Environmental Information Services Working Group Orientation
From the EISWG Terms of Reference:
“In 2012, the NOAA Science Advisory Board (SAB) confirmed the Environmental Information Services Working Group (EISWG) as a standing working group of the SAB. SAB charged EISWG to work closely with all five NOAA Line Offices (National Marine Fisheries Service – NMFS, National Ocean Service – NOS, Oceanic and Atmospheric Research – OAR, National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service – NESDIS, and National Weather Service – NWS), in order to: 1) provide advice on improving communication among the sectors, 2) provide advice on incorporating scientific and technical capabilities to enhance NOAA products and services, 3) provide a sounding board regarding implementation of NOAA’s Policy on Partnerships in the Provision of Environmental Information, and 4) evaluate NOAA effectiveness in responding to advice received from the EISWG, and the environmental information enterprise as a whole. The EISWG also leverages the knowledge and expertise of the other SAB working groups as necessary.
In 2017 the President signed PL 115-25 into law. The Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017 affirmed and authorized the EISWG as a standing working group of the SAB and assigned additional, specific charges to the working group.”
From the EISWG Terms of Reference:
“To provide advice for prioritizing weather research initiatives at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to produce real improvement in weather forecasting;
To provide advice on existing or emerging technologies or techniques that can be found in private industry or the research community that could be incorporated into forecasting at the National Weather Service to improve forecasting skill;
To identify opportunities to improve communications (A) between weather forecasters, Federal, State, local, tribal, and other emergency management personnel, and the public; and (B) communications and partnerships among the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the private and academic sectors; and
To address such other matters as the Science Advisory Board requests of the Working Group membership.”
H.R.353 – Weather Research and Forecasting Innovation Act of 2017
This bill, signed in 2017, affirmed and authorized the EISWG as a standing working group of the SAB and assigned additional, specific charges to the working group (see Charge tab for more details).
- Full text of Weather Act 2017
- Congress.gov webpage
- Title IV. Sec 401. ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION SERVICES WORKING GROUP.
The Weather Act was reauthorized in 2019 as part of the National Integrated Drought Information System Reauthorization Act of 2018.
From the EISWG Terms of Reference:
“In general, the Working Group shall be composed of leading experts and innovators from all relevant fields of science and engineering including atmospheric chemistry, atmospheric physics, remote sensing, meteorology, hydrology, social and behavioral sciences (including risk communication), electrical engineering, and computer sciences.
In carrying out its charge, the Working Group may organize into subpanels.
The Working Group shall be composed of no fewer than 15 members. Nominees for the Working Group may be forwarded by the Working Group for approval by the Science Advisory Board. Members of the Working Group may choose a chair (or co-chairs) from among their number with approval by the Science Advisory Board. EISWG members will be appointed for one three-year term renewable for one additional three-year term.”
A current list of EISWG members can be found here.
For information on upcoming meetings, please contact the EISWG Staff Support.
From the EISWG Terms of Reference:
“Not less frequently than once each year, the Working Group shall transmit to the Science Advisory Board, for submission to the Under Secretary, a report on progress made by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in adopting the Working Group’s recommendations. The Science Advisory Board shall transmit this report to the Under Secretary. Within 30 days of receipt of such report, the Under Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives a copy of such report.”
The following are links to key reports by the EISWG.
- Report Concerning the NOAA Report to Congress: Subseasonal and Seasonal (S2S) Forecasting Innovation: Plans for the Twenty-First Century (August 2022)
- 2022 EISWG Report to the United States Congress (April 2022)
- Statement Concerning the Ongoing NWS Data Dissemination Challenges (June 2021)
- Report and Recommendations to the NOAA SAB concerning the Hurricane Forecast Improvement Program (Oct 2020)
A list of all EISWG reports can be found here.
References
EISWG Google Drive (only accessible to EISWG Members)
EISWG 101 Presentation (updated September 2022)
EISWG Terms of Reference
Contacts
Cynthia Decker
Executive Director, Science Advisory Board
cynthia.decker@noaa.gov