Spatial Data Management for Protected Areas

Management of a protected area (ecosystem) requires integration of ever increasing volumes of diverse spatial and non-spatial data, from numerous sources at local, national and regional scales into a manageable whole. Spatial data management has a major impact on developing systems for decision support as it determines how data is organized within the management framework. This paper was developed in the framework of the HKKH Partnership Project. It specifies information requirements for varieties of applications on protected area management are analyzed and an indicative list of data ispresented. Principles of database design are discussed. A comprehensive study on spatial reference system for Nepal, China and Pakistan is presented, which is particularly important from the perspective to integrate different sources of spatial information in a common geographic reference system.