Supporting ‘France Nation Verte’ – a national action plan to tackle climate change

“In 2022, ecological planning was entrusted to France’s Prime Minister with the aim of accelerating collective efforts to, in particular: cut greenhouse gas emissions by more than half, reduce pressure on biodiversity, and better manage essential resources. The ‘France Nation Verte’ (France Green Nation) action plan was drawn up to develop concrete actions with all stakeholders on the following themes: moving better, housing better, preserving and enhancing ecosystems better, producing better, eating better, and consuming better. These six major challenges are shared out into 22 workstreams, in which IGN played an active role throughout 2023, especially the ‘digital and data” axis.”

Sébastien Soriano

Director General, National Institute of Geographic and Forest Information, France

National Institute of Geographic and Forest Information (IGN), France is playing an active role in France Nation Verte’ (France Green Nation) and in particular the ‘digital and data’ axis.

This cross-functional workstream aims to identify the key issues to be resolved and to define precise and concrete actions on data, platforms and digital services, to be prioritised and supported to make a success of the ecological transition, by clarifying who is responsible for what, and how the various players fit together.

Indeed, a major issue is the scattering of data and tools in silos amongst numerous stakeholders, and the guiding line of the National Institute of Geographic and Forest Information’s (IGN) offer is to help streamlining and mutualising them. Thereby, IGN took part in most of the working groups set up within this ‘digital and data’ axis, and co-piloted those on renewable energy potential (in connection with the Renewable Energy Mapping Portal project), on the ‘preservation of resources other than biodiversity’ and the coastline.

Benefits

The Observatory of French Forests

  • Broadens the range of statistical and geospatial information to meet the challenges of public policy at every level from national to local.

  • Extends and improves forest mapping services, reveals new information from existing data from IGN and its partners.

  • Ensures that all decision-makers, both public and private, have access to
    the information and are able to find technical expertise.

    The Renewable Energy Mapping Portal

    IGN is creating a portal to identify information related to onshore renewable energies and the evaluation of their implementation potential. A recent law on energy – very much linked to the EU Directive on Renewable Energy – gives the responsibility to local authorities to define their own Renewable Energy development areas.

  • Displays information on the technical potential of renewable energies, but also on the regulatory framework and on environmental stakes that should be taken into account while developing Renewable Energy projects.

  • Delivers a tool that the French Government wants to make available to local authorities for them to define the Renewable Energy development areas.

  • Marks an important step for the deployment of renewable energies in the country, giving the best chances to respect France Nation Verte objectives.

Towards a geospatially-enabled ecosystem for Europe – GeoE3

“National Land Survey of Finland was very pleased that the GeoE3 platform was selected in the list of most promising data economy solutions in Finland by Finland’s Fund for the Future (Sitra).”

Pasi Patrikainen

Director General, National Land Survey of Finland

The GeoE3 project created a data integration platform for location data demonstrating how European interoperability can be based on national data services.

The project, in which National Land Survey of Finland was a partner, was co-financed by the Connecting Europe Facility of the European Union.

GeoE3 started with existing national services which were transformed to new OGC APIs. National data was mapped to simple unified INSPIRE specification. The GeoE3 data integration platform is lightweight but highly capable of showing how to meet complex use cases, such as energy efficiency of buildings and smart city solutions. In addition, an e-learning platform, interoperability map and quality dashboard were created.

Benefits

  • Shows how national services
    can be utilised to create data economy solutions serving businesses and to create new innovative solutions using GeoE3 data integration platform.

  • Provides an e-learning platform created in the Location Innovation Academy GeoE3 to help NMCAs and businesses to understand how to create data interoperability solutions using modern OGC APIs.

  • Shows users how interoperable the data provided is using the Interoperability map.

  • Introduces an easier way to understand data quality and interoperability through the data quality dashboard demonstration.

  • Provides use cases to demonstrate the need to integrate climate and statistical data with core geospatial data solving complex challenges, such as climate change.

