Official providers of geospatial data call for joint vision in implementation of high value datasets

National providers of official geospatial information have welcomed the European Commission’s Regulation proposal on high-value datasets (HVD) but caution that they must receive adequate support to implement it.

Responding to the consultation on behalf of its members, EuroGeographics, the voice of Europe’s National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authorities says that the goal can only be achieved as a joint vision and action of policymakers, data holders and data users.

It identifies three main areas of concern: Clarification of technical aspects; sustainable funding; and coordination mechanism and vision to support the long-term development of EU data strategy.

“The value of data lies in its use and re-use, therefore our members are keen to effectively implement this Regulation and increase the availability of their data in the single market, and beyond” says Léa Bodossian, Secretary General and Executive Director, EuroGeographics.

“As key contributors to the European data policy, our members are among the most experienced and relevant interested parties in the proposed Regulation, and are keen to have their data generate significant socio-economic benefits. Members’ data is recognised as a significant enabler of national and cross-border applications and services in earth observation, environment, and mobility, as well as the geospatial thematic category.”

“Our members’ informed opinion is that meeting the Regulation’s requirements is a substantial. challenge which extends beyond opening their data. Success, overall coherence and long-term sustainability are not possible without adequate technical, financial and organisational support.”

This requires investment in infrastructures as well as outreach and education. Finally, the full power of geodata cannot be achieved if the data is not made interoperable. To that end, a more operational coordination ought to be ensured.”

EuroGeographics already has first-hand experience in implementing the HVD Regulation through the Open Maps for Europe project (co-financed by the Connecting Europe Facility programme). This provides easy access to free to use harmonised official geospatial open pan-European data and thus addresses the risk of fragmented implementation, which was specifically recognised as a key obstacle to the functioning of the single market for data.

Léa Bodossian concludes: “Our members' data serves as a basis for countless policies at national and European levels. We believe in a modern, digital and green society empowered by the use of trusted geospatial and other data from these official national sources, many of which are defined as high-value datasets.”

“We want to make sure that we can continue to serve, in the long term, data policies for the European greater good and are confident that dialogue with the legislator will help solve these issues.”

To read EuroGeographics full feedback on the Commission proposal, visit https://bit.ly/EGHVD

EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities.

The Open Maps For Europe project, which is co-financed by the Connecting Europe Facility of the European Union, is coordinated by EuroGeographics in partnership with the National Geographic Institute (NGI) Belgium.

To find out more, please visit https://www.mapsforeurope.org/

The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of EuroGeographics and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Union.

Mapping a data-driven Europe

Providers of official national geographic information have pledged to continue their Europe-wide cooperation to underpin the data infrastructures that enable a sustainable, safer, and prosperous society.

Leaders participating in the General Assembly of EuroGeographics, the not-for-profit association for Europe’s National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authorities, focussed their discussions on the user requirements that will form the foundation for future collaborations and realise a wide range of policies, including the EU’s Digital Decade and Green Deal.

Speaking at the annual meeting, Cristian Bușoi, MEP and Chair of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy said: “Every data producer in the world, especially public data providers, must ensure that their data is ready to underpin this decade of action.”

“This is an immense responsibility for EuroGeographics and its members in ensuring that the data meets the needs and requirements of European Union's institutions and supports them in addressing the challenges they are facing. The quality of the data is utterly important – authoritative data that comes from official sources is crucial for decision makers. I'm confident that EuroGeographics members will help build this data driven society, and we encourage them to enhance the existing data infrastructure and support the creation of pan-European datasets.”

Knowing where to find and access accurate, high quality, reliable high-value data is essential for governments and decision-makers making critical decisions. The European Institutions already have access to the only official pan-European geospatial datasets created by harmonising EuroGeographics’ members’ national data through an agreement with Eurostat.

For example, the administrative boundary dataset, EuroBoundaryMap, is widely used for visualisation and analysis as the basis for decision making about funding such as showing the driving distance to the nearest healthcare facility to determine whether additional services are needed to meet the needs of local people.

