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**Building a Partnership to Web Deliver and Manage Wildland Fire Data,
Tools, and Information**

**Fire Research And Management Exchange System (FRAMES) and the**
**National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII)**

Prepared by

Jennifer Pollock, Regional Node Manager

USGS -- NBII Program

Ph: (303) 202-4260

Email: <jennifer_pollock@usgs.gov>

Greg Gollberg, FRAMES Project Manager

University of Idaho

Ph (208) 885-9756

Email: <gollberg@uidaho.edu>

Ray Carlino, System Administrator

USGS -- NBII Program

Ph: (303) 202-4262

Email: <ray_carlino@usgs.gov>

**[Introduction]{.underline}**

The proliferation of fire technology, research, data, and publications
across the fire community makes the process of identifying and
synthesizing the best available fire science into fire management
challenging and sometimes impossible. Even with the increasing ease of
delivering valuable tools and information useful for fire planning in
digital formats, they exist across dozens of websites and locations.
Ultimately, the best available science will fail to be incorporated into
the wildland fire management and policy decision making process.

The National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) program and
the Fire Research And Management Exchange System (FRAMES) are in a
unique position to address this issue. The NBII program demonstrates
leadership in biological information management by linking diverse,
high-quality biological databases, information products, and analytical
tools. Led by the University of Idaho, FRAMES is being designed to
aggregate and make more accessible the variety of tools and other
information resources that are critical to wildland fire and fuels
management. Together, FRAMES and NBII can demonstrate the value of
connecting tools, information, and people for the wildland fire
community.

**[Benefits of the Partnership]{.underline}**

Currently, FRAMES and NBII received a grant from the Joint Fire Science
Program (JFSP) in April 2004 to develop a Southern Fire Portal to
provide access to data, metadata, tools, publications, and other
information available throughout the region. The programs are also
involved in the Pacific Northwest Portal project. As these projects go
forward, FRAMES and NBII have an excellent opportunity to share
expertise and technical capabilities.

[Benefits to FRAMES]{.underline}

-   Share the costs for infrastructure maintenance and for some content
    development.

-   Biological information content beneficial to the wildland fire
    community.

-   Increased funding opportunities through leveraging assets.

-   Increased user base and partners through collaboration with
    biological community.

-   Information management expertise and infrastructure resources that
    can help FRAMES achieve its goals.

-   Help FRAMES navigate through federal IT requirements (i.e., OMB
    circulars).

-   Fill the role as the federal cooperating agency who will host
    FRAMES.

[Benefits to NBII]{.underline}

-   Share the costs for infrastructure maintenance and for some content
    development.

-   Wildland fire content beneficial to the biological community.

-   Increased funding opportunities through leveraging assets.

-   Increased user base and partners through collaboration with wildland
    fire community.

-   New portlet development to provide better access to natural
    resources information.

-   Complements NBII's goals and objectives.

-   Collaborate with respected experts in the wildland fire community
    who are associated with FRAMES (e.g., advisory committee, principal
    investigators, and other federal and state partners).

-   Recognition for helping the wildland fire community provide a
    consistent, reliable, and holistic view of the federal fire program.

The partnership between FRAMES and NBII can promote much more than a
technology linkage. Much of wildland fire science relates to natural
resources and by connecting FRAMES and NBII, both programs can leverage
the wealth of biological and natural resources data and information
contained within them and redistribute those value-added resources
throughout the U.S.

**[Roles and Responsibilities]{.underline}**

[FRAMES]{.underline}

-   Administrative agent for the FRAMES project

-   Work with the wildland fire research and management communities to
    help them meet their technology transfer and information technology
    (IT) needs

-   Act as a liaison between the wildland fire communities and NBII

-   With NBII assistance work to meet OMB and other federal IT
    requirements (including Section 508 of 1998 Rehabilitation Act)

-   With NBII assistance follow the capital planning and investment
    control (CPIC) process

-   Seek independent funding for FRAMES content

-   Develop functionality areas to support wildland fire information and
    technology transfer

-   Responsible for FRAMES content

-   Collaborate with NBII on funding to support IT infrastructure for
    FRAMES/NBII

-   Provide server hardware

-   Split the cost with NBII to hire a programmer (FRAMES 50% in FY05)