  • Demonstrates how European dataspaces could gain access to national high-value datasets.

Enriching Estonia’s national 3D dataset with geological information

“Our life depends heavily on subsurface resources, primarily groundwater and minerals; geothermal energy is used ever more widely. High-quality aggregates, along with adequate knowledge about the site’s geological layout and ground stability, are crucial for the rapidly evolving construction sector. While exploiting the resources, we must avoid contaminating the underground space. Coherent geological data visualised in 3D is enabling us to tackle these challenges as brand-new workflows become available for data analysis and decision-making.”

Tambet Tiits

Director General, Estonian Land Board

Estonia can now be viewed from a different perspective thanks to a new 3D web application service developed by the Land Board.

The Estonian Land Board’s Geo3D strategy (2023-2026) recognises that fusing geological expertise with the visible world representation is one key to enabling more sophisticated planning procedures.

The new 3D Geology app supports underground spatial planning by offering a more realistic insight into the subterranean realm. Currently, the prototype displays LOD2 buildings, three types of terrain models (Digital Elevation Model (DEM), sedimentary bedrock relief, and crystalline basement relief), subsurface successions, cylindrical boreholes, and geotechnical sites (extruded downwards).

Previously the Land Board’s 3D mapping and modelling activities were related to buildings and other aboveground features, with the first public 3D web application launched in 2021.

New layers and user functionality are continuously added to both apps.

Benefits

  • Delivers quick overview of the geological successions and study depths.

  • Provides new tools for subsurface spatial analysis.

  • Enables better groundwater yield, flow, and vulnerability estimations.

  • Supports volume calculations, virtual boreholes, and cross sections used in mineral exploration and mine planning.

  • Demonstrates preliminary geotechnical characteristics, allowing slope and abandoned mine stability predictions.

  • Favours environmental impact assessment and continuous monitoring to reduce the risks of geological hazards.

  • Allows more precise calculations of the infrastructure developing and running costs.

  • Serves as a basis for future geological studies by integrating 2D and 3D aboveground and underground datasets.

New platform provides underground infrastructure data in Denmark

“The digitisation of The Danish Register on Underground Cable Owners has been a huge project. Fortunately, we have had very good cooperation with all stakeholders during the process which means that we now have a strong platform for exchanging digital data on underground cables and pipes in place. The fully digital workflow reduces administration and paves the way for a reduction in excavation damage, and disruptions for businesses and citizens.”

Rikke Hougaard Zeberg

Director General, Danish Agency for Data Supply and Infrastructure

Cable and pipe data is key for some of the most important upcoming societal and economic activities in Denmark. The roll-out of new district heating and fibre networks, in addition to the expansion of the electricity grid to support the green transition, will result in extensive and unprecedented underground digging.

The Register of Underground Cable Owners (Ledningsejerregistret.dk) provides a single point of access to data, which prevents contractors from digging into and damaging important utility cables. The data platform is secured and developed by the Agency for Data Supply and Infrastructure (SDFI).

For more than three years, the owners of underground cables and pipes in Denmark have been digitising cable and pipe data to meet the July 2023 deadline. With the launch of the platform, excavating contractors are now provided with data within minutes in most cases, compared to up to five working days previously.

Nationwide digital data on water, sewage and gas pipes, power and broadband cables, as well as other underground infrastructure, are easily and rapidly available. Access to the data requires logon with a digital signature and all transactions are logged to monitor the system and the use of data in regard to data security.

To use the service, contractors simply define an area of interest and the data platform executes a query to all cable owners in the defined area. Subsequently, cable owners automatically return the relevant data, and SDFI finally compiles all data into a single package which is forwarded to the contractor.

What is The Danish Register of Underground Cable Owners?

