Blackmon, James H.  Bo

English

Louisiana State University: DigitalCommons @ LSU Law Center

Annual Institute on Mineral LawVolume 54 The 54th Annual Institute on Mineral Law Article 144-12-2007The ABC's of Accessing Conservation InformationJames H. "Bo" BlackmonFollow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.law.lsu.edu/mli_proceedingsPart of the Oil, Gas, and Mineral Law CommonsThis Paper is brought to you for free and open access by the Mineral Law Institute at LSU Law Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion inAnnual Institute on Mineral Law by an authorized editor of LSU Law Digital Commons. For more information, please contact kreed25@lsu.edu.Repository CitationBlackmon, James H. "Bo" (2007) "The ABC's of Accessing Conservation Information," Annual Institute on Mineral Law: Vol. 54 ,Article 14.Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.lsu.edu/mli_proceedings/vol54/iss1/1410. The ABC's of AccessingConservation InformationJames H. "Bo" BlackmonGIS Manager, Louisiana Department ofNatural ResourcesBaton Rouge, LouisianaI. IntroductionThe Louisiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is responsi-ble for the management of oil and gas resources within the state andmanagement and restoration of the state's vast coastal area. The DNROffices responsible for oil and gas development in the state are the Of-fices of Conservation and Mineral Resources. The DNR Office of Con-servation (OC) i5 responsible for permitting and monitoring all oil andgas wells in the state, on state-owned or private land or water bottoms.The DNR Office of Mineral Resources (OMR) is responsible for theleasing of state-owned land and water bottoms for mineral extraction andmanagement of subsequent state income from lease rentals and petro-leum royalties which amount to an average of $375,000,000 per yearover the last ten years.DNR's most important oil and gas data management tool is theStrategic Online Natural Resources Information System (SONRIS, pro-nounced "sunrise'), a Web-based combination of Oracle database soft-ware technology, FileNet-managed electronic document images, and anESRI Web-enabled geographic information system (GIS). This systemdelivers all of DNR's Oracle data, several million documents, and morethan 200 GIS feature layers and custom mapping functionality to DNRstaff and the public. DNR created SONRIS in 1999 to upgrade the de-partment's ability to manage computer data and link it to document im-ages and the GIS.I. LDNR Internet InformationThe content of DNR Internet pages consists of critical informationconcerning DNR general information, resources, current activities, publicnotifications, oil and gas and coastal data, document access, and mappingfunctionality, http://dnr.louisiana.gov/. The two types of content arestatic (information and activities) and dynamic (database driven -SONRIS).The static information consists of the LDNR Office/Division mainpages, information about the agency, business and consumer services,contacts, events, links to other agencies, newsletters, news releases,rules, search function, site map, strategic plan, and much more.III. SONRIS Oil and Gas DatabaseThe SONRIS oil and gas database consists of millions of Oraclerecords of oil and gas and injection well data and mineral leasing data.-233-On the SONRIS Main Page under Database Access, four data accessmethods are listed. SONRIS Classic searches and reports (not specifi-cally named in list), which were the original SONRIS Internet data ac-cess method, are listed under Conservation and Minerals headings. Thisis an Oracle Forms application and slightly more complex to use thanSONRIS Lite, but more powerful. In SONRIS Classic, many search pa-rameters can be entered when searching for specific data. Users mustremember to use Enter Query to prepare the screen, enter the search cri-teria, then use the Execute Query. Users wanting to capture data from theSONRIS Classic screens can only do this with a "print screen" function.SONRIS Lite is the HTML version of the SONRIS Classic reportsand searches. SONRIS Lite was designed for users who do not have highspeed Internet connections. SONRIS Lite does not have the search powerof SONRIS Classic, but does not require JInitiator download which hascaused problems for those with slow Internet connections. SONRIS Liteonly allows one search criteria to be entered as compared to SONRISClassic which allows the entry of many search criteria. Any data inSONRIS Lite screens can be copied and pasted into an Excel spreadsheet. This cannot be done in Classic.The General Reports are PDF reports either generated by the userwhen making the request or pre-run by DNR staff. The reports listed un-der General Reports are also listed in