchery DES for 3-5 initial indicators
- Discuss sub-indicators (measures and metrics of existing indicators) and potential standardization to feed calculation of indicators.
Deliverable: Completed Data Exchange Standard (DES) for 3-5 hatchery indicators in 2014; expanded initial DES to include some standardization of measures and metrics where appropriate, and annual update of CA DES.
3) Implement EPA Grant to Create the Coordinated Assessments Exchange (CAX) as a node on the EPA exchange network:
- CAPG will provide project oversight and coordination to integrate implementation of EPA grant with the CA Project under the following work plan
- A new work group will be created to guide development of automated sharing systems to support a centralized CAX data base at StreamNet which will serve as a Virtual Node on the EPA exchange network.
- Support will be provided to assist the states and tribes in developing systems capable of sharing the CA DES indicators.
- Implement enforceable data sharing control mechanisms with the CAX
This EPA application was structured as a partnership agreement with the respective increased resource request because of the extensive partner to partner coordination required and because project completion will require the development of several major cross-partner infrastructure components. As described in the goals section and detailed budget these components include:
- XML Schema and associated documentation
- Flow Configuration Document
- Tribal data management application(s)
- Development of an integrated repository and web service publishing platform
As described below, upon project completion, these infrastructure components will be available for use by other partners working with salmonid indicator data throughout the Pacific Northwest. All services and components created will be registered in their respective EPA Exchange Network (EN) Registries (ENDS - Exchange Network Discovery Service[1]and RCS - Reusable Component Systems[2]).
EPA Project Goals, Outputs and Outcomes
Implementation of the Coordinated Assessments Exchange (CAX) will be organized according to five project goals:
1)Establish Project Governance - agree on project scope and intent
2)Flow Design (Refine DES, Develop XML Schema, and Flow Configuration Document) – improve infrastructure and establish flow from corporate systems
3)Ready Partner Local Data Management Systems – create “manual” data sharing from developing data systems, provide input and resources for local system development, assist development of capable systems
4)Implement Virtual Data Sharing - connect data systems to EN for automated sharing
5)Implement 24/7 Data Publishing – maintain node at StreamNet for ongoing service
Goal 1: Establish Project GovernanceOutput / Resource / Target Date
- Existing Coordinated Assessment Planning Group established as CAX Project Steering Group
- Establish Project Management Team for project administration (WDFW/PNAMP/StreamNet/Project Coordinator)
- Create Exchange Configuration Team to guide infrastructure improvements and configuration, and automate data flow from corporate systems
- Collaborate with CRITFC Inter-Tribal Monitoring Data Project (ITMD) and other tribes to provide guidance and targets from developing systems where automated exchange is not yet feasible.
- Establish Initial Draft High LevelTrading Partner Agreement
EPA Deliverable: Project management and coordination, including facilitation and support of the respective project teams, coordination with other relevant regional projects/programs.
EPA Deliverable: Support for negotiation of initial high level Trading Partner Agreement used to guide flow design.
Outcome: Project is organized for success. Project design ensures that primary partners and secondary users are able to integrate CAX information into local and regional management systems for more complete and timely data access in support of improved environmental decision making within their individual Agencies and Tribes.
Goal 1 establishes the governance and management of the project. As described above the Coordinated Assessments Planning Group has been operational for three years and has overseen the development of the DET (now referred to as the Data Exchange Standard - DES), the group is composed of all key project stakeholders and is knowledgeable about the implementation steps needed. The Project Management Team (CAPG Core Team) will report to the project manager (Brodie Cox, WDFW) and be responsible for overall project coordination. An early product of the Project Management Team will be a draft high level Trading Partner Agreement which will establish the basic data sharing tenets and proposals which will be used to guide project implementation. This draft will be finalized later in Goal 3 once the details of the exchanges are established. All teams will be staffed by a contracted Project Coordinator through the StreamNet project. Two sub-teams will be established as sub-committees to the CAPG:
- Exchange Configuration Team(XCT) which coordinates implementation work of partner’s with existing systems, and helps develop the Flow Configuration Document. This team will develop the interface specifications for sharing data from partner systems into the CAX.
