Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US) 4.0

ISO-19139 Metadata

Metadata Information

Metadata character set: utf8
Last update: 2024-04-25
Metadata contact:
Role: pointOfContact
Individual's name: PAD-US Team
Organization's name: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Gap Analysis Project (GAP)
Contact's position: PAD-US Dataset Manager
Contact information:
Phone:
Voice: 1-888-275-8747
Address:
Delivery point: PO Box 25046, MS 302
City: Denver
Administrative area: Colorado
Postal code: 80225
Country: US
e-mail address: pad-us@usgs.gov
Scope of the data described by the metadata: dataset
Scope name: dataset
Name of the metadata standard used: ISO 19139 Geographic Information - Metadata - Implementation Specification
Version of the metadata standard: 2007

Data Identification Information

Resource citation:
Title: Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US) 4.0
Collection title: Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US)
Date:
Reference date - publication: 2024-04-25
Edition: 4.0
Series:
Name: PAD-US
Issue: Version 4.0
Cited responsible party:
Role: originator
Organization's name: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
Cited responsible party:
Role: publisher
Organization's name: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
Contact information:
Address:
Delivery point: https://www.usgs.gov/programs/gap-analysis-project/science/protected-areas
Descriptive keywords:
Place keywords:
Keywords: United States, Alabama (AL), Alaska (AK), Arizona (AZ), Arkansas (AR), California (CA), Colorado (CO), Connecticut (CT), Delaware (DE), Florida (FL), Georgia (GA), Hawaii (HI), Idaho (ID), Illinois (IL), Indiana (IN), Iowa (IA), Kansas (KS), Kentucky (KY), Louisiana (LA), Maine (ME), Maryland (MD), Massachusetts (MA), Michigan (MI), Minnesota (MN), Mississippi (MS), Missouri (MO), Montana (MT), Nebraska (NE), Nevada (NV), New Hampshire (NH), New Jersey (NJ), New Mexico (NM), New York (NY), North Carolina (NC), North Dakota (ND), Ohio (OH), Oklahoma (OK), Oregon (OR), Pennsylvania (PA), Rhode Island (RI), South Carolina (SC), South Dakota (SD), Tennessee (TN), Texas (TX), Utah (UT), Vermont (VT), Virginia (VA), Washington (WA), West Virginia (WV), Wisconsin (WI), Wyoming (WY), American Samoa (AS), Mariana Islands (MP), Guam (GU), Puerto Rico (PR), U.S. Minor Outlying Islands (UM), United States Virgin Islands (VI)
Descriptive keywords:
Place keywords:
Keywords: United States
Keyword thesaurus:
Title: Common geographic areas
Date:
Descriptive keywords:
Theme keywords:
Keywords: Protected Area, Public Access, Land Manager, GAP Status Code, Land Stewardship, Land Ownership, Gap Analysis, Biodiversity, Conservation, Protection Status, IUCN Category, Federal Lands, Public Lands, Outdoor Recreation, Public Health, Public Open Space, Parks, Governmental Units, State Lands, Private Lands, Local Government Lands
Descriptive keywords:
Theme keywords:
Keywords: Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of Defense, Army Corps of Engineers, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Bureau of Reclamation, Tennessee Valley Authority, Department of Energy, Agricultural Research Service, Census, Veterans Affairs
Keyword thesaurus:
Title: Federal Agencies and Programs
Date:
Descriptive keywords:
Theme keywords:
Keywords: Geography, Land Use and Land Cover, Protected Area
Keyword thesaurus:
Title: USGS Thesaurus
Date:
Descriptive keywords:
Theme keywords:
Keywords: USGS:652ef930d34edd15305a9b03
Keyword thesaurus:
Title: USGS Metadata Identifier
Date:
Abstract: The Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US) is the official inventory of public parks and other protected open space. PAD-US is published by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Science Analytics and Synthesis (SAS), Gap Analysis Project (GAP). GAP produces data and tools that help meet critical national challenges such as biodiversity conservation, recreation, public health, climate change adaptation, and infrastructure investment. See the GAP webpage for more information about GAP and other GAP data including species and land cover.PAD-US aggregates data for known protected areas whose primary purpose is biodiversity conservation, as well as lands and waters that provide public access to nature. Other PAD-US feature and tile layers are available at PAD-US Web Service.  