Márta Nagy-Rothengas, Deputy Director, Eurostat says: “Whether we are speaking about migration, climate change, or demographical challenges, geoinformation is very important. We are facing increasing data needs to develop European policies.  For having the right statistics, it is important to have commonly defined methodology and coordination at European level, which helps ensuring comparability of data. Furthermore, it is necessary to offer data, which is satisfying the different user requirements.”

“As we need to serve different policy fields, collaboration across boundaries is important. We would like to have European coverage but we are not stopping at the border of the EU, we are also interested, for example, in EFTA and neighbouring countries data.”

“To support the integration of statistical and geospatial information at European and national level, we hope to continue the close collaboration between the national statistical agencies and national mapping and cadastral agencies in those countries where it is already has been established, and we are ready to help supporting those who would like to deepen it.”

Post-pandemic user requirements are foundation for future collaborations

As Entrusted Entity in charge of the implementation of the Land Monitoring Service and the cross-coordination access to in situ data within the EU Copernicus programme, the European Environment Agency (EEA) is another key user of official geospatial information from National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authorities. EuroGeographics is building upon the long-standing agreement with EEA that enables the Copernicus Emergency Mapping Service to use members’ authoritative data to quickly produce maps for crisis management.

This new era of cooperation is developing one licence agreement to benefit Copernicus services and increase the number of official national geospatial datasets available via the Copernicus Reference Access Data (CORDA) gateway. By streamlining the licensing process, it will also facilitate their use in services such as Land Monitoring, Emergency Management and Security.

“This is definitely for us a very, very important step in fostering and strengthening the collaboration between EuroGeographics’ members and Copernicus,” says Jose Miguel Rubio Iglesias, Geospatial Data Management Expert, EEA.

“Authoritative geospatial data is already making a difference, for example in responses to floods in Germany or Belgium, and supporting national monitoring and emergency management. We are also using this data in our CORDA database for the Copernicus services, which catalogues and provides a series of links to which are curated and monitored to enable quick access to official geospatial information.”

He continues: “Typically, geospatial data is relevant for all the different services, but we have identified three key services which require geospatial data: the Copernicus emergency service and its rapid mapping, and risk and recovery mapping; the Copernicus land monitoring service; and the Copernicus Security Service which supports, inter alia, the EU External Action Service.”

The EEA is also using multi-themed topographic open data at 1:250 000 scale as a selectable background map in their European Ground Motion Service. Available via Open Maps For Europe user interface, EuroRegionalMap is also used by EU External Action Service for planning military mobility and investment programmes. The project, which co-financed by the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) of the European Union and coordinated by EuroGeographics in partnership with the National Geographic Institute (NGI) Belgium, enables users to easily discover, view, licence and download free to use maps created from official map, geospatial and land information.

“We need a coherent database, and we need data that we can trust and rely on,” explains Lieutenant-Colonel Soenke Fischhoefer, Senior Geospatial Officer EUMS, EU External Action Service.

“We need authoritative geospatial information, quality controlled, preferably from governmental sources with borders and boundaries should reflect the EU view. We also need a common place where we can do planning. So, the 1:250 000 scale seamless open data is crucial for us in determining, for example, where we reinforce our bridges so that heavy trucks can cross them without breaking, or planning our routing systems.”

Connecting information to create data infrastructures fit for modern society

“Location is a powerful tool – it tells us where things happen but also provides the link between information and action,” says Colin Bray, President of EuroGeographics.

“In this ever-connected world, our members have moved from database production to providing data infrastructures to play a vital role in joining-up information from different sources to help provide insight and answers to address the key issues we face as a global society. Whether tackling climate change, managing Covid recovery, or maintaining security during times of conflict, these challenges extend beyond national boundaries and those making difficult decisions that impact on us all need the most accurate and up to date information available.”

“By working together to deliver pan-European data, our members are demonstrating not only what can be achieved through Europe-wide cooperation, but also the benefits that result for the wider public good, specifically in support of policy decision-making at the European level.”

“The data and technology are available, what we now need is a commitment from members, government, and indeed society as a whole to fund open and interoperable data. Our challenge now is to meet the needs of users in a way that can be sustained for the benefit of all.”

