Action Plan for May 2006 - April 2007

The OSC Action Plan for May 2006 through April 2007 is:

1. Review OSC Terms of Reference—make suggestions for changes; prepare companion document to the TOR giving OSC interpretation and specific details.
   Timeline: June 1, 2006
   Team leader (email): Jan van Smirren
    
2. Determine ways Councils & Committees will communicate and identify interdependencies; depends on Terms of Reference for the Councils & Committees
   Timeline: July 15, 2006
   Team Leader: Stephan Howden, Chair
    
3. Review and provide comments on the Business Plan related to Observing Systems
   Timeline: July 15, 2006 or sooner
   Team Leader: Stephan Howden, Chair
    
4. Create an outline for the GCOOS Observing System Plan, including tasks, task leaders, and timelines (see "Draft Outline of the GCOOS Observing System Plan" below).
   Timeline for draft outline to the Board of Directors: June 15, 2006
   Team leader: Stephan Howden
    
5. Prepare the GCOOS Observing System Plan
   Timeline: To Be Determined
   Team leader: Stephan Howden, Chair
   Items for possible inclusion are:
   1. Inventory existing in situ observing systems in GCOOS area, including standards and QA/QC procedures use by such systems
   2. Participate in development of national observing standards and QC/QC protocols
   3. Identify ways to communicate with other entities in GCOOS (possible cross-committee membership; possible routine conference calls between committee chairs for information exchange)
   4. Identify ways the OSC would like to obtain information on stakeholder/user community needs and mechanisms by the the OSC will recommend observing system solutions to meet those needs, including gap analysis
   5. Review new/underused technology and how it can address previously identified stakeholder/user needs
   6. Identify the relationship to the National Backbone (e.g., what with NB do relative to what GCOOS does in placement of stations)
   7. Develop mechanism for tasking the National Backbone
   8. Identify observing system pilot projects (e.g., applications of new technologies)
   9. Identify and prepare selected success stories
   10. Develop recommendations to the Board of Directors and Stakeholder Council on specific priorities for observations to fill gaps (e.g., bathymetry reassessments)
   11. Develop recommendations to the Board of Directors and Stakeholder Council on applying new technologies
   12. Develop recommendations to the Board of Directors and Stakeholder Council on pilot projects
   13. Confirm real-time physical data are going to NDBC and on to GTS
   
    
6. Recommend to the Board of Directors actions relative to the identification of historical data sets and their digital accessibility and archival
   Timeline: July 15, 2006
   Team Leader: Gary Jeffress
    
7. Review and provide comments on the Operation Center pilot project
   Timeline: May 15, 2006
   Team leader (email): Jim Byous
    
8. Review and update the Action Plan twice per year
   Timeline: October 2006 and April 2007
   Team leader: Stephan Howden, Chair