This content describes the PAD-US dataset which is in the public domain. It is intended for use with the PAD-US Data Explorer. Users are obligated to follow the terms of use of the PAD-US Data Explorer and any accompanying content.Key attribution includes:CategoryOwner TypeOwner NameLocal OwnerManager TypeManager NameLocal ManagerDesignation TypeLocal DesignationUnit NameLocal NameAggregator SourceGIS SourceGIS Source DatePublic AccessGAP Status Code - Status 1, 2, 3 or 4GAP Status DescriptionDate of EstablishmentIUCN Category - International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Description - I: Strict Nature Reserve, II: National Park, III: Natural Monument or Feature, IV: Habitat/Species Management Area, V: Protected Landscape/Seascape, VI: Protected area with sustainable use of natural resources, Other conservation area, Unassigned
Purpose: PAD-US Manager Name - Service representing fine level manager or administrative agency name standardized for the Nation (USFS, BLM, State Fish and Wildlife, State Parks and Rec, City, NGO, etc). This map is based on the PAD-US Combined Proclamation, Marine, Fee, Designation, Easement feature class. DOD and Tribal areas shown with 50% transparency. Use for categorization by manager name, with detailed federal managers and generic state/local/other managers.
Dataset language:
Dataset character set: utf8
Status: completed
Resource maintenance:
Update frequency: annually
Resource constraints:
General constraints:
Limitations of use: Although these data have been processed successfully on a computer system at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the display or utility of the data for other purposes, nor on all computer systems, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. The USGS or the U.S. Government shall not be held liable for improper or incorrect use of the data described and/or contained herein.
Resource constraints:
Legal constraints:
Limitations of use: Unless otherwise stated, all data, metadata and related materials are considered to satisfy the quality standards relative to the purpose for which the data were collected. Although these data and associated metadata have been reviewed for accuracy and completeness and approved for release by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the display or utility of the data on any other system or for general or scientific purposes, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. This database, identified as PAD-US version 4.0, has been approved for release by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Although this database has been subjected to rigorous review and is substantially complete, the USGS reserves the right to revise the data pursuant to further analysis and review.
Access constraints: otherRestrictions
Other constraints: These data are in the public domain.
Aggregated resource information:
Aggregate dataset name:
Title: Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US)
Date:
Reference date - publication: 2024-04-24
Edition: 4.0
Cited responsible party:
Role: originator
Organization's name: USGS Gap Analysis Project
Cited responsible party:
Role: publisher
Organization's name: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
Contact information:
Address:
Delivery point: https://www.usgs.gov/programs/gap-analysis-project/science/protected-areas
Association type: largerWorkCitation
Aggregated resource information:
Aggregate dataset name:
Title: Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US)
Date:
Reference date - publication: 2024-04-24
Edition: 4.0
Presentation format: mapDigital
Cited responsible party:
Role: originator
Organization's name: USGS Gap Analysis Project
Association type: crossReference
Spatial representation type: vector
Processing environment: Python 9.3; Esri ArcGIS 10.6 (Build 8321), PADUS4_0Geodatabase.gdb
Resource extent:
Geographic element:
Bounding rectangle:
Extent contains the resource: true
West longitude: -180
East longitude: 180
North latitude: 71.312
South latitude: -15.3861
Resource extent:
Extent description: publication date
Temporal element:
Temporal extent:
20052024
