Another (the Official) Update on Imagery for the Nation

The first of a planned series of Imagery for the Nation (IFTN) updates has been posted to the NSGIC web site.

Imagery for the Nation is a cooperative effort to make real a vision of "a sustainable and flexible digital imagery program that meets the needs of local, state, regional, tribal and federal agencies."

Update #1 (PDF) looks at several on-going activities related to the effort:

• Work now under way on a Cost Benefit Analysis study.
• Thoughts on the idea from the Western Governors Association.
• Recent discussions on potential funding options.
• Next steps and "what can I do to help?"

One answer to that last question is very simple:

You can assist the implementation of IFTN by showing your support for this initiative. Please have your organization send a letter of support to NSGIC for posting on its web page. You can simply use the format from one of the letters on the site, or create your own format. What’s important is your show of support.

Stay connected to the NSGIC blog and to the IFTN web site for further updates.

An Update on Imagery for The Nation

Ted Koch, NSGIC's lead on the Imagery for the Nation (IFTN) project, has posted an update on the project on the Wisconsin Mapping Bulletin.

He reports that the National Digital Orthophoto Programs Committee (NDOP) which has been focused on IFTN lately, met in May and continued their work to flesh-out what IFTN will mean:

The NDOP committee will be developing over the next six months a much greater level of detail on technical specifications, and program and management issues. Work on these issues will involve federal, state and local government participation.

He also reports on work on a Cost Benefit Analysis of IFTN funded by the USGS and the USDA

The CBA will compare costs over a 10-year period of the way orthoimagery is currently collected and achieved vs. the potential methods that could be possible under the IFTN proposal. The study will also look at overall risks and benefits to the proposed program.

He notes that the analysis is expected to be published this summer.