the Conservation and Minerals re-ports lists.A new user unfamiliar with SONRIS should start at SONRIS Helpand review the information completely. Links in red text will take theuser to additional information about each of the sections of SONRIS,including a glossary and frequently asked questions (FAQ) section. Thispage also contains an e-mail link to the DNR Help Desk, the primaryDNR contact in case a user has questions or problems using SONRIS.Custom SONRIS oil and gas data reports can be manually pro-grammed and run by DNR IT staff for users outside DNR. A fee ischarged depending upon the amount of work required.Some of the most common questions that are asked about theSONRIS oil and gas database are:How do I find wells by section, township and range? Answer:SONRIS Lite/Well Information/Wells by Section, Township,Range.How do I find all the wells in a particular field? Answer: SONRISLite/Well Information/Wells by Field.How do I find well information by serial number? Answer: SONRISLite/Well Information/Wells by Serial Number.How do I find lease unit production? SONRIS Lite/Well Informa-tion/Wells by Serial Number.- 234 -This same information may be acquired using SONRIS Classic.One of the most questioned issues with the DNR oil and gas data-base is that oil and gas prbduction is not done by well but by lease orunit. Production can also bp retrieved by field, but keep in mind thatsome leases or units c'ould besplit'field or split parish leases or units.As with any large volume computer data operation, especially con-taining historic data records, There are problems with some of the data.There are missitg or incorrect data in some of the data sets created byDNR. DNR is strtying to improve this data. If you see an obvious prob-lem with DNR data with which you are working, contact the DNR HelpDesk and report it.One very important fact about the oil and gas database is the data isavailable immediately on SONRIS when entered into the SONRIS Ora-cle system.IV. Document AccessDNR estimites that there are approximately 50 million pages ofdocumentation in DNR, both historic and current. This includes paperfiles, microfiche, microfilm, and recently added, electronic documents inExcel, Word, ar d WordPerfect. At this point, DNR has captured ap-proximately 10 million pages and has several contracts for historicdocuments and has set up several document imaging workstations inDNR for current document imaging.DNR has selected FileNet as the main document image managementsoftware. To make the system work on your computer, the FileNet IDMViewer must be lownloaded to your computer from the DNR Web site.This is a simple process. Since Microsoft's Internet Explorer Version 7(IE 7) has been introduced, there have been problems so FileNet updatedtheir viewer to work with IE 7. You must download the viewer again ifyou have upgraded to IE 7.To locate a document, press the Search link on the Document Ac-cess Main Menu and the Search Screen will be displayed. This screengives the user the ability to choose from various document types, such asOffice of Conseriation Field Orders and Production Cards. Over time,more file sources are being scanned and made available to the user.Drop-down menu items allow the user to select the DNR Office and theDocument Type the user wants to find and view. Once the user has speci-fied that information, the indexes available will shorten depending on theDocument Type the user has selected. If the user knows more informa-tion, such as a Field Code or Date, the user may specify those items. Thiswill speed the search and provide a better "hit list" of available docu-ments.-235-Several companies in the oil/gas industry have requested large num-bers of well logs. DNR has developed a process to make these availablefor a fee which depends on the number of logs requested.V. Interacdve MapsDNR has been using Geographic Information System technologysince the early 1980's beginning in the Coastal Management Division.DNR implemented its first oil and gas GIS Web site in 1998 under theguidance of the Office of Conservation. The Web site consisted of ap-proximately 150,000 well locations, 1,700 oil and gas field center points,and USGS base maps at 1:100,000 and 1:24,000. The GIS Web site wassignificantly upgraded in 2001 with the addition of Office of CoastalRestoration and Management data and significant additional mappingfunctionality and has continually been upgraded since then with new dataand functionality. The GIS Web sites are currently at Version 15 soon tobe upgraded to Version 16.SONRIS Interactive Maps users can make and print their own mapsusing DNR Oracle data and other reference base maps such as USGSmaps, aerial photography, and satellite imagery. Using the 23 