Supplemental information: The PAD-US database strives to be a complete inventory of areas dedicated to the preservation of biological diversity, and other natural (including extraction), recreational or cultural uses, managed for these purposes through legal or other effective means. PAD-US is an aggregation of “best available” spatial data provided by agencies and organizations in the United States at a point in time. This includes both fee ownership of lands as well as management through leases, easements, or other binding agreements. The inventory also includes Congressional designations, Executive designations, and administrative designations identified in management plans (e.g. Bureau of Land Management 'Area of Critical Environmental Concern'). As a result, this is a robust geospatial representation of the complex U.S. protected areas network. It is important to have in mind a specific analysis question when approaching how to work with the data. As a full inventory of areas aggregated from authoritative source data whenever possible, PAD-US includes overlapping designation types and small boundary discrepancies between agency datasets. Overlapping designations mainly occur in the Federal estate of the 'Designation' or 'Combined' feature class (e.g. 'Wild and Scenic River' over a 'Wilderness Area' both within a 'National Forest' boundary or a 'State Wildlife Area' over Federal Fee owned land). See the Entity_and_Attribute_Information Section for more information about PAD-US feature classes. It is important to note the presence of overlaps especially when trying to calculate area statistics; overlapping boundaries count the same area of ground multiple times. While minor boundary discrepancies remain, most major overlaps have been removed from the 'Fee' feature class and this is the best source for overall land area calculations by land manager ('Manager Name') within the PAD-US database (data gaps limit calculations by fee ownership or 'Owner Name'). Statistics summarizing 'Public Access' or Protection Status ('GAP Status Code') by managing agency or organization from an analysis of the PAD-US 'Combined' feature class are included in this data release. The PAD-US database is a direct aggregation of source data and the PAD-US development team rarely alters spatial linework. Exceptions are: 1) to “clip” polygon boundaries along State legal boundary lines (using the annually updated, national, authoritative State boundary file provided by the U.S. Census Bureau, https://www2.census.gov/geo/tiger/TGRGDB22/tlgdb_2022_a_us_substategeo.gdb.zip ), 2) to remove the small segments of boundaries created by this process associated with State or local lands (not Federal or nonprofit lands), and 3) to integrate Bureau of Land Management Field or District Office boundaries into the large boundaries representing National Public Lands (mainly across the West) to attribute PAD-US "Unit Name" and support PAD-US applications (e.g. Wildland Fire Decision Tools). Some boundary discrepancies (or slivers) remain in the dataset. Data overlaps (see 'Processing Step 10 Fee Topology Assessment') in this data release are shared along with the U.S. Census Bureau national State jurisdictional boundary standard (updated annually) with PAD-US data-stewards to facilitate edits in source files, as appropriate, that will then be incorporated into subsequent PAD-US versions over time. This PAD-US Version 4.0 dataset includes a variety of updates and improvements (listed in the abstract) to address user needs from the previous version 3.0 dataset. The PAD-US database is built in collaboration with many partners and data-stewards. Information regarding data-stewards is available at https://www.usgs.gov/programs/gap-analysis-project/science/pad-us-data-stewards . Story maps, presentations, and other descriptions of the PAD-US and applications include: 1) Conserving and Restoring America the Beautiful, 2021: A preliminary report to the National Climate Task Force recommending a ten-year, locally led campaign to conserve and restore the lands and waters upon which we all depend, and that bind us together as Americans ( https://www.doi.gov/sites/doi.gov/files/report-conserving-and-restoring-america-the-beautiful-2021.pdf ) . 