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Track: Database Design and Automation
Caroline Alves
United States Government
18 Blair Park
Williston, VT 05495
Telephone: 802-878-7402
Fax: 802-879-3920
E-mail: caroline@vcgi.uvm.edu
Creating Soils Data That Meet National Standards and Local Needs
Defining Issue: The need for detailed soils information has resulted in a major national initiative by the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to provide county-based soil surveys in digital format. GIS Solution: The Vermont NRCS, working cooperatively with the Vermont Center for Geographic Information, developed a comprehensive system using host ArcInfo to produce the digital soils data layer. Methodology: Vermont GIS users want a soils data layer that is compatible with and integrated with other State GIS layers. Producing soils data that meet state standards as far as scale, photobase, surface water features, and distribution format is very challenging since National SSURGO (Soil Survey Geographic) Database Standards required by NRCS are substantially different. Development of digital soils data has had a 14-year history in Vermont. As standards have evolved, methodologies to automate soil maps have evolved. The result is a menu-driven, well-documented system that runs through extensive
quality control checks. Two data sets are produced: one that fits Vermont GIS standards, which is then transformed to generate the SSURGO soils data set for national distribution. Software: The process relies on host ArcInfo software. It involves automated tools and interactive editing procedures. The discussion will focus on identifying sources of errors, spanning from when a soil scientist creates a hand drawn map in the field to the final stages of digital data development. Emphasis will be placed on strategies to minimize introduction of errors in all phases of the process.
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