Abstract
Elevation data are essential to a broad range of applications, including forest resources management,
wildlife and habitat management, national security, recreation, and many others. For the
State of New York, elevation data are critical for coastal zone management, natural resources conservation,
agriculture and precision farming, flood risk management, infrastructure and construction management, water
supply and quality, and other business uses. Today, high-density light detection and ranging (lidar) data are
the primary sources for deriving elevation models and other datasets. Federal, State, Tribal, and local agencies
work in partnership to (1) replace data that are older and of lower quality and (2) provide coverage where
publicly accessible data do not exist. A joint goal of State and Federal partners is to acquire consistent,
statewide coverage to support existing and emerging applications enabled by lidar data.
The National Enhanced Elevation Assessment evaluated multiple elevation data acquisition options to determine
the optimal data quality and data replacement cycle relative to cost to meet the identified requirements of the
user community. The evaluation demonstrated that lidar acquisition at quality level 2 for the conterminous
United States and quality level 5 ifsar data for Alaska with a 6- to 10-year acquisition cycle provided the
highest benefit/cost ratios. The 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) initiative selected an 8-year acquisition cycle
for the respective quality levels. 3DEP, managed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), the Office of Management
and Budget Circular A–16 lead agency for terrestrial elevation data, responds to the growing need for
high-quality topographic data and a wide range of other 3D representations of the Nation’s natural and
constructed features.
|
First posted February 6, 2014
Part or all of this report is presented in Portable Document Format (PDF). For best results
viewing and printing PDF documents, it is recommended that you download the documents to your computer and open
them with Adobe Reader. PDF documents opened from your browser may not display or print as intended. Download the
latest version of Adobe Reader, free of charge.
|