The document summarizes a presentation given to the US EPA Office of Pollution Prevention & Toxics on publishing EPA data as linked open data on the web. The presentation covered trends in open government data, the EPA Linked Data Service which publishes facility, substance, and toxic release report data as linked data, and the benefits of publishing data as linked open data including increased access and reuse across applications. It provided examples of how linked data can help different types of users more easily find and explore related EPA compliance and pollution data.

1. Sharing Data on the Web
5-Mar-2013
Linked Data Overview for US EPA
Office of Pollution Prevention & Toxics
By Bernadette Hyland & Luke Ruth
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2. Agenda
• Intros ...
• Trends in data management
• Government data publication
• Update on EPA Linked Data Service
• EPA OPPT sharing data on the Web
• Review Next steps ...
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3. 3 Round Stones produces the leading platform for
the publication of reusable data on the Web. Our
commercially supported Open Source platform is
used by the Fortune 2000 and US Government
agencies to collect, publish and reuse data, both on
the public Internet and behind institutional firewalls.
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4. US EPA Linked Data
• Cloud-based Linked Data provision of 3 core
programs:
• 2.9M Facilities
• 100K substances
• 25 years of toxic pollution reports
• FISMA compliant
• 16 Callimachus templates
• Official launch April 2013
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6. Guidance for developers
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7. US GPO
• Cloud-based Linked Data provision of persistent
URLs for US Government documents:
• 100k+ documents
• Used by 1,240 Federal Depository Libraries and
public
• In 3rd year of operation
• Deemed an Essential service supporting US
Congress
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8. http://www.manning.com/dwood/
http://3roundstones.com/linking-government-data/
http://3roundstones.com/linking-enterprise-data/
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10. Trends in government
data management
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12. Open Government Data
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13. Growing chorus ...
“We’re moving from managing
documents to managing discrete pieces of
open data and content which can be
tagged, shared, secured, mashed up and
presented in the way that is most useful
for the consumer of that information.”
-- Report on Digital Government: Building a 21st Century Platform to
Better Serve the American People
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15. Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/glennharper/4452247708/
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16. Big Data
Simple data
Complex data
Legacy data
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17. Governments
Goals: Governmental transparency and/or improved
internal efficiencies (data warehouses)
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21. HELPING DEFINE THE PROCESS
Identify Model Name Describe Convert Publish
Maintain
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22. Path to Success
• Start easy
• Well curated datasets with relevant data
• Reach out to developers
• Get others involved early
• Ensure internal benefit
• Integrate related datasets
• Address data quality ...
• Multiple approaches including crowed sourcing
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23. Put it on the Web
• Upload & share it
• Document what is available
• Document how to use it
• Solve a customer need
• Encourage feedback
• Continuous improvement
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24. Use a non-proprietary format
• Open Web data exchange formats that improve access
and re-use
• RDF instead of CSV
• Benefits
• Accessibility & Interoperability
• Reduce risk of
• Confidential info
• Software viruses
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25. Open data + open standards +
open platforms
Highly scalable computing & hosting via the
Cloud
International Data Exchange Standards
5 Star Data (Linked Data)
Leverage Open Source tools
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26. Its the Web of Data
• Universal unidirectional
links using URLs
• “Cooperation without
coordination
• It’s simple ... nodes and
links
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27. Universal Identifiers
• It’s the foundation of the
Web
• Others can reference things
• Two references with the
same URI are the same
thing
• Quick, easy and scaleable
• People keep coming back
for more!!
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28. Social Responsibility
• Responsibility to maintain published data
• Publish frequency of data updates
• Have a persistence strategy
• Ensure data is accurate as possible
• Respond to reports of problematic data
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29. Data driven Web apps using Callimachus
US Legislation +
enterprise data
Clinical Trials +
DBpedia + enterprise linked
enterprise datasets data
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31. User
US EPA US EPA
NOAA
AirNow SunWise
National
DBpedia Library of
Medicine
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34. From EPA
From Wikipedia
Open Street Map
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36. We’ve Seen This Before
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37. HOW IT IS DONE TODAY ...
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38. Audience for EPA Data
• Middle school student doing a science project
• Concerned citizen worried about local pollution
• Environmental Science PhD from EPA
• Doctor from NIH writing a research paper
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39. How much mercury did
Hanson Permanente Cement
release in 2004?
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41. Web Portals
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46. Finding Hanson Permanente
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47. Finding Mercury Released in 2004
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48. Compliance Report
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49. Potential Audience
XMiddle school student doing a science project
•
XConcerned citizen worried about local pollution
•
✔Environmental Science PhD from EPA
•
XDoctor from NIH writing a research paper
•
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50. Linked Data
Approach
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51. Finding Hanson Permanente
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52. Finding Mercury Released in 2004
1
2
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53. TRI Report
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54. Data Reuse
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55. Potential Audience
✔
• Middle school student doing a science project
✔
• Concerned citizen worried about local pollution
✔Environmental Science PhD from EPA
•
✔
• Doctor from NIH writing a research paper
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58. Credits
Gartner: “Innovation Insight: Linked Data Drives Innovation Through Information-
David Newman
Sharing Network Effects” Published: 15 December 2011
Linking Government Data, Springer (2011)
David Wood, ed.
http://3roundstones.com/linking-government-data/
Digital Government Strategy: Building a 21st Century Platform to Better Serve the
American People,
US Executive Branch
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/egov/digital-government/digital-
government.html
W3C Linked Data Cookbook http://www.w3.org/2011/gld/wiki/Linked_Data_Cookbook
All other photos and images © 2010-2012 3 Round Stones, Inc. and released under a CC-by-sa license
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