Geographic information in the age of the INSPIRE Directive: discovery, download and use for geographical research

Abstract

This article describes the concept and impacts of dealing with geographic information according to the Directive on INfrastructure for SPatial InfoRmation in Europe: INSPIRE. A brief introduction contains the scope and aims of this infrastructure and is supported by a section on legislative background at both the European and Czech levels. All components of the European infrastructure are analysed sequentially, i.e. starting with metadata, network services, data sharing, monitoring and reporting. The main focus of the article is aimed at the issues of geographic data interoperability and harmonization through application schemas. Unique identifiers, voidable elements, reference systems, temporal representations, quality of geographic data, encoding and visualisation are then subjected to deeper analysis. The concept of INSPIRE is presented in a model case of searching for cross-border geographic data using the INSPIRE geoportal, its preview in a Geographic Information System and its retrieval.