Pollutants produced in the Seattle-Tacoma metropolitan area are transported eastward toward the Cascade Range, where Mt. Rainier is directly in the path of the pollutant plume. Weekly average concentrations of ozone are actually higher in the Mt. Rainier regions than they are in the Seattle area, with the highest exposures at high elevations up to 8,000 feet. Ozone synthesis is enhanced by warm, sunny weather, so rural residents, recreational visitors, and alpine vegetation are exposed to potentially harmful levels of ozone during the summer when park visitation is highest and plants are metabolically active. As the human population of the Seattle-Tacoma region continues to increase and more motorized vehicles crowd local highways, air pollution levels can be expected to increase as well. Information Management Information management is both a strategy, driven by customer needs, and an infrastructure, shaped by technology, for handling and distributing information.
Information management crosses disciplinary and administrative boundaries.
USGS information management activities organize, catalog, archive, maintain, and disseminate earth and biological science data and information so that all potential users are aware of and can acquire the information. The National Atlas is designed to promote greater geographic awareness through the development and delivery of products that provide easy to use, map-like views of our natural and societal landscapes. It will include products designed to stimulate children and adults to visualize, comprehend, and even marvel at the complex relationships between environments, places, and people. The USGS and its partners delivered their first new National Atlas products in 30 years during 1998.