Environmental data and the Internet: openness and digital data management

In recent years the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) has, for a variety of reasons, worked intensively on implementing Internet technologies. The most important aim has been to provide public and private companies with access to many of the geological databases and maps at the Survey, thus substantially increasing the value of the geological data. In this way GEUS is implementing the intentions of the United Nations Aarhus-convention in respect of access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters (UNEC 1998). Another important objective has been to improve the procedures that deal with data input, registration and quality control of the large amounts of data that GEUS receives from regional authorities, private drilling companies and advisers, as well as that acquired by the activities of its own geological staff. This complies with the Danish Government’s initiatives for making the public sector more efficient through digital data management.