  • The register is actually a data platform connecting data between the actors who have cables, pipes and wires in the ground, with the contractor who is planning to dig in a certain location.
  • When contractors are planning to dig in the ground, they are required by law to make an inquiry in the underground cables and pipes data platform, and they will as a result receive standardised and compiled data about cables, pipes and wires located within the requested area of interest.
  • There are approximately 750, 000 km pipes and cables, and more than 3,000 cable and pipe owners in Denmark. The data platform handled 3 million transactions in 2023.

Benefits

  • Provides immediate access to data for the requested areas, catering for better planning and execution of works.

  • Reduces the likelihood of excavation accidents, which are expensive for the contractor and society.

  • Enables easy access to pipes and other underground infrastructure and is expected to result in noteworthy savings through improved efficiency.

  • Greatly improves installation, maintenance, operation and repair of underground pipes
    and cables is greatly improved, supporting economic growth and reducing disruption.

  • Facilitates coordinated digging and the use of free capacity in existing pipes for establishment of broadband cables.

Implementing fundamental changes in land surveying to benefit all in Czech Republic

“In 2023, the Czech Republic realised a number of long-planned fundamental changes in land surveying to benefit citizens, government and business. These include the new Land Surveying Act and government regulation on establishing geodetic reference systems that is binding on the entire territory, and the creation of the database of geodetic and geographical data. July 2023 saw the launch of two new State Map Series, which provide a standardised cartographic basis for territorially-oriented public administration agendas, including international cooperation. A further very significant event is the establishment of the Czech Chamber of Surveyors, as a self-governing status organization of authorised surveying engineers.”

Karel Štencel

President, Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre

Authoritative, up-to-date, standardised geodetic and geographical information is contributing to the digital transformation of public administrations in the Czech Republic.

The most important task of the Land Survey Office, which is part of the Czech Office for Surveying, Mapping and Cadastre (CUZK), is providing national, standardised geodetic and geographical information and map products to the state administration and territorial self-government, as well as the public. In doing so, it contributes to the standardised and electronisation of territorially-oriented services and agendas of the public administration of the Czech Republic.

In 2023, a new government regulation was introduced to defined binding geodetic reference systems for use in the Czech Republic. In addition to the national geodetic reference system JTSK, it allows the use of the global geodetic reference systems European Terrestrial Reference System 1989 (ETRS89) and World Geodetic System (WGS 84). The regulation also specifies the main principles for the use of reference systems and mandates the Land Survey Office to create and publish standardised transformation services that can be accessed remotely.

Furthermore, two State Map Series were introduced to meet both national needs and support international cooperation. Available in a range of scales (1:5 000, 10 000, 25 000, 50 0000, 100 000 and 250 000), the first basic topographic map (ZTM) shows the national coordinate system for national use. The second basic topographic map of the Czech Republic (in scales 1:10 000, 25 000, 50 0000, 100 000 and 250 000) uses the ETRS89 in the universal Mercator’s projection. This is intended especially for international cooperation with neighbouring countries and for supporting the construction of infrastructure for spatial information in the EU.

Map works are provided as PDF print files with the complete content of the map sheet further available as raster files or as vector data of cartographic models in DGN and SHP formats. At the same time, they are published as a ‘seamless’ database via online web services.

The amended Land Surveying Act implements the EU Open Data Directive which requires that the Basic Geographical Database, Orthophoto, State Map Series, database of geographic names, and geodetic control should be published free of charge as open data.

Benefits

  • Provide access to data guaranteed by the state or CUZK on the basis of legal authorisation.
  • Enables access to data for pan-European topographic databases.
  • Delivers data and products that are updated continuously for the entire territory of the Czech Republic.
  • Implements the Land Surveying Act by providing data listed as open data.
  • Standardises data formats and services, which ensures the security of investments in information technologies by government, business and citizens.

