Environmental Data: Major Effort Is Needed to Improve NOAA's Data Management and Archiving
IMTEC-91-11
Published: Nov 20, 1990. Publicly Released: Dec 21, 1990.
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Highlights
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO assessed the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) and the U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) management, storage, and archiving of environmental data collected by space and ground data collection systems.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Department of Commerce | The Secretary of Commerce should instruct NOAA officials responsible for the management of data to conduct a thorough inventory of all NOAA environmental data, including data on tapes, film, and paper, stored at NOAA centers and contractors, universities, research institutions, and other federal agencies. |
Closed – Implemented
NOAA has implemented an Earth System Data Inventory.
|
| Department of Commerce | The Secretary of Commerce should instruct NOAA officials responsible for the management of data to assess, in cooperation with the scientific community, the inventoried data for their scientific value and the integrity of their storage media. |
Closed – Implemented
NOAA recently established science advisory panels to assure that the views of the science community are factored into NOAA management of environmental data.
|
| Department of Commerce | The Secretary of Commerce should instruct NOAA officials responsible for the management of data to copy valuable data from deteriorating media to archival quality media suitable for long-term retention of digital data, and release unneeded tapes, film, and paper records for reuse or disposal. |
Closed – Implemented
NOAA has migrated over 61,000 tapes to improved media.
|
| Department of Commerce | The Secretary of Commerce should instruct NOAA officials responsible for the management of data to archive valuable scientific data in vaults that meet NARA regulations. |
Closed – Implemented
NOAA plans to obtain new facilities in North Carolina and Colorado to correct the major deficiencies identified in the report. NOAA broke ground for a new storage facility on July 6, 1992. Scheduled completion is late 1994. NARA requirements are incorporated into the design.
|
| Department of Commerce | The Secretary of Commerce should instruct NOAA officials responsible for the management of data to develop and implement agencywide tape, film, and paper record management and maintenance standards which include all NARA regulations and appropriate National Institute of Standards and Technology guidelines. |
Closed – Implemented
NOAA has developed agencywide data management standards and guidelines.
|
| Department of Commerce | The Secretary of Commerce should instruct NOAA officials responsible for the management of data to ensure that NOAA data management and archiving operations are allocated adequate resources to properly store and maintain environmental data holdings. |
Closed – Implemented
NOAA continues to place increased emphasis on proper data management and storage practices.
|
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Topics
ArchivesData collectionData storageEnvironmental researchFacility securityFederal records managementInteragency relationsInventoriesNoncomplianceWarehouse facilitiesMagnetic tapes