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Summary

The USFS needed to develop a first USFS-wide national land allocation data layer. This layer will be critical in supporting Land Management Plans (plans) which guide all projects and activities administered by the Forest Service across the National Forest System where projects and activities can occur under specified conditions (e.g., lands recommended for Wilderness, rivers eligible for Wild and Scenic Rivers designation, other designated areas, lands suitable for timber or grazing, etc).

Problem and Solution

Lacking this Land Allocation database limits the Agency’s ability to project national trends in activities, respond to Congressional inquiries, and monitor progress over time. The efforts will need to initiate a project to design a data model and dictionary, collect the data from 129 existing land management plans and additional maps from amendments to create the database and crosswalk definitions across regional (and other) efforts. The project will culminate in summary map products to demonstrate general themes across all units and tied into AGOL. Eventually, this work will feed into a long-term planning/National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)/monitoring system (eMNEPA).

Xentity first provided a data model design. We worked closely with GIS, Planning, and NFS GIS Coordinators, decomposing methods, various persona workflows (including database permission roles and security levels), data management parameters (e.g. where the database will reside and be managed), and more importantly, iterate on the various objects, features, layers, relationships, attributions, definition inputs, and master picklists to assure alignment to the personas and be prepared to align future planning, NEPA, and monitoring services and systems. Also, we collected current land allocation data and maps. Furthermore, we created a geospatial database in a number of steps. Finally, we provided crosswalk management for areas with national definitions. 

Outcome and Benefit

First, we provided the aforementioned Data Model Design Plan that includes an outline, workflow, and requirements for a data model and geospatial database for land management planning land allocations. Also, we provided a Land Allocation Geospatial Database that includes current land management planning, land allocation data and ability to create national maps by themes across all NFS lands. Finally we helped monitor progress and compliance.