availablestandard and custom GIS tools, users can build a completely custom mapfor their applications utilizing approximately 60 data layers on theSONRIS public Web site.DNR is now operating seven mapping Web sites: Public and inter-nal SONRIS Interactive Maps, public and internal Coastal Use Permit-ting sites, an internal Office of Mineral Resources site, a password pro-tected oil/gas related disaster recovery site, and a special purpose demon-stration Web site for the State Land Office. The purpose of the internalsites is the protection of DNR's and other state agencies' proprietary(non-public) data which DNR uses for day-to-day decision making. DNRalso offers a GIS oil and gas well data download site from which Ora-cle/GIS well data and locations for the entire state or for an individualparish can be downloaded in GIS format. Also available on this site areoil/gas field center points. Soon to be added to this site are the CoastalUse Permit data. This data is downloadable in shapefile format, which isa universal GIS data sharing format. Downloads directly from InteractiveMaps are also allowed for a single Active Layer visible in the Map View.If you are a new Interactive Maps user, it is extremely important toread the New User Help Window (window opens the first five times youopen the site), the General Instructions, What's New, and FrequentlyAsked Questions (FAQ) in the Tutorial which can be accessed on theSONRIS Main Page (www.sonris.com) below GIS ACCESS/ InteractiveMaps or below the map view on the Interactive Maps page. The first in-struction in the New User Help Window is to turn off all popup blockers.Interactive Maps uses popup windows for many functions. Interactive-236-Maps cannot be used as it was intended if any popup blockers are func-tional.With the introduction of Microsoft's XP operating system and IE 7,several access problems have been introduced with the upgraded secu-rity. To avoid these, make Interactive Maps a Trusted Site in the securitysettings in Internet Options. There are several other possible simple secu-rity changes which may have to be made for making maps anddownloading data to your computer. Some of these suggested changesare listed in the New User Help Window. Contact the DNR Help Deskfor a complete list of these changes or for help in implementing them.To learn about the GIS Tools at the top of the Map View, click onthe Tool Help tool (first tool on left), then click on another tool and theTutorial will open to that tool giving you detailed instructions for usingit. Be sure to cliik again on the Tool Help tool again to turn it off beforestarting to use tf.e tools. To obtain information on the feature layers (ex-ample: oil/gas wells), make a feature layer active by clicking on the tex-tual name of the layer in the layer list in the left column, then click on theLayer Info button below the Map View on the Interactive Maps page toview GIS Metacata (information about that particular GIS data set) foreach layer. Unfortunately, metadata is not available at this time for sev-eral DNR-create*I GIS data sets or for GIS data sets from other sources.The DNR IT GIS Section is working toward correcting this situation. Inmost cases, a conItact person for a GIS data set with no metadata is pro-vided in the inco:nplete metadata record.DNR has a large number of GIS data sets, some created in-houseand many from other sources. DNR receives many questions about theaccuracy and/or :esolution of these GIS data sets. The answer is that theaccuracy and/or resolution of the GIS data sets are highly variable. Gen-erally, they are the best which DNR can make available to the public. Ifimprovements are made in GIS data sets which DNR uses in InteractiveMaps, the GIS data sets will be updated with the improved data set.Another question frequently asked is about the currency of the data.DNR's GIS data or Oracle data transformed to GIS format is updated forthe GIS on a regular basis depending on the frequency of update done bythe DNR divisions or sections or other agencies responsible for the datamaintenance. Oil and gas well data is updated for Interactive Maps on adaily basis. Mine:,al leases are updated monthly or whenever changes aremade. Other layers may be updated daily to monthly with some of themore static GIS data layers updated upon request.Interactive Maps is a very dynamic and rapidly changing and im-proving system. Some improvements occur as a result of software up-grades, but most of the significant improvements have come from sug-gestions from uscrs and subsequent programming changes made by theDNR IT GIS section. If you have a suggestion for a functionality im--237-provement or addition of a new GIS layer, please contact the DNR HelpDesk with your