-   Allow access to relevant FRAMES content within NBII queries

-   Provide technical support for PNW and Southern Fire Portal projects
    to incorporate into NBII Portal (Greg Gollberg, University of Idaho,
    Lead)

-   Collaborate with NBII to provide project management/proposal process
    for JFSP/NBII

-   Collaborate with NBII to develop a geographically based wildland
    fire portal system

[NBII]{.underline}

-   Federal sponsoring agency for FRAMES architecture

-   Assist FRAMES meet OMB and other federal IT requirements (including
    Section 508 of 1998 Rehabilitation Act)

-   Assist FRAMES with the capital planning and investment control
    (CPIC) process

-   Provide space for and maintenance of hardware and provide Internet
    connectivity

-   Provide FRAMES with access to development environment for current
    edition of Plumtree Software

-   Provide in house training for 3 FRAMES programmers on NBII Portal
    technology

-   Split the cost with FRAMES to hire a programmer/administrator (50% -
    NBII, 50% - FRAMES)

-   Collaborate with FRAMES on funding to support IT infrastructure for
    NBII/FRAMES

-   Allow access to relevant NBII content for FRAMES

-   Provide administrative (e.g., contracting, travel, and reporting)
    support for PNW and Southern Fire Portal projects

-   Provide technical support for PNW and Southern Fire Portal projects
    to incorporate into NBII Portal

-   Collaborate with FRAMES to provide project management/proposal
    process for JFSP/NBII

-   Collaborate with FRAMES to develop a geographically based wildland
    fire portal system

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**[Short Term Tasks]{.underline}** **[for]{.underline}** **August 1 2004
through December 31 2004** **(see attached chart)**

-   

-   Identify FRAMES functionality needs and develop a plan to create
    them

-   Identify Plumtree licensing restrictions with respect to FRAMES
    users

-   FRAMES to purchase a FRAMES developmental server to be housed and
    maintained at NBII

> \- FRAMES to purchase a FRAMES two portal servers to be housed and
> maintained at NBII
>
> \- Establish DNS (frames.nbii.gov)
>
> \- Hire 1 programmer/administrator after October 1 2004. This person
> will be based in Denver, both the cost and the programmers time will
> be shared by both NBII and FRAMES (50% each). This position should be
> budgeted as a full time FRAMES programmer/administrator in near future
>
> \- NBII will help set priorities and goals for prototype to help show
> both Portal capabilities and specific fire data

-   Develop "prototype" FRAMES system on FRAMES servers using Plumtree
    software. The tasks will be shared by 2 FRAMES developers and NBII
    programmers

-   Demonstrate system to wildland fire community, NBII will be
    available for demos

-   Specific demonstrations include the kickoff meeting for the Southern
    Fire Portal project October 17-18 2004 and the Joint Fire Science
    Program Technology Transfer workshop on October 18-21 2004 in
    Athens, Georgia.

-   Re-evaluate the results of the prototype and determine a long term
    goal and statement of work

-   Host fire training site in Denver on FRAMES server

-   At end of task period, the demonstration "prototype" site will show
    functionality with Portal (including but not limited to custom
    searching, look and feel, and collaboration capabilities)

-   Demonstrate FRAMES site to the NBII Program Office and discuss long
    term opportunities for collaboration.

-   Develop next steps document and recommendations by December 31, 2004

**[Short Term]{.underline}** **[Estimated Costs for August 1, 2004
through December 31, 2004]{.underline}**

-   \$20,000 Development and portal servers (FRAMES funding)

-   \$64,000 FRAMES staff time for development (FRAMES funding)

-   \$35,000 for 3 months (\$17,500 FRAMES and \$17,500 NBII);
    (\$140,000 for 1 year; \$70K FRAMES and \$70K NBII) to hire
    programmer

-   \$2000 Travel for FRAMES programmers to Denver, CO for training
    (JFSP funding)

-   \$1500 Travel for NBII staff to demo the prototype (50% JFSP, 50%
    NBII funding)

-   \$800 NBII staff responding to technical questions about Plumtree
    Portal (NBII funding)

Estimated Total Costs August 1 to December 31, 2004 = \$123,300

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