Survey and Mapping Working Group

The Survey and Mapping Working Group of the Informatics Commission tackles the various issues related to cave/karst survey and mapping. Where a significant amount of work is needed on a particular task, it creates a subgroup to help focus on that work. Anyone who wants to participate in the work of a Group, and countries who want to appoint a Country Delegate to the Group or one of its sub-groups for final voting, are invited to contact the respective Chairman (click on Chairman's name for contact details). UIS voting is on the basis of one vote per interested country. The sub- Working Groups to date are:

Recently, the working group reviewed the basic map symbols. Now it is tackling survey and mapping grades. Details can be found in our Grades Forum. This WG has finished discussion and is now voting by WG country delegates.

Forums: The working group's forums can be found at: http://www.uis-speleo.org/forum/viewforum.php?f=63

In collaboration with IGU and IAH

The Karst Surface Map Symbols Working Group developed the symbols list over several years, also in consultation with the Karst Commissions of the International Geographical Union (IGU) and the International Association of Hydrogeologists (IAH). Final voting by the Working Group Country Delegates was in May 2006.

You can find the Karst surface symbols at: http://www.sghbern.ch/surfaceSymbols/symbol1.html
They are also published in Zeitschrift für Geomorphologie, Supplementbände, Band 147.
See: http://www.borntraeger-cramer.de/pubs/isbn/bo/zeitschrfg-344321147X-desc.html

The UIS Working Group country delegates voting were:

The Working Group has been discussing survey and mapping grades, originally introduced by BCRA (UK), and later adopted by other organizations. The grades assess the precision and accuracy of a given survey, and discuss the methods and materials used. Although these grades are widely known, the UIS has never discussed and adopted a grading system. The main debate is already over (Kerrville 2009), and the current draft is available via our Grades Forum.

Discussion has now finished and voting is under way by the country delegates. Votes should be in by around the end of June 2010.

Forum: http://www.uis-speleo.org/forum/viewforum.php?f=63

Country Delegates:

Collaborators:

The Survey and Mapping Working Group completed its work on Basic Cave Mapping Symbols in May 1999. The now standard symbols arose from extended discussions by many people, then final voting by the Working Group Country Delegates.

The agreed set of Basic Cave Mapping Symbols can be found at: http://www.carto.net/cgi-neumann/cave_symbol.pl

The country delegates were:

* Before the vote it was stated that absence of a vote would be taken as a "Yes".

Between July 2007 and May 2008 the list was in revision. It was not a major revision as the setup of the standards took place only in 1999. However the Working Group decided to leave them unchanged.

The delegates were:

This Group will be working on an exchange and archiving format for cave and karst data, but in the first instance concentrated on data relating to cave surveying and mapping. The format will use XML standards, and the work will be co-ordinated with that of the coming UISIC Working Group for Cave Data Field Definitions. The format (Markup Language) is called CaveXML.

After much discussion, and for a while losing our server to a hacker, CaveXML for survey and mapping unfortunately got too hard, and since mid 2005 interest has waned. If anyone wants to tackle any of the tasks identified, or resurrect and lead the group on the survey and mapping project, please email the Chairman. The web pages and mailing list reflecting the progress of the survey and mapping project of the Working Group can be found at:
http://www.cavexml.uis-speleo.org

At the 1997 UIS Congress in Switzerland, the UIS Informatics Commission (UISIC) was asked by the Chairman of the original Swiss Speleo Society's Working Group for Cave Mapping Symbols to form a new working group within the Commission to further this work. After discussion the proposal was accepted, and was included in UISIC's 4-year plan at the subsequent UIS General Assembly.

The reasons for forming the Survey and Mapping Working Group within UISIC were:

• to be able to move forward in an official way with the latest proposals for the core group of mapping symbols which had been solidly discussed in an international forum during the Congress, and which needed circulating for further comment and eventual formal voting.
• the expected close liaison which would be needed between the commission and the working group with respect to the integration of cave surveys, inventorying, cave databases and GIS.
• the delay which would be involved in forming a separate top-level commission or working group within UIS.

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