Compliance & Data Sourcing

Sources & Attribution
PWSGUIDE.com

PWS Guide relies on open public-domain government data, community field reports, and open mapping frameworks. This page lists all data providers and license disclosures.

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1. National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)

We rely heavily on NOAA's public-domain databases to populate our live conditions, forecasts, and interactive charts:

  • NOAA Tides & Currents API: Tide predictions and telemetry are queried from the Whittier Station (ID 9454949), Cordova Station (ID 9454050), and Valdez Station (ID 9454240).
  • NOAA NWS Marine Forecasts: Meteorological reports, storm alerts, and gale warnings are parsed from NWS Juneau and Anchorage forecasts.
  • NOAA Office of Coast Survey WMTS: Standard marine booklet charts displayed in our basemap toggles are rendered from NOAA's public Web Map Tile Services.

Compliance Note: NOAA charts and forecasts are public domain. However, we note that PWS Guide's re-renderings are not official charts and have not been vetted by NOAA.

2. OpenStreetMap & Protomaps

Our vector background mapping is powered by open cartographic frameworks:

  • OpenStreetMap (OSM): Vector base features (coastlines, ports, and land boundaries) are sourced from OpenStreetMap contributors, licensed under the Open Database License (ODbL).
  • Protomaps: Tile delivery frameworks and raster basemap serving utilize Protomaps tiles.

Attribution: Map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors.

3. U.S. Forest Service & Recreation.gov

Coordinates, capacities, and reservation links for public-use cabins in the Chugach National Forest are derived from public datasets provided by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and made available on the Federal Recreation.gov API.

4. Alaska Department of Fish & Game (ADF&G)

Sportfishing regulations, run counts, salmon hatchery locations, and spawning timings listed in our hatcheries and resources guides are sourced from ADF&G announcements, emergency orders, and public publications.

5. Original Prose & Field Research (Fact Isolation)

All anchorage approach notes, protection details, local anchoring reviews, and route intelligence are the original expressions and field research of the PWS Guide editors.

To maintain strict compliance with intellectual property standards, we utilize a strict Fact Isolation Protocol. Factual geographical markers (depths, mud-bottom quality, coordinates) are verified against public records, but no text or maps are copied from legacy commercial guidebooks.