Agreement highlights close cooperation between National Geographic Institute and Belgium Defence

“The strengthened agreement between the NGI and Belgian Defence now settles the terms of our partnership. It is the result of deep joint reflection aimed at mutually strengthening our capabilities. An important aspect of the agreement is the recognition of the NGI as a strategic partner in its capacity as a Centre of Expertise within Defence and as a contributor to the development of the Defence Geostrategy. It provides a framework for exchange of expertise and personnel mobility, ensuring the continuity of high-quality services needed for the army’s operations.”

Ingrid Vanden Berghe

Administrator General, National Geographic Institute of Belgium

The agreement between the National Geographic Institute of Belgium (NGI) and Belgian Defence was signed on December 2023 by the Chief of Defence, Admiral Hofman and the Administrator General of the NGI, Mrs Ingrid Vanden Berghe.

The public procurement of Belgian Defence awarded to the NGI has recently been replaced by a broader cooperation agreement. To get to this cooperation agreement, many discussions took place over a period of years.

In February 2023, Mrs Vanden Berghe and Vice-Admiraal Robberechts signed a declaration of intent to highlight the close cooperation between the NGI and the General Intelligence and Security Service.

The signing of this declaration constituted an important step that formalised a number of already existing and effective actions on both sides.

It preceded the signing of the more extensive cooperation agreement between the NGI and Defence, which sets
out mutual long-term commitments. The cooperation agreement now aims to maximise the synergy between the NGI and Defence.

Benefits

  • Recognises the NGI as a strategic partner within Defence.
  • Involves the NGI in the development of Defence’s geostrategy.
  • Functioning of the NGI as a centre of expertise through close cooperation and use of scientific expertise available at the Royal Military Academy.
  • Provides Defence with new opportunities for cost optimisation as a result of NGI’s reorganisation from geodata producer and integrator to federal geobroker.
  • Includes modalities regarding personnel mobility between both institutions through detachment, outplacement, reservists or consultancy services.
  • Integrates Defence assignments at the NGI.
  • Enables the use of Defence infrastructure by NGI at the Renaissance Campus and the quarters at Peutie and Evere.
  • Offers the possibility for the NGI to use certain Defence contracts.

Celebrating 100 years of the Federal Office of Metrology and Surveying with Austrian histMap

“In 2023, the Federal Office of Metrology and Surveying (BEV) celebrated its centenary. As part of a festive event on 30 November 2023 in the Sofiensäle in Vienna, to which numerous guests were invited, the BEV presented among other things a new version of the Austrian Map - the Austrian histMap. With the Austrian histMap, the BEV has created an extension that offers users the opportunity to view Austria’s historical map treasures from seven eras across the country. The development of the maps and the data they contain can be easily traced. An exciting thing for anyone interested in maps.”

Wernher Hoffmann

President, Federal Office of Metrology and Surveying, Austria

The Federal Office of Metrology and Surveying (BEV) celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2023. To mark this joyous occasion, it proudly presented a new application as the Austrian Map became the Austrian histMap.

The Austrian histMap – maps.bev.gv.at – allows users to delve deep into the rich archives of the BEV and discover historical map treasures. BEV is now making the Austrian map available to users free of charge for eight different epochs.

More than 3,000 map sheets have been scanned, georeferenced, quality-checked and prepared as map tiles. This allows the user to directly compare the maps over a period of 150 years at incredible speed and discover a piece of Austrian history at the same time.

Benefits

  • Provides an efficient way to explore the current and historical map sheets.
  • Allows users to find all map-relevant content in a targeted manner, such as place names, area names, water and mountain names, through the search function.
  • Offers the possibility to compare the maps directly with each other, or simply to explore a certain time period.
  • Delivers a reliable source for historical questions and for interested citizens as the current and historical editions of the state map series are an important state infrastructure.
  • Enables users to access detailed descriptions of the respective techniques of the time for each era.
  • Provides fast and friendly access authoritative and most actual geospatial data as the whole concept of the maps.bev.gv.at is based on a 24/7 service.