2) U.S. Geological Survey, 2021, Analysis of Updated USGS Database Finds Increase in America’s Lands and Waters Managed for Biodiversity. U.S. Geological Survey Technical Announcement: https://www.usgs.gov/news/technical-announcement/analysis-updated-usgs-database-finds-increase-americas-lands-and-waters . 3) 2021 National Park Service's Connected Conservation Seminar Series. Protected Areas Database with USGS ( https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/c2-pad-us.htm ). 4) Davidson, A.; Dunn, L.; Gergely, K.; McKerrow, A.; Williams, S.; Case, M. Refining the coarse filter approach: Using habitat-based species models to identify rarity and vulnerabilities in the protection of U.S. biodiversity. Global Ecology and Conservation, Volume 28. 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gecco.2021.e01598 . 5) 2021 The State of PAD-US Data: Completeness, Scale, and Update Frequency for Source Data in the Protected Areas Database of the United States. Updates are posted periodically on the Federal Lands Workgroup (FLWG) website ( https://ngda-gov-units-geoplatform.hub.arcgis.com/pages/federal-lands-workgroup ). 6) Morgan, J.; Rhoden, C.; White, B.; Riley, S. A state assessment of private lands wildlife conservation in the United States. Wildlife Society Bulletin, Volume 43, Issue 3. 2019. https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.997 . 7) Completing America’s Inventory of Public Parks and Protected Areas: An Action Plan for 2016 - 2020: https://www.protectedlands.net/vision/ . 8) Online PAD-US Help System: http://www.protectedlands.net/help/ . 9) 2020 USGS Supports Wildland Fire Decision Support: http://www.protectedlands.net/uses/usgs-supports-wildland-fire-decision-support/ . 10) 2019 How to Use PAD-US in Base Maps - Guidelines for Incorporating Public Park and Related Protected Areas Data for the U.S. into Online Base Maps ( https://ngda-gov-units-geoplatform.hub.arcgis.com/documents/guidelines-for-base-maps-data-use-version01march2023/explore ). 11) 2019 PAD-US Helps Connect Trail Systems Nationally: http://www.protectedlands.net/uses/pad-us-helps-connect-trail-systems-nationally/ . 12) 2018 DOI Office of Policy Analysis Seminar: The New and Improved PAD-US 2.0 (with FGDC Federal Lands Working Group panel): https://ngda-gov-units-geoplatform.hub.arcgis.com/documents/53114f7aed834ef0aaf851532211b105/explore . 13) 2017 DOI Office of Policy Analysis Seminar: All of America’s Parks and Protected Areas - Building and Using the PAD-US (with Federal Lands Working Group panel): https://ngda-gov-units-geoplatform.hub.arcgis.com/documents/e285d4e8083140e8a2aa6cb9fedccb45/explore . 14) Lisa Johnson, Mason Croft, and Larry Orman. 2017. "Building a complete GIS database of protected areas: USGS leads inventory of lands in the public interest." Esri ArcNews. Spring 2017. Volume 39, Number 2. https://www.esri.com/about/newsroom/arcnews/building-a-complete-gis-database-of-protected-areas/ . 15) 2017 PAD-US and City Parks: http://www.protectedlands.net/uses/pad-us-and-cityregional-park-agencies/ . 16) 2017 The Lands We Share: America’s Protected Areas: https://storymaps.esri.com/stories/2017/protected-areas/ . 17) Jarvis, Jonathan B. A Report on North American Conservation. Presented on behalf of NAWPA. 2016 World Conservation Congress: https://story.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Cascade/index.html?appid=6d3a412ee9f34ce7868667bda19e5679 . 18) NAWPA Committee. 2016. Conservation in North America: An analysis of land-based conservation in Canada, Mexico, and the United States by NAWPA agencies. Report. North American Intergovernmental Committee on Cooperation for Wilderness and Protected Area Conservation; Canada, Mexico, and the United States of America. http://nawpacommittee.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Conservation-in-North-America.pdf . 19) Grant, Tamara. 2017. Federal Agencies Working Together to Improve Data in the Living Atlas. Esri ArcGIS Blog, Analytics: https://www.esri.com/arcgis-blog/products/arcgis-living-atlas/analytics/federal-agencies-working-together-to-improve-data-in-the-living-atlas/ . 20) Building Green Infrastructure in the U.S: A Framework for Sustainable Growth: https://www.esri.com/en-us/industries/green-infrastructure/overview .
