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PMS 936

NWCG Standards for Geospatial Operations, PMS 936

 

The NWCG Standards for Geospatial Operations (GeoOps), PMS 936, provides the basis for consistency in the delivery of wildfire incident GIS products and services. These standards must be adhered to for all work performed by incident Geographic Information System Specialist (GISS) to fulfill the GIS needs of the Planning Section of the Incident Management Team (IMT).

Other NWCG resources, such as job aids, checklists, and training courses, are available to develop the GISS position and to implement GeoOps. A key resource for a GISS is the NWCG GISS Workflow, PMS 936-1, a supplemental publication to GeoOps which provides the implementation instructions and documentation for the standards presented in GeoOps.

The NWCG Standards for Geospatial Operations (GeoOps), PMS 936, are developed and maintained by the NWCG Geospatial Subcommittee (GSC) under the direction of the NWCG Data Management Committee (DMC).
Prior to February 2020, these standards were known as GIS Standard Operating Procedures on Incidents (GSTOP). While previous versions may contain relevant or useful information, the GSTOP is obsolete. The user of this information is responsible for confirming that they have the most up-to-date version. NWCG is the sole source for the publication.

Comments, questions, and recommendations shall be submitted to the appropriate agency member assigned to the GSC. View the complete roster.

GeoOps Sections

  1. Event Geodatabase
  2. National Incident Feature Services (NIFS)
  3. Directory Structure
  4. File Naming
  5. Symbology
  6. Map Elements
  7. Map Product Standards
  8. Documentation
The National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) provides national leadership to enable interoperable wildland fire operations among federal, state, tribal, territorial, and local partners. NWCG operations standards are interagency by design; they are developed with the intent of universal adoption by the member agencies. However, the decision to adopt and utilize them is made independently by the individual member agencies and communicated through their respective directives systems.

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NWCG Latest Announcements

2024 Week of Remembrance

Date: June 27, 2024
Contact: 6 Minutes for Safety Subcommittee 

As we approach the 2024 Week of Remembrance (WOR), June 30 to July 6, we dedicate this time to thoughtfully reviewing and recognizing the events of the 2018 Mendocino Complex. As such, this year’s theme of “Learning From the Mendocino Complex” embodies a longstanding hallmark of WOR, honoring through learning.

Throughout the week, our energy will be directed toward fostering generative conversations in briefing rooms and at tailgates.

References:

6 Minutes for Safety - 2024 Week of Remembrance

Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center

Updated NWCG Wildland Fire Risk and Complexity Assessment, PMS 236

Date: June 24, 2024
Contact: Incident and Position Standards Committee 

The June 2024 update of the NWCG Wildland Fire Risk and Complexity Assessment, PMS 236, is now available to meet the current needs for incident management typing.

The NWCG Wildland Fire Risk and Complexity Assessment should be used to evaluate firefighter safety issues, assess risk, and identify the appropriate incident management organization based on incident complexity. Assessing risk, determining incident complexity, and identifying an appropriate incident management organization is a subjective process based on examining a combination of indicators or factors, which can change over time.

References:

NWCG Wildland Fire Risk and Complexity Assessment, PMS 236

Operations Branch Director (OPBD) Next Gen PTB Available

Date: June 10, 2024
Contact: NWCG Feedback 

The NWCG Position Task Book for Operations Branch Director (OPBD), PMS 311-109 is now available for use within the OPBD position qualification pathway. As part of the transition to Complex Incident Management (CIM), the OPBD Next Gen PTB was developed and the position qualification pathway updated.

More information about the Next Gen PTB format can be found on the NWCG Position Task Book webpage.

References:

Operations Branch Director Position Page

Operations Branch Director Next Gen PTB

NWCG Position Task Books

Updated NWCG Standards for Interagency Incident Business Management, PMS 902

Date: June 5, 2024
Contact: NWCG Incident Business Committee 

The 2024 revision of the NWCG Standards for Interagency Incident Business Management, PMS 902 is now available. The uniform application of interagency incident business management standards is critical to interagency fire operations. PMS 902 assists NWCG agencies in constructively working together to provide effective execution of each agency's incident business management program.

References:

PMS 902