CERES Brings Biodiversity to Your Computer

Like the key to a vast library, CERES unlocked volumes of information about California's natural resources when it went on-line two years ago. Today, CERES -- the California Environmental Resources Evaluation System -- offers access to a steadily growing assortment of electronic data to assist individuals, watershed groups, students, planners, researchers, government agencies, and natural resources stewards and planners.

CERES (pronounced "series") is found on the Internet at http://ceres.ca.gov and is easily recognized by its familiar logo, the California golden poppy. The system is adding new data sources and links almost daily and receives 20,000 to 25,000 "hits," or accesses, a week.

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"CERES makes it possible to sit at your computer, click on a word or two, and instantly receive natural resources information at your office, classroom, or home that would have required a trip to a government office or library only a few months or years ago," said Doug Wheeler, California's secretary for resources and chairman of the California Biodiversity Council. "Through CERES, Californians in rural areas can gain access to data housed in cities hundreds of miles away that previously might have been too difficult or inconvenient for them to obtain. This amazing system provides its users with an essential tool in today's information age."

Developed by the California Resources Agency, CERES links the user to information about natural resources programs and issues from many many data banks of government agencies, academic institutions, and other entities. This includes information about the programs and activities of the local, state, and federal agencies represented on the Biodiversity Council.

What CERES Offers
Besides text, CERES offers maps, including satellite imagery; charts, graphs, geographic information system data layers, drawings, and photographs to augment and enhance information. The latest additions to CERES data are flagged "New!" in an eye-catching sunburst.

For convenience, CERES groups information by organization or agency, by bioregion, by environmental theme, and more. Many subjects are connected, or linked, to related data, so the user can quickly jump from one to another by clicking on a key word or phrase. Hypertext -- brightly colored, underlined copy -- indicates a link to additional information on that subject.

"CERES organizes and catalogues natural resources information on the World Wide Web in a user-friendly way that provides easy access," said Gary Darling, chief information officer of the California Resources Agency. "We are working with local, state, and federal government agencies, academic institutions such as the University of California, and community groups to make their environmental information available to CERES so that we can make it generally accessible."

The range of CERES is awesome.

California Biodiversity Council
From the California Biodiversity Council's home page the user can choose to look at current or past issues of the Council's quarterly newsletter, California Biodiversity News, bioregional activities, the Council's purpose and membership, meeting minutes, announcements, assistance, and "what's new."

Often, there is more than one way to access a particular web site.

For example, California Biodiversity News is available in CERES either through the California Biodiversity Council home page, or its own location. The newsletter home page also offers a separate collection of articles and columns by Wheeler, including his quarterly newsletter column "From the Chair." Council member agencies also offer home pages that can be accessed from the Council page or other links.

Accessing Biodiversity Information
For an introduction to California's biodiversity and access to biodiversity programs, activities, and publications, one can go to the CERES home page and select "California's Biodiversity" from Information by Theme.

Many important programs and policies have their own home page. The Natural Community Conservation Planning (NCCP) program, hailed as a national model for strategies that preserve biodiversity and accommodate compatible land use, is found at http://ceres.ca.gov/CRA/NCCP. The California's Wetlands Information System at http://ceres.ca.gov/wetlands opens with an inviting color picture of ducks flying at sunset, and includes descriptions of restoration and mitigation projects, Governor Pete Wilson's comprehensive 1993 Wetlands Conservation Policy, and wetlands increases in the last three years. The storehouse of information also informs users how to obtain a wetlands permit, agency roles and responsibilities in wetlands conservation, and geographic and educational information.

California Resources Agency
The Resources Agency home page at http://ceres.ca.gov/CRA opens with the Agency's mission statement -- responsibility for conservation, enhancement, and management of California's natural and cultural resources. The home page also offers links to information about Secretary for Resources Douglas P. Wheeler, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and the many programs that the Agency administers.

The Public Information section of the Agency's web provides Agency news releases and publications.

The Resources Agency's list of Departments and Programs enables the user to connect to its components and their activities. The Department of Water Resources home page, for example, provides links to information about snow levels and flooding, which can be especially helpful to people who are living, working, or traveling in areas affected by these conditions.

The Department of Fish and Game home page lists available resources such as fish and game regulations, fishing and hunting license fees for 1996, frequently asked questions, and a new section, "Living with Mountain Lions."

Bioregional Activities
One of the purposes of the California Biodiversity Council is to encourage the participation of local communities -- public, landowner, and private organizations -- through watershed and bioregional groups. Dozens of these groups are operating throughout California, serving as a forum for local biodiversity issues. In addition to the informal liaison with the Council that watershed and bioregional groups provide, local governments and communities are represented on the Council by the regional county supervisor associations and the California Association of Resources Conservation Districts.

The Biodiversity Council offers a home page about bioregional activities at http://spp-www.cdf.ca.gov/htdcos/biodiv/text/bioreg_active.html that includes a Directory of Watershed Groups and their home pages. The link even has access to a pop-up registration form for new groups. Bioregional Activities offers samplings of Multi-Species Conservation Planning efforts, California Watershed Projects Inventory, a calendar of conservation related activities, and a color map of California's 10 bioregions.

Many CERES and California Biodiversity Council web sites are still under construction. Soon to be released are web sections describing California's bioregions and their geography, plants, wildlife, industries, demographics, and other features.

For further information, contact CERES by telephone at 916-653-8614 or 916-653-8215, or e-mail: webmaster@ceres.ca.gov

Mailing address: 900 N Street, Suite 250, P.O. Box 942837, Sacramento, CA, 94237-0001.