Credits: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS)
Resource point of contact:
Role: pointOfContact
Individual's name: PAD-US Team
Organization's name: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Gap Analysis Project (GAP)
Contact's position: PAD-US Dataset Manager
Contact information:
Phone:
Voice: 1-888-275-8747
Address:
Delivery point: PO Box 25046, MS 302
City: Denver
Administrative area: Colorado
Postal code: 80225
Country: US
e-mail address: pad-us@usgs.gov

Spatial Representation

Vector Data

Geometric objects:
Object type: complex
Object count: 642931

Data Quality

Scope of quality information:
Level of the data:dataset
Resource lineage:
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: PAD-US 4.0 Planning, Blank Schema, and Data Manual: The PAD-US database aggregation involves the compilation of thousands of agency and nonprofit organization source data files from a network of nearly 100 data-stewards, with select updates prioritized annually based on needs, the availability of source data, and resources. The USGS is committed to building capacity in the state data-steward network and the PAD-US Team to increase the frequency of state land updates as resources allow. The USGS supported efforts to complete state inventories with the integration of local parks data in the PAD-US 2.1, and implementation of several state translation scripts during the PAD-US 3.0 and PAD-US 4.0 development. Additional efforts are in progress to support the technical and organizational strategies needed to increase the frequency of state updates. The first processing step in the PAD-US development was to update the Blank PAD-US schema (Process1_CreateBlankGDBSchemaGDBandSHP attached in this data release) in response to data-steward and user feedback and the PAD-US Action Plan ( https://www.usgs.gov/core-science-systems/science-analytics-and-synthesis/gap/science/pad-us-vision ). The blank schema provides a blueprint of the database for the PAD-US Team to load input files for PAD-US aggregation and it is shared with data-stewards seeking to submit source data in the PAD-US format. Data aggregation and development are an ongoing and evolving process as land management agency and nonprofit organization GIS systems mature and stakeholder feedback improve the process. The PAD-US Data Manual and schema has changed over time to better reflect user needs, with the majority of changes reflected in the PAD-US 2.0 providing a more stable format to further develop data partnerships and increase automation. The schema includes all the components to build the PAD-US 4.0, including the multiple feature class structure ('Fee', 'Designation', 'Easement', 'Proclamation', 'Marine', 'Combined'), core attributes, and all standardized domain tables ('State Name', 'IUCN Category', 'GAP Status Code', 'Designation Type', 'Category', 'Agency Type', 'Agency Name', 'Public Access'). A "Feature Class" (FeatClass) field is available in the fully 'Combined' layer to describe which feature class the data originated from and for users to extract data types as needed (see Federal Data Reference lookup table for authoritative federal data). The 'Marine' and 'Easement' feature classes also include fields (in addition to PAD-US core attributes) unique to the NOAA Marine Protected Areas Inventory and National Conservation Easement Database. In addition, the Blank PAD-US 4.0 Schema includes the U.S. Census Bureau State file (from the national sub-state geography geodatabase: https://www2.census.gov/geo/tiger/TGRGDB22/tlgdb_2022_a_us_substategeo.gdb.zip ) that serves as the common standard (updated annually) for legal State jurisdictional boundaries, the 'State Name' field in the PAD-US, and the full extent of analysis products. The PAD-US development team works closely with a large variety of stakeholders including development partners, data sources, and data users to develop and maintain the "Data Manual for PAD-US" Table crosswalks (online resource available at https://www.usgs.gov/programs/gap-analysis-project/pad-us-data-manual ) .
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: Source Data Documentation and Translation: The PAD-US Data-Steward Network includes Federal, State, and nonprofit partners that provide source data files for PAD-US summarized in online and pdf Steward Reports ( http://www.protectedlands.net/data-stewards/ ). More information about the PAD-US Data-Steward Network is available on the PAD-US website ( https://www.usgs.gov/programs/gap-analysis-project/science/pad-us-data-stewards ). Seven federal agencies (BLM, Census Bureau, DOD, FWS, NPS, NRCS, USFS, NOAA) and seventeen state and territory aggregators (CA, CO, PA, KY, WV, TN, NJ, NY, VA, ME, WI, MT, TX, NC, GA, NE, PR), and NGOs delivered data for PAD-US 4.0 or USGS compiled data from agency recommended sources (See details about data contributors and source data files in Process2_SourceDataDocumentation attached in this data release). The PAD-US Team translated individual source files into the PAD-US format (unless provided by the data-steward in the PAD-US format).
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: Quality Assessment and Quality Control: The PAD-US development team uses a Python script to generate a Quality Assessment and Quality Control (QA/QC) report each time a source file is submitted or translated to ensure the major components needed for database aggregation are included (See Process3_QA_QC_Report_Loop attached in this data release). Subsequent process steps will outline the general workflow and processes used to compile each major component of the final database.
