AAG Conference 2007, San Francisco, CA, April 17th, 2007, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) announces the availability of a new web portal to access the National Land Cover Dataset (NLCD). Developed using eSpatial’s iSMART® product suite, the system provides an intuitive web interface enabling users to selectively view and analyze the nationwide NLCD from any web browser.

Designed for use by both expert and non-expert users, the new application incorporates the entire USGS National Land Cover Data repository, which includes nationwide data coverage for 1992 and 2001. A third dataset, the NLCD Change Product, shows in specific detail how land cover has changed during this time.

Land cover, which is broadly defined as the pattern of natural vegetation, agriculture, and urban areas, is shaped by both natural processes and human influences. The range and accuracy of information in the NLCD database supports a broad spectrum of applications needed by managers of public and private lands, urban planners, agricultural experts, and scientists across many different disciplines (e.g. climate change or invasive species). The data help identify critical characteristics or monitor change in land usage for a wide variety of investigations. Based on satellite imagery and ground observations collected & processed over a number of years, the NLCD dataset represents an extremely valuable storehouse of information.

Key features provided by the application include:

• Access nationwide seamless databases containing land cover and other mapping data
• View land cover data for any geographic area of the US from any web browser without the need for specialized GIS software.
• Filter specific land cover classes for specific time periods (e.g. view all urban or forest areas in the 1990s)
• Clip selected areas by political, natural, or user-defined boundaries.(hand drawn area or specific region e.g. State or County)
• Calculate land cover statistics within selected areas and print out simple reports.
• Export selected areas or use in other applications.
• Export analysis results to external applications (e.g. Microsoft Excel, PDF)
• Ability to provide web service access to the data from external systems

An added advantage delivered by the application is the ability to serve the data as a web service to external applications without the need for them to store and manage the data locally. This service capability will lead to greater efficiencies in information sharing between federal agencies. Other federal agencies are already building applications which will benefit from the new USGS application.

Barbara J. Ryan, U.S. Geological Survey, Associate Director for Geography, “Land cover information has been a largely untapped resource. With increasing populations and the challenging prospect of climate change, comprehensive and accurate information about the condition of our land and how this is changing becomes more and more vital.” She continued, “This easy to use web based application opens up one of our national assets to a wider audience and provides a view of how our environment is changing at a glance.”

David Miller, COO eSpatial, “eSpatial is proud to be associated with the new USGS Land Cover Portal. This is a great example of how technology can be leveraged to store, manage and deliver information to a wider, non-specialist audience over the web. This data has been available for many years – but only for access using specialized software tools and not in a seamless dataset for the entire country”.

About eSpatial
eSpatial is a global software and consulting company specializing in GIS (Geographical Information Systems) and Location Services. eSpatial leverages ten years of Oracle Spatial experience to deliver sophisticated and powerful web applications. The company has a consistent track record of cost-effective solutions that deliver significant return on investment for its customers. iSMART®, the company’s award winning software suite, is the most comprehensive solution to complement Oracle's Spatial technology platform and is fast becoming the first choice for Oracle Spatial.

About USGS
A bureau of the U.S. Department of the Interior, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is dedicated to the timely, relevant, and impartial study of the landscape, natural resources, and natural hazards. USGS provides science for a changing world. For more information, visit www.usgs.gov

Orla Power, Marketing and PR, eSpatial Solutions Ltd., Swords Business Park, Co. Dublin, Ireland. t: +353.1.870.8800, f: +353.1.870.8899, e: Email Contact www.espatial.com

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