- Tribal Data Management Application Team - CRITFC ITMD project will collaborate with the CAPG and XCT to communicate developing specifications with tribal data base developers. As tribal data bases are developed they will use products from the XCT to integrate their data into the CAX.
Both of these teams will include programmatic staff from one or more partners to ensure that programmatic issues are considered in the design and implementation of the project. The project coordinator will participate on all teams to support consistency between CAPG, XCT, and ITMD projects.
Goal 2: Flow Design (Refine DES, Develop XML Schema, and Flow Configuration Document)Output / Resource / Target Date
- Identify needed DESrefinements (including addition of locational data) and develop XML schema requirements.
- Design Draft XML Schema based on Draft Flow Configuration Document.
- Develop and Test Draft XML Schema
- Submit Draft XML Schema for EN review and registration
- Finalize XML Schema
- Establish exchange/publishing design and document in draft Flow Configuration Document
EPA Deliverable: Final Data Exchange Template/Standard for the four initial VSP indicators.
EPA Deliverable: XML Schema development based on DET/DES including addition of geo-spatial reference information.
EPA Deliverable: Flow Configuration Document specification of exchange and query web services, and data routes and flow procedures.
Outcome: Based on standardization of data format into a shared XML schema (or other common data sharing protocol), regional partners are better able to access and integrate data from multiple sources and across jurisdictional boundaries, in support of improved decision making. The additional metadata included in the XML schema will improve the ability of partners to interpret and use these data in support of improved decision making.
Goal 2 is the development of the XML Schema (or other standardized data sharing protocol to feed the CAX database at StreamNet) and the overall exchange design, including web publishing services, as documented in the Flow Configuration Document. This work will be conducted by the Exchange Configuration Team. Schema development will include the determination and design of the appropriate spatial enablement of the schema. Prior to schema development, the team will review the EN Guidelines for Schema Developers, and will search the RCS to identify re-usable schema components. The Flow Configuration Document will document the major exchange components of the project including: flows from data collectors to the Coordinated Assessments database at StreamNet, download of complete data sets for virtual sharing, and publishing web services outbound from StreamNet.
Goal 3: Ready Partner Data Management SystemsOutput / Resource / Target Date
- Identify needed changes to existing State/Tribal partner data source systems. Conduct Tribal EN Needs Assessment.
- Conduct build/buy/adapt analysis to develop solutions for Partners with data but without an existing (or with an inadequate) data management system
- Plan and Implement needed refinement to existing partner systems
- Develop Tribal data management system compatibility
- Conduct needed data entry, organization and cleaning
EPA Deliverable: Assessment of Tribal EN implementation needs and determination of implementation approach.
EPA Deliverable: Development of hosted software tool for management and exchange of CAX data.
EPA Deliverable: State database modifications needed to exchange data per CAX schema.
EPA Deliverable: Implement Tribal management system, support for Tribal capacity development including data organization/entry, application adoption and training.
Outcome: Partner systems will provide improved local data availability and integration functionality to better support Agency/Tribe’s local, place based management decisions.
Goal 3 is to ready the data and data management systems of data collectors in preparation for mapping to the Schema and exchange client implementation. As part of the Coordinated Assessment project, all partners have developed draft Data Management Strategies, which will provide technical context for the needed system modifications. Most partners have data stewards in place to ready the data for exchange. The project coordinator will support the update/refinement of Tribal partner strategies by supporting development of Tribal EN Needs Assessments for each Tribal Partner with their assistance, based on existing information; for the State partners this will consist of work such as database extension, query development and staging table design. IDFG is allocated a smaller amount for this output because IDFG’s current system manages some of the CAX data and will therefore require less modification/development. For Tribal partners, the XCT/ITMD with the Project Coordinator will conduct a build/buy/adapt analysis to support Tribal management of this data which will include evaluation of the client application developed as part of the Juvenile Migrant Exchange project. Preliminary analysis suggests that investment in Tribal data systems to support web services access to their data may be the most efficient design to support multiple Tribal partners. It is critical to note that the modifications and exchange connects for State databases apply to their entire state; this means that these new data will become available state-wide, not just in the Columbia River Basin. An important outcome of this project component will be the improved local data accessibility and functionality for these data by the individual data providers for local use in improving environmental decision making.