In the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Christchurch last week, there is such a prevalent feeling amongst those not directly involved in or affected by events, to offer help in some way. For those of us in the geospatial field disaster support often takes the form of facilitating data to help decision makers, or providing our technical, analytical and cartographic skills to assist with response and recovery efforts.
Late last week a call went out from the National Crisis Management Centre for additional Wellington-based government GIS analysts. Staff were needed to support efforts with GIS analysis, mapping product output, and operational data analysis and I’m happy (and proud) to report that two senior GIS staff from LINZ answered the call without hesitation and have been providing assistance to Stuart Waring and his team since last Saturday.
While I would not hesitate if asked to make a map or run a spatial model in support of efforts currently underway in Christchurch, I feel this type of technical support is best left in the hands of the experts, whose skills and ability to provide immediate value far outshines those of an old-timer like me.
Where I think I can make better use of my skills is at the level of championing and facilitating the release of geospatial information. Anyone who knows me or even reads this blog knows my passion for open data, and there is no better or critically important time for that approach than during a natural disaster.
Decisions in those situations need to be made constantly, rapidly and at the highest levels of confidence – the people making them, and especially those dependent on their results, deserve no less than the best and most current geospatial information at their disposal.
All of the players, from the key coordinating agencies like MCDEM, NZ Fire Service and NZDF, to other government organisations (both central and local) who own relevant geospatial information, to the commercial companies who collect and provide data will focus on how they can individually and as a collaborating team deliver what’s needed.
Indications from last week are positive: data is getting out there quickly from providers and much of it is readily and freely available.
The work to help facilitate ongoing open data for earthquake response efforts has highlighted some key differences with the situation just six short months ago when Christchurch experienced its previous earthquake. The world has changed a good bit since then, to the benefit of support personnel and the NZ geospatial industry.
As noted above, both public and private organisations are simply more willing and able to put their information out there, minus restrictive conditions. There is a marked increase in the awareness of geospatial information and the benefits it can bring, amongst the highest levels of our government. Because of that, community and business leaders are much better positioned and much more willing to directly approach decision makers in government to make their case. Tools and policies, like NZGOAL, are now readily available to mitigate concerns over licensing and liability. And lastly, as it always does, technology has marched on rapidly to provide new and easier ways to deliver geospatial information.
It’s exciting to see these changes tangibly demonstrated already, as multiple sets of valuable geospatial information become available to those responding to the crisis. In those cases where there is still progress to be made, the team with which I’m involved at LINZ will be assisting – providing guidance and tools to keep licensing options open so that a solution is reached that honours the needs of the data providers while making their information accessible to those doing the good work in Christchurch.
Having spoken with my staff and several of my colleagues based in Christchurch, the consistent message has been: you just can’t comprehend the nature and scale of the devastation. There is simultaneously no doubt that Cantabrians and their garden city will come through this somehow, but they and Christchurch itself will be markedly different. As that process of recovery and rebuilding begins, starting as it has immediately after this latest earthquake subsided, I’m confident that geospatial information and most especially those responsible for it will play a valuable role. We all stand ready to help.