A call for sustainable funding to meet user needs

Márta Nagy-Rothengas adds: “It is important to have sustainably available and high-quality data in terms of completeness, currency, and comparability. We must communicate the added value, and why and how geo data can make a difference.”

Lieutenant-Colonel Soenke Fischhoefer agrees: “People have to understand this building up a stronger Europe, you need to invest in this.”

Colin Bray concludes: “Authoritative public sector information is a key building block for a successful digital transformation, which will result in a society empowered by the use of these trusted data and services. As demand for geospatial information from official national sources will continue to grow into the next decade, EuroGeographics is adding its voice to the call for all governments to recognise the value of location data and commit to funding and creating appropriate data infrastructures to help propel us all to a sustainable, safer, and fairer world.”

To find out more about EuroGeographics, please visit www.eurogeographics.org

EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities.

Post-pandemic user requirements are foundation for future collaborations

EuroGeographics President, Colin Bray (left), Zeljko Obradovic, Director, Federal Administration for Geodetic and Real Property Affairs, and Léa Bodossian, Secretary General and Executive Director, EuroGeographics (right) discuss the importance of official geospatial data with Mr. Fadil Novalić, Prime Minister of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Leaders of Europe’s national mapping, cadastral and land registration authorities met in Sarajevo last week to discuss the role of official geospatial data in reconnecting post-pandemic.

EuroGeographics’ General Assembly 2022 heard that user requirements for official geospatial data will form the foundation for future collaborations as a series of speakers demonstrated its importance in preparing for the decade of action, as well as in recovery and resilience programmes. Users from the United Nations, European Parliament, Commission and its agencies also expressed a strong desire to work in partnership with the Association and its members.

“In uncertain times, authoritative mapping, cadastral and land registration information provides certainty to those with responsibility for making critical decisions,” said Colin Bray, President of EuroGeographics.

“Reliable geospatial data is therefore crucial for reconnecting post-pandemic, and as national sources of mapping, cadastral and land registration information, our members have a key role to play in Europe’s resilience and recovery programme, and in addressing key issues that extend beyond national boundaries.”

“Achieving ambitions against a backdrop of change requires reconnection – reconnection with members​, reconnection with stakeholder​s, and reconnection with users – to ensure we continue to provide the high-quality data and services that underpin the infrastructures relied on by modern society.”

“Our challenge now is to meet the needs of users in a way that can be sustained for the benefit of all.”

Hosted by the Federal Administration for Geodetic and Real Property Affairs in Sarajevo, the annual conference was opened by Mr. Fadil Novalić, Prime Minister of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Ms. Ankica Gudeljević, Minister for Civil Affairs.

During the formal business of the Association, Colin Bray, Ordnance Survey Ireland was re-elected to the Management Board and as the Association’s President.

Members also elected Denis Tabučić from the Federal Administration for Geodetic and Real Property Affairs, Bosnia & Herzegovina; Kristian Møller, Agency for Data Supply and Efficiency, Denmark; and Emilio López Romero, National Geographic Institute of Spain to the Management Board, and thanked Amalia Velasco Martín-Varés, Spanish Directorate General for Cadastre and Sanja Zekušić, State Geodetic Administration, Croatia who both came to the end of their term.

EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities.

To find out more about EuroGeographics, please visit www.eurogeographics.org

Open Maps For Europe releases open cadastral map prototype and data updates

Open Maps for Europe has released an Open Cadastral Map prototype which provides large-scale coverage for four countries.

The data is now available via the Open Maps interface and this first iteration includes Poland, The Netherlands, Czech Republic and Spain. The map takes INSPIRE open data and allows the user to find out what is available from national sources in one place before obtaining the data from the official provider. The cadastral map comprises four data types: Administrative Units, Cadastral Parcels (and Cadastral Zones), Buildings (and Building Parts) and Addresses.

The Open Maps For Europe project, which is co-financed by the Connecting Europe Facility of the European Union, is coordinated by EuroGeographics in partnership with the National Geographic Institute (NGI) Belgium.

