Hi all What is the OSM community issue with the concept of 'do not map this it will cause harm'?
OSMF and the OSM community cannot stop downstream users from using data however they like. It's open data, people may not even be aware that they need to apply specific tagging for visibility or not. The path of least harm is to let land managers remove informal paths and leave them removed. It's quite straightforward. I've worked on one project where having informal tracks visible on a map would have trashed years of advocacy work. I've also seen that if a trail appears on a map, it gets used. Others in this thread have given direct experience (ground truth if you like, or as close as anyone will get to whatever people think ground truth is) of when mapping trails leads to harm. As an open data community, mapping responsibly comes before "map all the things". This means considering that downstream users may not use data in ways we would like or expect once it is there. It's not even controversial that NSW NPWS would remove informal trails from OSM. Heck, I would. I'd also get smart, and start to ask OSM to revoke accounts of repeat trail remappers. Because see the second sentence in this email. Also remember it costs actual dollars to keep re-remediating trails, policing usage, monitoring which mapping aps are showing trails that should not be there. So an abstract insistence on a concept which does not even exist (ground truth) is sucking up real world time and money. Which, I'd wager, could be far better spend elsewhere. With regards, Adam -- Dr Adam Steer https://iamadamsteer.com
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