International Science in the National Interest at the U.S. Geological Survey (2012) / Chapter Skim
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3 Ongoing International Scientific Activities at the USGS
3 Ongoing International Scientific Activities at the USGS
Pages 39-84
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when information relevant to management or conservation is available only through international collaboration or research. Some USGS mission areas document a longer history of engagement in international activities due to the existence of their core science domains as part of the USGS structure since the Survey's inception.
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international activities. Rather, the committee considered possibilities for new international science opportunities across the entire Survey organization (see Chapter 4)
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The websites of the Geological Surveys of Denmark and Greenland, the British Geological Survey, and of the Bureau de Recherches Géologiques et Minières (www.geus.dk/; www.bgs.ac.uk/; www.brgm.fr/) are examples of other national geological surveys with direct links on the organizations' main web pages to centralized, informative descriptions (and maps)
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Current International Activities The USGS has developed a portfolio of international activities that effectively leverage its capabilities in the science of climate and land-use change, particularly in Earth surface observations and studies of climate-ecosystem-land cover interactions. The Survey's climate work includes the cycling of carbon, nitrogen, and water; the effects of climate change on hydrology and ecosystems; the integration of climate and land-cover change; and proxybased studies of past changes and interactions of climate, landscapes, and ecosystems.
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RELEVAnCE tO u.S. nAtIOnAL IntEREStS The USGS addresses national interests in several ways through its international activities in climate and land-use change science.
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USGS is an active member of the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites (CEOS) , and is involved in the Forest Carbon Tracking project led by the Group on Earth Observations (GEO)
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. Furthermore, Landsat activity integrates across nearly all USGS science strategy areas, and strongly supports national-interest activities such as disaster response, biodiversity monitoring, and hydrological analyses on a worldwide basis (see also next section on Core Science Systems)
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. Current International Activities In the USGS Biological Informatics Program, the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS)
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It also encompasses the Federal Geographic Data Committee, which promotes consistent data and metadata standards, system interoperability, and cross-government best business practices for geospatial resources, policies, standards, and technology as part of the National Spatial Data Infrastructure. National Cooperative Geologic Mapping Program produces geologic mapping to enhance understanding of earth materials, processes, and history across areas including energy, mineral, and water resources, and natural hazards.
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Well described as "ground truth," geologic maps constitute the worldwide test of the theories, measurements, and analyses of all other mission areas of the USGS. Geologic maps are indispensable for understanding the deep Earth, energy and mineral resources, Earth surface processes, and groundwater availability and quality.
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Current International Activities USGS international work provides key information on global drivers of ecosystems in U.S. territory.
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VALuE tO uSGS dOmEStIC mISSIOn USGS ecosystems activities support the larger DOI mission to "provide a scientific foundation for decision making" by identifying and predicting ecosystem change and by BOX 3.4 Examples of USGS Ecosystem Activities with International Dimensions Global Wildlife Disease News Map. Carried out under the auspices of the National Wildlife Health Center through the National Biological Information Infrastructure program, the Global Wildlife Disease News Map presents a visual display of data illustrating the locations of reported wildlife disease outbreaks worldwide.
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FIGURE Screenshot of the USGS Global Wildlife Disease News map. SOURCE: USGS (wildlifedisease.
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The USGS National Wildlife Health Center is the primary source of support for the Wildlife Data Integration Network and the Global Wildlife Disease News Map, which shows the emergence and movement of disease outbreaks in wildlife species outside the United States. USGS mapping and data-sharing capacity are essential for forecasting diseases that could affect U.S.
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Among its contributions are the Global Biological Information Facility, Global Invasive Species Information Network, NBII, and International Taxonomic Information System (see also Core Science Systems section, above)
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. DOS's lower Mekong River activities are built on DRAGON collaborations, which in turn draw on the expertise of the USGS National Wetlands Research Center (Farris, 2010)
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relationships with Canada and Mexico. ENERGY AND MINERALS Mission Area and Core Activities The USGS conducts strategic research to identify and understand the occurrence, size and extent, and genesis of energy and mineral resources.
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Morrissey EXPLANATION CO2 storage volume Gas flow Seal formation Gas CO2 flow Oil and gas flow Storage formation Oil Fault -- Arrow indicates relative movement U.S Department of the Interior Fact Sheet 2010-3122 U.S. Geological Survey (http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2010/3122/)
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. CuRREnt IntERnAtIOnAL ACtIVItIES -- EnERGY And mInERALS The USGS World Petroleum Assessment 2000 is an impartial, science-based resource on global petroleum information and data.
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The quantitative Global Mineral Resource Assessment Project addresses the needs of the federal government, industry, and research community for global minerals information to aid in decision making. Regional reports provide assessment of nonfuel mineral deposits in Latin America, Canada, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and northern Central Asia, and Africa and the Middle East (e.g., Schulz and Briskey, 2005)
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This activity is described in detail in the next section on Environmental Health. VALuE tO uSGS dOmEStIC mISSIOn An important function of the USGS Energy and Mineral Resources mission area is the quantification of current energy and mineral resources production, consumption, imports and exports.