Angela Baker, Programme Manager, Data Access and Integration, EuroGeographics  says: “We have used our unique data integration process to produce the Open Cadastral Map prototype using members data, and we expect to add more coverage in the future.”

“The Open Cadastral Map is a service to show the end user what is available from the Cadastral Agencies, it does not replicate the data that our members provide.  Features can be identified via the map interface and can be consumed via the WMS. Links are available to access the full national data.”

“In addition to the Open Cadastral Map prototype, we are also pleased to announce that the second release of Open Maps for Europe includes updated versions of EuroGlobalMap (EGM 2022) and EuroDem, a pan-Europe open data elevation model providing height data.”

Data from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Ukraine, the Isle of Man and Montenegro are now available in EGM 2022, which also includes updated Administrative Boundaries, Transportation and Settlement themes. These have been fully generalised from EuroRegionalMap (ERM), multi-themed topographic open data at 1:250 000 scale. The EGM metadata was updated and its compliance with the INSPIRE metadata regulations was checked.

The latest version of EuroDem has increased coverage and now includes data from Germany, Hungary and Switzerland with open data infilled from a further 11 countries.

The Open Maps For Europe online interface, developed by thinkWhere, an Idox company, enables users to discover, view, license and download the open datasets. These also include an open gazetteer service providing authoritative multilingual geographical names with data provided by 36 National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registration Authorities, and Pan-European Imagery provided by Germany’s Federal Agency for Cartography and Geodesy created from data taken from the European Union´s Earth observation programme Copernicus (Sentinel-2, L1C-L2A).

Angela Baker adds: “By working together to deliver pan-European open data, our members are demonstrating not only what can be achieved through Europe-wide cooperation but also the benefits that result for the wider public good, specifically in support of policy decision-making at the European level.”

“Our unique approach to interoperable pan-European datasets unlocks the value of authoritative geospatial information and is one of the key ways members are supporting The Open Data Directive, which recognises that the value of data lies in its use and re-use.”

“By working to ensure their data is interoperable, readily available and easily accessible, they are demonstrating a commitment to delivering Open Maps for Europe both now and in the future.”

Open Maps For Europe runs until 31 December 2022.

EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities.

The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of EuroGeographics and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the European Union.

French General Directorate Cadastral Bureau joins EuroGeographics

EuroGeographics has welcomed the French General Directorate Cadastral Bureau as an Associate Member.

The Bureau’s membership of EuroGeographics will see the two organisations work together to deliver the Permanent Committee on Cadastre (PCC) conference in May as part of France’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

“Joining the EuroGeographics’ community enables us to access and contribute to knowledge exchange across a Europe-wide network of National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities,” said Marina Fages, Head of the French Cadastral Bureau. “We are very pleased to be part of an association with such a long and successful history of bringing organisations together to participate in joint projects and policy developments.

Léa Bodossian, Secretary General and Executive Director, EuroGeographics added: “I am delighted that our members have unanimously voted to approve the membership application of the French Cadastral Bureau and warmly welcome them to our community.”

“For people across Europe, cadastral data underpins many aspects of everyday life and our members fulfil an essential role by providing official, detailed, secure and reliable information on property rights and registration. Delivering official cadastral data and high-quality services is therefore vital for achieving so many European policies, including the Next Generation EU agreement, the Recovery and Resilience Facility and the European Green Deal.”

“EuroGeographics’ dedicated forum – the Cadastre and Land Registry Knowledge Exchange Network – shares best practice in providing official information on property rights and registration, and is a great example of the cooperation at the heart of our association. We look forward to the insight that the French Cadastral Bureau will bring as a result of its experience in maintaining the only large-scale parcel cadastral map covering the entire territory of France.”

The French General Directorate Cadastral Bureau is based in Paris and responsible for listing all owned properties, identifying them with unique cadastral references, searching for their real or apparent owners, recognising and defining the cadastral limits of these properties, and describing and assessing them.

EuroGeographics is an international not-for-profit organisation (AISBL/ IVZW under Belgian Law. BCE registration:  833 607 112) and the membership association for the European National Mapping, Cadastral and Land Registry Authorities. It currently brings together members from 46 countries, covering the whole of geographical Europe.