suggestion.For those SONRIS oil and gas industry users who use their owndesktop GIS software, much GIS reference data is available for Louisi-ana. One excellent source of this data is the LSU Atlas Web site,http://atlas.Isu.edu/. It provides downloads for most of the important GISdata sets in Louisiana including the latest aerial photographs. Anothervaluable GIS resource has been a series of GIS data CDs and DVDs pro-duced at LSU for the Louisiana Oil Spill Coordinator's Office. The May2005 Louisiana GIS DVD is still available from the LAGIC Web site,http://laeic.1su.edu/. Another set of two 2007 GIS DVDs is being createdwith all the data which had been on the previous CDs and DVDs. ThisDVD set will be available this summer (2007). For more LouisianaInternet GIS resources, contact the DNR Help Desk.VI. Demonstrations and TrainingDNR has hosted many free SONRIS workshops and demonstrationsin Louisiana and Texas. These events occur several times per year. Theevents in Baton Rouge are announced on the DNR Internet Home Page.Persons interested in events in other cities should call the DNR HelpDesk to inquire about the scheduled workshops.VII. LDNR Web site addressesDNR Internet Home Page - http://dnr.louisiana.gov/SONRIS Main Page - www.sonris.comDocument Access - http://sonris-www.dnr.state.1a.us/www root/sonrisportal_ .htmInteractive Maps - http://sonris-www.dnr.state.1a.us/gis/sonris/viewer.htmCoastal Permitting GIS - http://sonris-www.dnr.state.1a.us/gis/cmdpermitext/viewer.htmVIII. LDNR Information Technology SONRIS Contact InformationThe best way to get help using SONRIS is to contact the DNR HelpDesk which is in the DNR Information Technology Section. If the HelpDesk staff cannot answer your question or help you solve your problem,they will contact the IT staff member most knowledgeable in the subjectmatter of your question. If there is a question regarding data which the ITstaff members cannot answer, the Help Desk will refer the question tothe proper DNR division or section which creates and maintains the data.To contact the DNR Help Desk, call 225-342-4556 or toll free 888-792-0432 or e-mail HelpDeskDNR@la.gov.DNR contact links to other DNR offices/divisions/sections can befound on the DNR Internet Home Page.-238-IX. ConclusionBy creating SONRIS, DNR has made a conscientious effort to makehistoric and cur:ent oil and gas computer data available to the oil and gasindustry for simplifying the planning process required for discoveringand producing petroleum products in Louisiana. DNR has presented thisdata via Internet to speed this process of data gathering; however, theDNR Offices of Conservation and Mineral Resources warn that all com-puter data should be verified with hard copy files or imaged documentsand plats when available.DNI strivc s to make its SONRIS computer data as accurate as pos-sible, but there are mistakes, especially in the historic data. The DNRInternet Disclaimer states:The information on this Web site has been carefully prepared from thebest available sources of data. It is intended for general informationalpurposes only and should not be considered authoritative for naviga-tional, engineering, other site-specific uses, or any other uses. The Lou-isiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) does not warrant orguarantee its accuracy, nor does DNR assume any responsibility or li-ability for any reliance thereon.DNR's SONRIS system is dynamic and undergoes changes and im-provements eveiy week. Improvements suggested by DNR staff and theoil and gas indu 3try and the public are acted upon regularly. If you havesuggestions for the general DNR Web site, please submit them to theDNR Internet webmaster at WebmasterDNR@la.gov. Suggestions forimprovements tc the SONRIS Web sites should be submitted to the DNRHelp Desk at HelpDeskDNR@la.gov.Users of the SONRIS system are asked by the DNR IT staff to pro-vide feedback especially when a functionality or data inconsistency prob-lem is noticed.DNR's SONRIS has been recognized nationwide by several groups:National Governor's Association.Computer Technology Industry Association Integration Award.Smithsonian Institution Innovation Award Nominee.Environmer tal Systems Research Institute Special AchievementAward for GIS.Articles in National Publications:Information Week.Government Technology.Governing.Oracle Magazine.Java Report.Knowledge Management.EOBOOX)- CQCCQ-239-

The ABC\u27s of Accessing
Conservation Information

https://digitalcommons.law.lsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1122&amp;context=mli_proceedings

The ABC\u27s of Accessing Conservation Information

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

Louisiana State University: DigitalCommons @ LSU Law Center