Shira Bezalel's picture

Shira Bezalel

Database Administrator / Desktop Support Manager
Environmental Informatics Program
Information Technology Systems
510-746-7304

Shira Bezalel joined SFEI in October 2005, bringing to the organization expertise in database programming and design and geographic information systems. Shira has been involved in a number of technology projects over the years at SFEI, including the redesign of eCRAM which is used for storing CRAM (California Rapid Assessment Method) assessment data, as well as Project Tracker, CD3 and the Safe to Eat Portal (STEP). Prior to joining SFEI, Shira worked in the Bay Area software industry where she was responsible for supporting administrators of enterprise-scale database management systems. Shira has a B.A. in Economics from Binghamton University and a certificate in Geographic Information Systems from San Francisco State University. 

Related Projects, News, and Events

Project Tracker assists with regional reporting (News)

More and more groups rely on Project Tracker to assist with their reporting. Why? Because Project Tracker standardizes project data across programs so it is easier to summarize information for reporting purposes. Especially in the Bay Area, it is the most comprehensive regional dataset for project information.

California Rapid Assessment Method (CRAM) (Project)

CRAM is a standardized, scientifically defensible rapid assessment method for monitoring the ecological conditions of wetlands throughout California. Because it is standardized, one can compare ecological conditions of wetlands locally, regionally and statewide.

Dashboards track cumulative benefits on the landscape (News)

EcoAtlas dashboards are comprehensive views of qualified information provided by Project Tracker and the California Aquatic Resource Inventory (CARI). These dynamic visualizations help measure the cumulative benefits of public policies and programs for California's aquatic resources. 

DEDUCE: Delta Environmental Data for the Understanding of a California Estuary (Project)

The purpose of this project is to expand the existing San Francisco Bay Regional Data Center (RDC) to include the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Suisun Marsh (Delta). The anticipated outcome of this project is an estuary-wide data repository where one currently does not exist. 

SFEI and Google share Award for Re-Oaking (News)

SFEI and Google have won the Arnold Soforenko Award from the non-profit Canopy for significant contributions to the urban forest. The award is for our work on Re-Oaking Silicon Valley: Building Vibrant Cities with Nature.

The award ceremony was held at Palo Alto City Hall on January 25, 2018.

Russian River Watershed Atlas helps track and coordinate post-fire activities (News)

Fire recovery in the Russian River Watershed will benefit from a common online platform for compiling, visualizing, and interpreting many kinds of environmental data available from diverse federal, state, regional, and local sources. Providing such a platform is one objective of the Russian River Regional Monitoring Program (R3MP).

New Project Tracker online forms (News)

New Project Tracker online forms enhance EcoAtlas' regional capacity for habitat restoration project tracking, assessment and reporting. Partners can now upload and edit project information and approve projects for display on EcoAtlas. Project Tracker meets the important need of providing tools for partners to manage their projects and display information on EcoAtlas, a tool for visualizing the condition and extent of California's aquatic resources.

The key benefits of Project Tracker include:

New data layers and Landscape Profile mode added to EcoAtlas (News)

New data layers and Landscape Profile mode have been added to EcoAtlas (ecoatlas.org), an online tool for visualizing the abundance, diversity, and condition of wetlands, along with the project activities that are affecting the landscape. Enhancements include:

Lahontan EcoAtlas Development (Project)

This project will create an EcoAtlas user community for the Lahontan region of the Sierra Nevada to develop capacities within the region to apply EcoAtlas through existing local, regional, state, and federal programs to track projects and summarize map-based and rapid assessment information at the watershed scale.

Find more data in CD3! (News)

The Contaminant Data Display and Download Tool is a public tool for accessing and visualizing contaminant data. All data are comparable to CEDEN, the California Environmental Data Exchange Network.

We are happy to announce the release of some new enhancements to CD3 including:  

Habitat Restoration Project Tracking (Project)

This project expands the current capabilities of the wetland project tracking system for the monitoring and assessment of California’s aquatic resources to meet the project tracking, assessment, and reporting needs for current and planned habitat restoration in the San Francisco Bay-Delta and Central Valley.

Healthy Streams Portal (Project)

Healthy streams, rivers, and lakes provide safe drinking water, recreational opportunities, and important habitat for species ranging from the red-shouldered hawk to steelhead to crayfish and dragonflies. Maintaining healthy streams, rivers, and lakes can reduce the need for water treatment and water supply costs and make landscapes more resilient to climate change.

Lahontan Water Board adopts Regional EcoAtlas Tools (News)

The Lahontan Water Board (Regional Water Board 6) has formally adopted EcoAtlas and the California Rapid Assessment Method (CRAM). This will enable the Water Board to visually track and assess the extent of project impacts on a watershed basis throughout the region.

Beginning August 1 of this year, 401 Certifications and Waste Discharge Requirements will require applicants to upload project information into EcoAtlas. Applicants will be encouraged to use CRAM in pre- and post- project assessments.

SFEI Journal Article on Mercury in Coastal Fish of Western North America (News)

A journal article published in April details the findings of a collaborative survey of contaminants in fish on the California coast conducted by the RMP, the California Surface Water Ambient Monitoring Program, and the Southern California Bight Program in 2009-2010. The paper used that strong dataset as a foundation for a broad review of mercury in fish on the coast of western North America.  This work was done as part of a series of articles summarizing mercury science for western North America in a special issue of Science of the Total Environment.

CRAM Bar-Built Estuarine (BBE) module now available to expand the applicability of CRAM (News)

With funding from the State Coastal Conservancy, SFEI staff developed the eCRAM data entry forms for uploading BBE assessments into the CRAM database. Public assessments can be viewed on EcoAtlas' interactive map and downloaded using the CRAM filter tool.

New eelgrass survey data available on EcoAtlas (News)

Eelgrass (Zostera marina and Z. pacifica) is recognized as an important ecological resource in nearshore open coast areas, shallow bays, and estuaries throughout coastal California. Access to regional maps and related monitoring reports for eelgrass is crucial to monitor the extent of eelgrass habitat and how it is changing over time, evaluate the effects of coastal development projects on eelgrass habitat, and inform interested stakeholders and the public about eelgrass distribution.

California Wetlands Portal (Project)

The California Wetlands Portal, one of the State of California’s My Water Quality portals, is the common data management system for the State’s primary wetland protection policies and programs, including the 401 Certification and WDR Programs, the proposed Wetland and Riparian Protection Policy, and the State’s No-Net-Loss Policy.

Online 401 Application Tool (Project)

This tool provides a permit negotiation tool for applicants and Regional Water Board staff to work together on preparing a permit for a 401 Water Quality Certification or Waste Discharge Report for projects impacting waters of the US or California. The application tool will streamline 401 Certification applications, provide access to historical 401 cases, and enable standardized reports on the status and trends of 401 projects and ambient conditions for watersheds, regions, and statewide.

Wetland Portal Data Entry for the San Diego Region (Project)

Information and maps for 168 projects from the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board were uploaded to the Project Tracker database. These projects can be viewed on EcoAtlas and the California Wetlands Portal. This project also provided guidance and training to support the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board's participation in the Online 401 Pilot Study.

California Rapid Assessment Method (CRAM): Bar-Built Estuarine Wetlands (Project)

 The CRAM Bar-Built Estuarine module is used for assessing reaches of coastal rivers and streams that are ecologically influenced by seasonal closures of their tidal inlets.