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: Local Agency to Agency Name Crosswalk: A Python script was used to crosswalk data provided by PAD-US contributors, referencing the land owner or managing entity for a unit, into standardized PAD-US geodatabase domain tables (See PAD-US Process4_LocalAgencytoAgencyCrosswalk attached in this data release). PAD-US retains source data as provided in the 'Local Owner' and 'Local Manager' fields. These fields often provide additional detail to complement the standardized 'Owner Name' and 'Manager Name' fields, respectively.
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: Transfer Locally Reviewed Conservation and Recreation Measures from PAD-US 3.0: Input files are compared to the previous PAD-US (version 3.0) to evaluate new records and assign identifiers to join (ExistJoinID) source data updates (input files) with the previous version of PAD-US. File records are compared via automated scripts tracking attributes and polygon location followed by manual review to ensure existing and locally reviewed data flagged for attribute transfer match updates correctly and new records are identified. Once a reliable JoinID is confirmed post review, python script transfers value added data managed by USGS including locally assigned conservation ('GAP Status Code', 'IUCN Category') or recreation access measures ('Public Access'), the World Database on Protected Areas (WDPA) Site ID (a unique identifier assigned by UNEP-WCMC and managed by USGS), and 'Date of Establishment'. See Process5_TrnsfrLocReviewedMeasuresfromPreviousPAD_US attached in this data release.
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: Categorical Assignments by Designation Type: The areas in PAD-US are assigned conservation measures that assess management intent to permanently protect biological diversity: the nationally relevant 'GAP Status Code' (that also identifies multiple use areas) and the global 'IUCN Category' standard. In addition, a general measure of recreation access ('Public Access') is also assigned. After locally reviewed measures were transferred from PAD-US 3.0 (as described in Process5_TrnsfrLocReviewedMeasuresfromPreviousPAD_US) input files are checked for completeness of required attributes and that all domains and standardized field attributes are completely assigned. In the absence of other information (e.g. local assignment or review), 'GAP Status Code', 'IUCN Category', and 'Public Access' are assigned categorically based on 'Designation Type' using a Python script (See Process6_CategoricalAssignmentsbyDesTp attached in this data release) that references crosswalk tables (e.g. Tables 6 and 9) available in the PAD-US Data Manual ( https://www.usgs.gov/programs/gap-analysis-project/pad-us-data-manual ).
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: Multiple Feature Class Implementation: The major feature of PAD-US 2.0 involved the expansion of the multiple feature class database structure; primarily, the removal of overlapping management designations from fee owned lands. The expanded structure, defined by the addition of the "Designation" feature class is replicated in each following PAD-US data release. Building on Federal Lands Working Group ( https://ngda-gov-units-geoplatform.hub.arcgis.com/pages/federal-lands-workgroup/ ) efforts to collaboratively develop PAD-US, it was fairly straightforward to determine feature class placement of Federal spatial data. Federal data-stewards defined the 'Category' (the data type field in PAD-US) associated with source data submitted for PAD-US as fee parcels, easement interest, leases, agreements, overlapping management designations, proclamation, or marine boundaries. An automated Python script process compared State and other overlaps to Federal fee data to determine feature class placement (See PProcess7_MultipleFeatureClassImplementation attached in this data release).