Implementing the National Spatial Data Infrastructure in Armenia

“The implementation of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) and the launch of the National Geoportal is an opportunity to improve spatial data management, carry out spatial analytical work, make open and transparent decisions, ensure wider public involvement, as well as to save, target and effectively manage resources and time.”

Suren Tovmasyan

Head, Cadastre Committee, Republic of Armenia

Armenia has introduced legislation to regulate, standardise and coordinate national spatial data, geodetic, and cartographic activities.

The new laws recognise the importance of the Cadastre Committee’s work, which in 2023 included digitisation
of basic cartographic layers using orthophotos. These layers are available to the public after import into the new geoportal.

Users then have access to automatically updated layers (land plots, building, land fund, type of ownership, cadastral layers) with the ability to view, search, analyse and process on one single platform. As a result of data exchange via the geoportal, applications received from state bodies have been reduced by a third compared to 2022.

The number of users of the platform has increased significantly and include various sectoral, entrepreneurial, scientific research, and private companies.

The ‘Metadata Catalogue’ module contains metadata about the vector and raster spatial data available from the Cadastre Committee, which is continuously updated. It also provides the ability to create and search metadata.

During the year, the locations of geographical names were adjusted. As a result of this standardisation, a database
of around 35,000 geographical names was created and entered into the national geoportal. Conventional symbols were designed and created for geographical object

types. In addition, approximately one million addresses were adjusted and standardised for the creation of the GIS database, which will serve as a basis for the Unified Address Registry.

Cadastral maps are now almost completely maintained online, which means that users have 24/7 access to cadastral maps without physically visiting government offices and are able to receive detailed information about plots, ownership, zoning and land use. In 2023, the mobile application of the Cadastre Committee was launched, which made it more convenient to use its services.

Benefits

  • Enables easier and more efficient data exchange between private sector and government bodies via the geoportal.
  • Provides state administration agencies with wider access to national geoportal- enabling them to complete analysis, receive complex information and make well-informed decisions.
  • Standardising geographic names reduces confusion about location and contributes to the preservation of historical and cultural values.
  • Provides up to date online information through the national geoportal by standardising addresses.
  • Adjustment of addresses provides an opportunity to improve the quality of service provision in a number of areas and increase the level of public safety.

 

Copernicus Services: Delivering authoritative data in Latvia for assessing windstorm damage

Authoritative data provided by the Latvian Geospatial Information Agency (LGIA) was essential for assessing forest damage in the aftermath of a record-breaking storm.

LGIA data was combined with the state administration’s farmers dataset, forest inventory, and forest register to provide an overview of affected areas. This was used in conjunction with pre- and post-storm satellite imagery and ancillary data to assess the impact, spatial distribution and extent of damage.

“As the official national source of geospatial data, LGIA is committed to ensuring services, such as those responding to the unprecedented storms of 2023, can access trusted information. The insight gained from the various analysis not only identified the levels of damage in different areas but also contributes to the on-going recovery of these important ecosystems.”

Mãrtinš Liberts, Director General, Latvian Geospatial Information Agency (LGIA)

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Copernicus Services: Delivering authoritative height data for urban areas in Poland

National LiDAR data provided by Poland’s Head Office of Geodesy and Cartography is enabling important analysis of the urban environment – from population density to energy use.

Greater accuracy and higher quality information for the Urban Atlas Building Block Height product was achieved using LiDAR data in conjunction with optical satellite photogrammetry. For Poland, this was provided by the Head Office of Geodesy and Cartography. The national LiDAR dataset is not only used for calculating Building Block Heights but also for validation.

“Knowing that data comes from authoritative sources gives users confidence in the Copernicus products. As the official national source of geospatial data, the Head Office of Geodesy and Cartography is pleased to contribute LiDAR data to the CLMS Urban Atlas Building Block Height product which is essential for anyone wanting to understand the urban environment.”

Alicja Kulka, General Surveyor of Poland

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