Project Summary Sheet

Project: South Florida Information Access (SOFIA) Website

Web Site: http://sofia.usgs.gov

Location (Subregions & Counties): Total System; Broward, Charlotte, Collier, Dade, Glades, Hendry, Highlands, Indian River, Lee, Martin, Monroe, Okeechobee, Orange, Osceola, Palm Beach, Polk and St. Lucie Counties

Funding (Source): USGS Place-Based Studies

Principal Investigator(s): Heather Henkel, hhenkel@usgs.gov, 727.803.8747x3028

Project Personnel: Tracy Enright, tenright@usgs.gov, 727.803.8747 x3083; Kathy Pegram, kpegram@usgs.gov, 727.803.8747 x3017

Supporting Organizations: (none)

Associated / Linked Projects: SOFIA database (Roy Sonenshein, sunshine@usgs.gov 305.717.5824); SOFIA Metadata (Jo Anne Stapleton, jastapleton@usgs.gov 703.648.4592)

Overview & Status: The South Florida ecosystem, encompassing the Kissimmee River Valley, Florida Bay, urban areas, developed agricultural areas, rangelands, and wetlands, has been altered greatly over the last 100 years. Resource managers, Federal, State, and local agencies, and other groups are seeking to reverse environmentally damaging actions taken during that period. The U. S. Geological Survey (USGS) began a research program in support of the restoration of the Everglades and South Florida ecosystem in 1995. USGS personnel have been conducting research projects designed to provide sound scientific information on which resource managers can base their decisions. The USGS also has recognized the need for a central site to provide all interested parties with information from this research and access to these data. The South Florida Information Access web site (SOFIA) was created as a 'one-stop-shopping' access point for research on South Florida. All USGS Greater Everglades Science Program research projects, ranging from mercury contamination in the Everglades to coral reef decline, are online at this site. The site provides project descriptions, publication references, data, presentations, and contact information, as well as general interest items, such as photographs and posters. Over the last four years, the website has seen a sizable increase in visitors, from 67 visitors a day in 1998 to over 800 visitors per day (early 2001).

Needs & Products: The website provides direct access to the data, metadata, and publications associated with the SOFIA program and is updated daily. In addition to the main SOFIA site, we host other websites including the South Florida Restoration Science Forum (SFRSF) website (http://sofia.usgs.gov/sfrsf/), the South Florida Ecosystem History website (http://sofia.usgs.gov/flaecohist/), and the Place-Based Studies website (http://access.usgs.gov).

Outreach activities: Center for Coastal & Regional Marine Studies Open House, poster session, October 2000; Greater Everglades Ecosystem Restoration Conference, poster session, December 2000; USGS Open House (Reston), poster session, December 2000; Tampa Bay Earth Day, handouts, April 2001; Natural Resources Forum, poster session, June 2001; Tampa Bay Estuaries Meeting, website demo, August 2001

Application to Everglades Restoration: The SOFIA web site will facilitate access to data and information by researchers, water managers, environmental groups and the general public so that science based decisions can be made with minimum delay.