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: Database Aggregation and Load Order: Input files referenced in the “Source Data Collection and Translation" processing step above are aggregated into the PAD-US geodatabase in a purposeful load order to achieve the necessary visual and analytical results associated with current database technology (See Process8_LoadOrder attached in this data release). Load order strives to account for boundary size, type, and spatial data quality, to increase the likelihood overlapping features are visible on maps and to support assessments of biodiversity protection status or outdoor recreation access. Files in the PAD-US geodatabase feature class loaded first, remain on the bottom in cases of overlap. Feature classes are manually loaded separately (agencies referenced below are listed in geodatabase load order within their respective feature classes - bottom to top) before the PAD-US 'Combined' feature classes are created. For example, the full 'PADUS4_0Combined_Proclamation_Marine_Fee_Designation_Easement' feature class represents this load order (PAD-US feature class and a general description of agency source data listed from the bottom to the top): 1) 'Proclamation' feature class (FWS Approved Acquisition, USFS Proclamation Boundaries, NPS Proclamation Boundaries, DOD Military Lands, Census American Indian Areas (AIA)); 2) 'Marine' feature class (BOEM Blocks, NOAA Marine Protected Areas Inventory); 3) Federal fee lands (Department Of Energy (DOE), Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS) legacy data transferred from the previous PAD-US, BLM public lands from Surface Management Area database, USBR legacy data transferred from the previous PAD-US, USACE lands transferred from the previous PAD-US, USFS fee parcel data, NPS fee parcel data, FWS fee parcel data); 4) State and local government fee lands, in alphabetical order by State; 5) Federal designations (USBR designations, BLM ACEC (transferred from the previous PAD-US), BLM Monuments/National Conservation Areas/Similar, USACE reservoirs (transferred from the previous PAD-US), USFS Inventory Roadless Areas, BLM Wilderness Study Areas, NPS Other Categories of Wilderness, NPS designations, USFS Withdrawals, USFS designations, USFS Special Interest Management areas, BLM Wilderness, USFS Wilderness, USFS Wild and Scenic Rivers, NPS Legislated Wilderness (from Wilderness.net), FWS Special Designations, BLM Wild and Scenic Rivers); 6) State and Local designations, in alphabetical order by State (mostly transferred from the previous PAD-US); 7) Easements (often small) are loaded last to remain visible on top of overlapping records. The PAD-US 4.0 update includes federal easements provided directly by managing agencies only - all other easements transferred from PAD-US 3.0 are from a subset of the National Conservation Easement Database for PAD-US (non-sensitive easements suitable for distribution in the public domain published February 2018).
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: PAD-US 4.0 Review: Once all attributes are assigned and feature classes are aggregated, the PAD-US development team conducts a final review by summarizing the database (See Process9_PADUS2_1ReviewSummaryTablesandScript attached in this data release) and reviewing tables associated with each feature class. In addition, 'GIS Acres' are compared to known sources and spatial data are compared to previous PAD-US versions. Federal Lands Working Group data-stewards reviewed the translation of authoritative spatial data (federal lands and waters) into the PAD-US format. USFS, NPS, and FWS provide data in the PAD-US format. In addition, Quality Control / Quality Assurance (QA/QC) reports documenting edits to source data to meet PAD-US requirements are shared with data-stewards to continually improve update efficiency and accuracy.
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: Data quality assessment and appropriate use of federal spatial data: The PAD-US Team and Federal Lands Workgroup (FLWG) recommends users review “The State of PAD-US Data” document that is periodically updated and posted on FLWG website ( https://ngda-gov-units-geoplatform.hub.arcgis.com/pages/federal-lands-workgroup ) to better understand the appropriate scale to use data, estimated level of spatial data inventory completeness, and update frequency of agency source data aggregated in PAD-US. The summary graphic, developed by USGS cooperators in collaboration with the FLWG and SLWG following the publication of PAD-US 2.1, is updated following each PAD-US data release. Overlaps between agency fee ownership datasets (mostly slivers) are available for review in Process10_FeeTopologyOverlaps attached in this data release. In addition, “Guidance for Base Map Developers to Use PAD-US” ( https://ngda-gov-units-geoplatform.hub.arcgis.com/documents/fedlandsinfo03012023/explore ) and PAD-US Steward Reports ( http://www.protectedlands.net/data-stewards/ ) highlight PAD-US as the authoritative source for aggregated data only (that is, more than one agency) and document data-steward contacts and data download locations to obtain source data directly. Agencies are always the best and authoritative source of their land data and many update spatial datasets more frequently than PAD-US.
