By the OGJ Online Staff
LONDON, Mar. 26�An interactive environmental mapping system, ImapS, developed by the United Nations Environment Program's World Conservation Monitoring Centre and the International Petroleum Industry Environmental Conservation Association, was disclosed Monday.
It was designed to be a decision making tool supporting exploration, contingency planning, and emergency response operations.
The system, which enables location-specific information to be accessed continuously, can create regional maps overlaid with data relevant to environmental sensitivities, such as protected areas, breeding sites, and vulnerable species.
Peter Taylor, senior consultant at Oil Spill Response Ltd. and member of IPIECA who helped develop IMapS, said the system's database would make an effective response possible in the early stages of an oil spill, by ensuring those environmental resources under threat were "properly assessed and protection priorities determined."
TotalFinaElf AS's Eric Calonne, who was involved in project, said IMapS could be used for operations such as environmental impact studies for pipeline routing, as well as for emergency response situations.
Information currently held in IMapS databases includes comprehensive data for the Mediterranean and Black Sea areas, global distribution of coral reefs, marine turtle breeding sites, World Heritage Sites, and the protected areas for the Indian Ocean.
IMapS was unveiled at the International Oil Spill Conference in Tampa, Fla.