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. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH Mission Area and Core Activities The USGS defines environment health as "The multi-disciplinary study of relationships among the quality of the physical environment, the health of the living environment, and human health" (Figure 3.5)
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national interests. The impact of Earth minerals and processes on human health was recognized in the 2007 National Research Council report Earth Minerals and Health: Research Priorities for Earth Science and Public Health (NRC, 2007)
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can result in devastating adverse human health effects. Current International Activities USGS domestic and international activities related to environmental health address public health impacts of arsenic groundwater contamination, wildlife diseases (particularly zoonotic diseases, which are transmissible between animals and humans)
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anthropogenic or natural contaminants can compromise potable water quality. Ingestion: food Food is essential to life and good health, and it is also Mine and Energy and Minerals Cadmium contamination susceptible to contamination by anthropogenic or natural smelting in of rice contaminants.
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The USGS has been critically involved in international activities and partnerships that use predictive monitoring for disaster prevention and mitigation, as well in providing assistance after earthquakes, tsunamis, or volcanic eruptions. Such participation benefits national USGS studies in support of efforts to reduce the impacts of natural hazards on public health (Ewert et al., 2005)
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To address these events, the USGS Natural Hazards mission area encompasses six program elements: Earthquake Hazards, Volcano Hazards, Landslide Hazards, Global Seismographic Network, Geomagnetism, and Coastal and Marine Geology (USGS, 2007d)
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, Eichelberger (2011) , and the USGS Natural Hazards website.14 EARthquAkES And VOLCAnOES The USGS has the lead federal responsibility to monitor and provide notification of earthquakes in the United States and worldwide, and the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program is a central part of the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (see NEHRP, 2011)
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. Current International Activities The following review presents a representative, but not exhaustive, description of current international activities in the Natural Hazards mission area.
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Perhaps foremost in USGS global hazard monitoring and notification -- and typifying the involvement of the USGS in international science -- is operation of the NEIC. Recognized as "the de facto international authority on earthquake notification for both U.S.
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. The involvement of USGS scientists in natural hazard crises abroad has demonstrably resulted in scientific advances and lessons learned that are directly applicable in the United States.
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PAGER development and maintenance are supported by the U.S. Geological Survey under the Advanced National a Seismic System, with additional funding from the Global Earthquake Model project and a grant from the U.S.
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assistance to Russian scientists in establishing volcanic eruption response teams for Sakhalin Island and the Kamchatka Peninsula; and (3) work with international organizations to establish ash protocols, procedures, training, and research.
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. COOpERAtIVE EARthquAkE RESEARCh pROGRAmS wIth JApAn And ChInA Two prominent USGS international activities involve EHP programs and scientists in cooperative earthquake research and development with Japan (Ellsworth, 2011)
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. USGS participation in, and in many cases leadership of, international activities relating to natural hazards help keep the USGS at the forefront of the state of knowledge and practice for domestic applications -- and ensure USGS involvement in the adoption of international standards, formats, and best practices.
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RELEVAnCE tO u.S. nAtIOnAL IntEREStS The USGS National Hazards mission area is replete with international activities that are relevant and beneficial to U.S.
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Geological Survey Science in the Decade 2007-2017 sets forth the main direction for USGS water research under the title "A Water Census of the United States: Quantifying, Forecasting, and Securing Freshwater for America's Future": The USGS will develop a Water Census of the United States to inform the public and decision makers about (1) the status of its freshwater resources and how they are changing; (2)
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a broad range of research on surface water, groundwater, and water quality as well as collaborative water monitoring projects with Canada.24 VALuE tO uSGS dOmEStIC mISSIOn The Water science area engages in a broad spectrum of international activities that enhance and benefit USGS domestic programs. Opportunities to study water systems and challenges abroad increase USGS capability to fulfill domestic responsibilities such as the determination of freshwater availability; evaluation of water use; identification of water See "Asia Flood Network (AFN)
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FIGURE Hydrologic map of the Mosteiros Basin, Island of Fogo, Cape Verde Islands showing the watershed area with streams, springs, wells, and precipitation stations. Information from research in this watershed was used to identify challenges to water resource managers on Cape Verde and options for monitoring to ensure sustainable water supplies.
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SUCCESSFUL INTEGRATON OF EXPERTISE FROM MULTIPLE USGS MISSION AREAS: THE AFGHANISTAN PROJECT A multicomponent, interdisciplinary research project initiated by USGS scientists in Afghanistan beginning in 2005 involved research in coal, oil and gas, minerals, natural hazards, and water (see Box 3.11) , and thus engaged scientists from four of the seven USGS mission areas: Core Science Systems, Energy and Minerals, Natural Hazards, and Water.
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As a result of such collaboration, a 2007 report was produced on a Preliminary Assessment of Non-Fuel Mineral Resources of Afghanistan. Natural hazards: Afghanistan is located in a geologically active region with considerable seismic activity.
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Capacity building: The USGS Capacity and Institution Building Project involves the transfer of knowledge, skills, and expertise from USGS scientists to their Afghan counterparts and colleagues for assisting program development in various Earth science areas. FIGURE Mountains south of Kabul, Afghanistan.
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The projects range from satellite monitoring of droughts and floods in foreign countries to sampling of invasive species in their countries of origin, monitoring of volcanic activity around the globe, field mapping and sampling of foreign mineral resources, and evaluation of the interaction between water quality and human health. The results from these projects not only fulfill requests from federal agencies and other organizations that call on Survey expertise, but also benefit the Survey's domestic mission and U.S.
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Presentation Com mittee on Opportunities and Challenges for International Science at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
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of the Scientific Earthquake Studies Advisory Committee of the Department of the Interior to the Director of the U.S. Geological Survey, 16 p., available at earthquake.usgs.gov/aboutus/sesac/reports.php.
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Geological Survey Press Release, March 14, 2011. Available online at www.usgs.gov/newsroom/article.asp?
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