12 Basic Inventories (review and status)

Review of Inventories

The twelve (12) basic inventories are defined in appendix A of the Natural Resources Inventory and Monitoring Guidelines (NPS-75). The inventories consist of a group of resource related baseline information that has been found to be of greatest value in the initiation of a Vital Signs Monitoring Program. We have provided a short description of each of the inventories after the tables.

12 Basic Inventories and links to further information

Inventory	URL Link	Last Updated
NatureBib	http://www.nature.nps.gov/nrbib/index.cfm	06/21/07
Species List	http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/inventory/biology/index.cfm	06/21/07
Species status and abundance	Same web page as Species list above.
Vegetation Mapping	http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/inventory/veg/index.cfm	06/21/07
Base Cartography	http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/inventory/basecarto/index.cfm	06/21/07
Soils Mapping	http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/inventory/soils/index.cfm	06/21/07
Geology Mapping	http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/inventory/geology/index.cfm	06/21/07
Water Body Locations	http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/inventory/water/index.cfm	06/21/07
Water Quality	http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/inventory/waterquality/index.cfm	06/21/07
Air Quality Monitoring Stations (AQRV)	http://www2.nature.nps.gov/air/Maps/AirAtlas/index.cfm	06/21/07
Air Quality	http://www2.nature.nps.gov/air/	06/21/07
Meterological Data	http://science.nature.nps.gov/im/inventory/climate/index.cfm	06/21/07

Other Inventories of Interest

Soundscapes	http://www.nature.nps.gov/naturalsounds/	06/21/07
Night Sky / Lightscapes	http://www2.nature.nps.gov/air/lightscapes	06/21/07

Brief Descriptions

(they are in no particular order or priority, simply listed as they are in appendix A of NPS-75)

1. Bibliography of natural resource references (NatureBib) - is the master web-based database for scientific citations presented as bibliographic references. NatureBib merges a number of previously separate databases dealing with natural resource related topics like air, geology and paleontology.
2. Species List - the goal of documenting species list is to help parks with significant natural resources document such things as soils, vegetation, biological diversity, geologic resources, and water quality.
3. Species Status and Abundance - field surveys are being conducted to confirm the existence of currently reported plant and animal species and to document the presence of new ones.
4. Vegetation Mapping - the objective is to produce consistent vegetation maps. These maps and associated products must meet the following standards: use the hierarchical National Vegetation Classification (NVC) Standard; use a minimum mapping unit of 0.5 ha; use the UTM projection in NAD83 and GRS80 datum; and meet a thematic accuracy of 80%.
5. Base Cartography - inventory is tasked with acquiring, processing, and distributing Geographic Information Systems (GIS) data layers that are needed for most GIS mapping and analysis projects.
6. Soils Mapping - the I&M Program is completing soil surveys through agreements with other federal agencies such as the Natural Resources Conservation Service and with private contractors. Products of the I&M Soils Inventory and Mapping Program are a local soils scoping session, a digital soils layer, a corresponding set of soil attributes and interpretations in a National Soil Survey Information System (NASIS) format, a soil survey manuscript in both hardcopy and digital format, and a metadata file.
7. Geology Mapping - the NPS Geologic Resources Evaluation (GRE) Program is a cooperative endeavor to implement a systematic, comprehensive inventory of the geologic resources in NPS units. Three products will be the result of this inventory; a scoping summary report, a geologic digital map, and the final report on geology of a park.
8. Water Body Location - this inventory documents the locations of streams, lakes, wetlands, and groundwater (hot springs, cold springs).
9. Water Quality - According to NPS-75 parks should have physical, chemical, and/or biological data for key park water bodies based on size, uniqueness, representativeness, and possible threats. Primary characteristics/parameters for which data are needed for key park water bodies include: alkalinity, pH, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, rapid bioassessment baseline (EPA/state protocols, involving fish and macroinvertebrates), temperature, and flow.
10. Air Quality Monitoring Stations/Air Quality Related Value (AQRV) - is a resource as identified by the Federal Land Manager for one or more federal areas, that may be adversely affected by a change in air quality. The resource may include visibility or a specific scenic, cultural, physical, biological, ecological, or recreational resource identified by the Federal Land Manager for a particular area.
11. Air Quality - WASO Air Resources Division is accumulating an Air Quality Inventory. Based on the latest analysis of atmospheric deposition, ozone, and visibility air quality data for the period 1995-2004, 68% of reporting parks have stable or improved air quality. The NPS has established a goal of having stable or improved air quality in 70% of reporting park areas by September 30, 2008.
12. Meteorological Data - the primary objective of the first climate inventory was to compile baseline climate data useful to NPS biologists, hydrologists and resource managers. The inventory integrated data from more than 6,000 precipitation stations and 4,000 temperature stations across the conterminous United States to develop maps with relevant climate variables.

Other Inventories of Interest

1. Soundscapes - refers to the total acoustic environment of an area. Both natural and human sounds may be desirable and appropriate in a soundscape, depending on the purposes and values of the park. The symphony of natural sounds within our national parks is an important natural resource and a critical component of the ecological communities that parks seek to preserve.
2. Night Sky/Lightscapes - a "Natural Lightscape" is a place or environment characterized by the natural rhythm of the sun and moon cycles, clean air, and of dark nights unperturbed by artificial light. The NPS has developed a system for measuring sky brightness to quantify the source and severity of light pollution.

MOJN Inventory Status

The status of each of the 12 basic inventories for the MOJN will be updated bi-annually or as new material becomes available.