[Coral-List] Clarifications re: Allen Coral Atlas

[Vassil Zlatarski]

Thank you, David, I respectfully accept your expert's opinion. The problem
is that last August this obvious mistake was kindly pointed to the Allen
Coral  Atlas team with provided pertinent information and documentation to
fix it.  Unfortunately, they did not receive any attention. Why now the
Allen Coral Atlas team is continuing to appeal for collegial feedback on
their maps and why to blame only the algorithm?  I trust this clarification
would serve constructively.

Cheers,

Vassil

Vassil Zlatarski
D.Sc. (Biology), Ph.D. (Geology)

On Wed, Dec 16, 2020 at 9:05 AM David Blakeway via Coral-List <
coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:

> I think we should recognize the inherent difficulty of automated global
> reef mapping. There's no way a single algorithm can do it. If the Allen
> maps are only 75% correct, or even 50% correct, that's a significant
> achievement to build on. Machine learning will do it, given enough ground
> truth points.
> Although I understand Vassil's disappointment about the missing Golfo de
> Guacanayabo reef - possibly the world's largest Holocene reef?? (by volume)
>
>
>
> On Wed, Dec 16, 2020 at 1:46 AM Helen Fox via Coral-List <
> coral-list at coral.aoml.noaa.gov> wrote:
>
> > Dear Coral-List,
> >
> > We wanted to response to the comments from Doug Fenner and Vassil
> > Zlatarski on
> > 12 Dec 2020 re: errors in the Allen Coral Atlas (in the thread "Source
> for
> > "coral occupy <1% of the seafloor but house more than 25% of species"):
> >
> > - The Atlas maps (depth, geomorphic and benthic composition) will have
> > errors in them - we are very up front about this on our page that
> explains
> > how we make the maps and that errors are likely to result
> > https://allencoralatlas.org/methods/, and in the FAQ’s “What do I do if
> I
> > find an error or problem in the map?” https://allencoralatlas.org/faq/.
> >
> > - Using satellite image data for reef mapping has limitations; we are
> very
> > open with what they are (see “USER Guide Part 1
> > <
> >
> https://storage.cloud.google.com/coral-atlas-field-data/training-materials/ACA%20user%20guide%20(part%201)%20general%20use.pdf?_ga=2.30240639.-1988623561.1568131422
> > >”
> > at the bottom of the Field Engagement section of
> > https://allencoralatlas.org/methods/; this also explains why we expect
> > errors and where to send corrections (corrections at allencoralatlas.org),
> > since we cannot know where the errors will occur and cannot check them
> all.
> > It is always a trade-off to map and monitor millions of km2 of any
> > environment, so the more we link with field data and knowledge the more
> we
> > improve the process!
> >
> > - Feedback is an important part of improving the process and we’re
> grateful
> > to everyone that has helped provide feedback on the maps to our team.
> > Ideally we can fix systemic errors by improving the semi-automated
> mapping
> > approach, but in other cases we can’t, due to the constraints of this
> > approach (for example, we cannot map turbid areas). We appreciate all
> forms
> > of feedback, but we cannot, and have never, guaranteed that any specific,
> > localized errors can be corrected.
> >
> > Our feedback request has been on the website since we launched it, and
> this
> > is what you can provide that will help us:
> >
> > · Reef name(s) or location, either:
> >
> >  · coordinates and/or a georeferenced polygon (in kml, shapefile, or JSON
> > format)
> >
> >  · screen shots from the Atlas of relevant area (annotated with details)
> >
> >  · copy Atlas URL of zoomed in location (this will enable us to see the
> > area you are talking about)
> >
> > · Explanation of the error and your suggestion for correcting it/them
> >
> > · Send us any relevant field data
> >
> > · Your contact details
> >
> > The Allen Coral Atlas is a large international collaborative effort
> > building on decades of reef mapping knowledge from this community. It
> only
> > works based on contributions from many reef ecology, management and
> > community groups around the world working with the mapping and engagement
> > teams. We’re really grateful to everyone on this list who has volunteered
> > their time, expertise and datasets to help improve our maps. Our products
> > will continue to evolve and improve as we refine it over time and improve
> > based on where people find errors.
> >
> > We will continue to do our very best to provide a state-of-the-art
> resource
> > to support research and conservation by the coral reef community,
> > especially in places where no previous maps exist. Local manually-created
> > reef maps of well-studied areas will often be more reliable and accurate
> > than the Atlas, but many coral reef regions lack detailed or accessible
> > spatial data; the Atlas seeks to fill these gaps, and provide
> > globally-consistent products.
> >
> > Many thanks to everybody in the coral reef community (Coral-List and
> other
> > fora) who have acted constructively and supportively to help us build and
> > share this resource.
> >
> > Sincerely,
> >
> > Helen & the Allen Coral Atlas team
> >
> > Helen E Fox, PhD Allen Coral Atlas, Field Engagement Advisor (
> hfox at ngs.org
> > )
> >
> > Conservation Science Director, Coral Reef Alliance (hfox at coral.org)
> >
> >
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