Process step:
When the process occurred: 2024-04-24T00:00:00
Description: PAD-US 4.0 Improvements: Scripts used for the major PAD-US data processing steps (PADUS4_0_ProcessingSteps_Scripts_and_Related_Files.zip) have been continually updated and refined during this PAD-US version cycle. This included updating the scripts to Python 3.0 to harness new features, modernizing to use current technology, as well as adding steps and automated processes new to the scripts to reduce manual data management steps and to provide consistent processing and process transparency. These updates include adding several additional data checks to the QA/QC script – checking domain codes (codes instead of descriptions), date format standardization, populating the FeatureClass field automatically, checking for federal designation types assigned to non-federal areas, creating an output table to prepare for the reconciliation process, etc. Updates to the Reconciliation script include buffering when checking overlap (to identify geographic shift), calculating the percentage of overlap, evaluating each word of the Unit Name, creating an output table to prepare for the conservation measures transfer step, etc. This has led to a reduction in the number of records that get flagged for manual review through increased script accuracy. A new scripted process was created to use on national scale datasets with large numbers of records. Thishe script breaks these large files into smaller parts to allow the parts to be processed individually through the reconciliation process and then merges them back together for review and further processing. This has cut the processing time of individual data inputs from weeks to hours. Also with this process if there is a failure in a subset of records, the rest of the data gets processed while flagging the records that failed, allowing those individual records to be evaluated and reprocessed separately. Polygons with over 100,000 vertices are identified. These polygons were simplified and densified to remove vertices closer than 5 meters. This leads to a slight alteration of source data but allows for inclusion in the WDPA as well as other analysis and performance increases.
Data quality report:
Quantitative attribute accuracy:
Measure produced by the test: As a compilation of many datasets, attribute completeness and accuracy may vary. Federal and state data providers reviewed the translation of their spatial data files into the PAD-US schema and several provide data in the PAD-US format. In addition, the PAD-US Team summarized and reviewed the final aggregated database and each feature class for overall attribute accuracy and consistency as described in the PAD-US 4.0 Review Summary Tables (See Process9_PADUS2_1ReviewSummaryTablesandScript) attached in this data release.
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Conceptual consistency:
Measure produced by the test: Boundary discrepancies (mostly small slivers) between agency datasets and major overlaps associated with fee ownership (mostly between Federal and State lands) have been identified and are shared with data-stewards, who will edit source files as appropriate and resources allow. Users are encouraged to review topology overlap errors associated with the PAD-US 4.0 Fee Topology Overlap Assessment (see 'Processing Step 10 Fee Topology Assessment') attached in this data release for reference. The topology assessment identifies all overlaps (minimum distance between feature coordinates to evaluate overlap relationship = 0.05 meter), large (greater than 5 acres) and small (less than 5 acres) overlaps, between Federal lands and between Federal and State agency lands in the Fee feature class.
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Completeness omission:
Measure produced by the test: This dataset is considered complete for the information presented, as described in the abstract and supplemental information section. Estimated completeness of the PAD-US inventory, by Federal agency or State, can be found in the "State of PAD-US Data" document provided on the FLWG website ( https://ngda-gov-units-geoplatform.hub.arcgis.com/pages/federal-lands-workgroup ). It is also available on ProtectedLands web site ( http://www.protectedlands.net/data-stewards ). This information will be updated, with partners, after an assessment of PAD-US 4.0 following the data release. Qualitative completeness estimates balance acres inventoried and the quality of data/attributes in each inventory, including fee owned parcels, easement interests, and major designations. USGS seeks to increase the completeness, efficiency, and accuracy of PAD-US updates in collaboration with data-stewards, "Completing America's Inventory of Public Parks and Protected Areas: An Action Plan for 2016 - 2020" (November, 2016), and "A Map of the Future", published following the PAD-US Design Project (July, 2009) available at https://www.usgs.gov/programs/gap-analysis-project/science/pad-us-vision .
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Absolute external positional accuracy:
Measure produced by the test: As a compilation of many datasets, attribute completeness and accuracy may vary. Federal data providers reviewed the translation of their spatial data files into the PAD-US schema. In addition, the PAD-US Team summarized and reviewed the final aggregated database and each feature class for overall attribute accuracy and consistency as described in PAD-US 4.0 Review Summary Tables (See Process9_PADUS2_1ReviewSummaryTablesandScript attached in this data release).
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Absolute external positional accuracy:
Measure produced by the test: A formal accuracy assessment of the vertical positional information in the data set is not applicable.
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