INSPIRE vision

•       Data should be collected once and maintained at the level where this can be done most
effectively

•       it should be possible to combine seamlessly spatial information from different sources
across Europe and share it between many users and application

•       it should be possible for information collected at one level to be shared between all the
different levels, detailed for detailed investigations, general for strategic purposes

•       geographic information needed for good governance at all levels should be abundant under
conditions that do not refrain its extensive use

•       it should be easy to discover which geographic information is available, fits the needs for
a particular use and under which conditions it can be acquired and used

•       geographic data should become easy to understand and interpret because it is properly
documented and can be visualised within the appropriate context selected in a user-friendly way

                                        Examples of Problems

•      Lack of use of standards

  –    incompatible information

  –    incompatible information systems

  –    fragmentation of information

  –    overlap

•      Lack of co-ordination

  –    across boarders

  –    between levels of government that are the main data providers

•      Lack of data

•      Data policy restrictions

  –    pricing, copyright, access rights, licensing policy

                                  Differences in national heights

                                      Need for action: INSPIRE

•      Required by 6EAP

  –    earth monitoring, policy evaluation, indicators, Aarhus

•      Geographic information is increasing used to support environmental policy (knowledge-based
approach)

  –    urban waste water, nitrates, thematic strategies, air quality monitoring, noise, ...

•      Explicitly required by WFD

  –    Provide river basin characterisation in GIS format

                                 Without a co-ordinated framework:
                                      problems will persist !



                          Infrastructure for Spatial Information in Europe

                                     The INSPIRE driving forces

                                         INSPIRE objectives





                                          INSPIRE timeline

                                     INSPIRE: Example of result

                        http://europa.eu.int/comm/environment/geo/index.htm

                                   http://www.ec-gis.org/inspire/