Better access to scientifically sound information results in better planning and decision-making.  With this understanding, the Virginia CZM Program has been continually committed to collecting, synthesizing, and sharing coastal resource spatial data. 

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) provides powerful planning and decision support capabilities that are vital to coastal zone management.  Virginia CZM has embraced GIS throughout its history by funding our partners to develop GIS data, making GIS data more accessible to planners and decision makers, and facilitating the integration of GIS data into regional and local planning and policy decision-making processes.  Read more about the evolution of VA CZM’s mapping initiatives.

BLUE AND GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE MAPPING

Blue and green infrastructure consists of natural features on the land (forests, wildlife habitat, wetlands, etc.) and in the water (anadromous fish use areas, oyster reefs, underwater grass beds, etc.) that are critical to maintaining ecosystem and human health and survival.  Knowing where these resources are is essential to being able to protect them, so Virginia CZM has long made mapping them a priority.  The most current examples are Coastal GEMS and Coastal VEVA. 

Coastal GEMS

Coastal GEMS (Geospatial & Educational Mapping System) is Virginia CZM’s online mapping portal that compiles over 100 data layers including water and land based natural resources along with conservation planning tools and useful contextual data. 

Coastal VEVA

Coastal VEVA (Coastal Virginia Ecological Value Assessment) is a collaborative integration of conservation datasets and priorities in Virginia’s coastal zone developed to provide guidance for land use management and conservation. (View the Coastal VEVA Factsheet)

Coastal VEVA combines scientific data and best professional judgment to rank terrestrial and aquatic areas for their ecological value. These values can be used to prioritize lands for preservation, develop strategies for special area management actions, or to build awareness about Virginia’s natural communities.  View the VEVA layer on Coastal GEMS. 

After initial portal development funded by Virginia CZM, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Council on the Ocean (MARCO) launched the first US regional ocean data portal in December 2010.  The MARCO Portal includes an ocean planning resource center, and the Marine Planner, an Interactive mapping tool with over 6,000 data layers.  Virginia CZM continues to lead MARCO’s intergovernmental Ocean Mapping and Data Team to keep the portal updated.  Read more about Virginia CZM’s role in MARCO here.

Contact Nick Meade, Coastal GIS Coordinator at Nick.Meade@deq.virginia.gov for more information about Virginia CZM's mapping initiatives or to request GIS support for a coastal mapping project. 

Disclaimer: The Coastal VEVA Factsheet was created before the Section 508 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 was enacted for Virginia state agencies. Therefore, some of the Factsheet content may not be in an accessible format pursuant to Section 508 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (29 U.S.C. § 794 (d)). Please call Nick Meade at 804-659-1910 if you need assistance.