Layer name | Description | Use cases |
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Aspect | Aspect values calculated from the world digital terrain model (DTM) service | - Identify patterns of aspect preference for plants or animals.
- Identify aspects that may be useful for environmentally friendly utilities development (wind and solar).
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Average Rainfall Inches | Normalized annual mean rainfall for the continental United States for January 1971 to December 2000 | - Model suitability for various types of vegetation, crops, or animal habitats.
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BLM Lands | Bureau of Land Management land boundaries | - Expansion of protected areas.
- Identify potential conflict/avoid conflict of leaseholds with biodiversity protection.
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Critical Habitat | Contains areas that are considered essential for the conservation of a threatened or endangered species | - Identify conflict of proposed use/lease with critical habitat.
- Identify mitigation location for proposed use/lease that
will impact critical habitat in another location.
- Design single-species/multispecies protection program.
- Design habitat and ecosystem conservation strategies.
- Develop conservation education/interpretive program.
- Analyze value of habitat to local/regional
economy.
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Development Risk | Emphasizes areas that are projected to experience increased housing development over the next 30 years | - Identify where resources may be at risk from development.
- Identify opportunities for development.
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Elevation | Digital terrain model (DTM) that defines the best available ground surface elevation, in meters, based on multiple sources | - Define elevation levels suitable for plant and animal species.
- Determine potential new elevation ranges for plants or animals due to climate change.
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Federal Lands | Contains federally owned or administered lands that are part of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands | - Identify federal lands for protection, conservation, or exploitation.
- Balance potential uses of federal land.
- Identify federal lands as potential barriers for energy resource extraction, generation, transmission, and transportation.
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Flood Risk | Presents flood risk information depicted on the Flood Insurance Rate Map | - Identify areas not suited to certain types of development or use due to flood risk.
- Calculate potential costs for responding to a flood event.
- Identify areas suited to agricultural and other uses compatible with periodic flooding.
- Identify flood-prone areas as part of habitat or ecosystem protection assessment.
- Identify priority locations for flood risk mitigation improvements.
- Assess impacts of flood/flood damage on water quality and the risk of distributing hazardous materials.
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Insect and Disease Risk | Contains information from the 2006 National Insect and Disease Risk Map project, which attempts to predict how individual tree species will react to various mortality agents | - Determine where forests may be at risk from insects and diseases so mitigation can be planned.
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Land Surface Forms | Contains ecological system footprints for the contiguous United States | - Identify landforms that contribute to a high-value viewshed.
- Identify landforms that provide high viewpoint potential.
- Identify areas of similar physical characteristics that can be further differentiated using other layers.
- Use landforms as an indicator of potential presence of mineral or other subsurface resources.
- Use landforms as an indicator for surface and subsurface water resources.
- Use landforms as an indicator of potentially unsafe soil conditions (slope failure).
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Landcover GAP | Contains cell values that indicate land-cover classes for the United States | - Model habitats for animal and plant species.
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Mean Annual Temperature | Normalized annual mean temperature for continental United States for January 1971 to December 2000 | |
NPS Lands | National Park Service land boundaries | - Show critical habitat and other sensitive uses already within national parks.
- Identify lands surrounding national parks that may be candidates for greater protection.
- Identify minerals and other extractable resources located within national park boundaries.
- Identify recreational opportunities and uses compatible with protected areas.
- Identify portions of watersheds within national parks.
- Identify upstream watersheds that may pose pollution or other hazard risks to national parks.
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Native American Lands | Boundaries for Native American reservations or tribal lands | - Identify if a location or area of interest is within or partially within Native American lands.
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Road Density | Street map that presents highway-level data | - Route analysis for goods movement of all types.
- Distance from a road feature to another feature of interest
(proximity).
- Urban form/sprawl model input.
- Viewshed analysis.
- Emergency response planning and recovery activities.
- Access analysis for use/inaccessibility for
conservation.
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Slope | Provides slope values calculated dynamically from the elevation data (within the current extents) from the World Digital Terrain Model (DTM) service | - Determine areas with high runoff rate (flash flood) potential.
- Identify patterns of slope preference for plants and animals.
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Soils Available Water Storage | Available water storage to a depth of 150 cm from the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service | - Identify areas that may be important to conserve for water.
- Identify areas where construction may or may not be appropriate.
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Soils Water Table Depth | The depth to the water table, from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service | - Identify where the water table may affect development activities.
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USFS Lands | United States Forest Service land boundaries | - Show critical habitat and other sensitive uses already within national forests.
- Identify lands surrounding national forests that may be candidates for greater protection.
- Identify mineral and other extractable resources located within national forest boundaries.
- Identify recreational opportunities and uses compatible with protected areas.
- Identify portions of watersheds within national forests.
- Identify upstream watersheds that may pose pollution or other hazard risks to national forests.
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USFWS Lands | United States Fish and Wildlife Service boundaries | - Show critical habitat and other sensitive uses already within FWS lands.
- Identify lands surrounding FWS lands that may be candidates for greater protection.
- Identify mineral and other extractable resources located within FWS land boundaries.
- Identify recreational opportunities and uses compatible with protected areas.
- Identify portions of watersheds within FWS lands.
- Identify upstream watersheds that may pose pollution or other hazard risks to FWS lands.
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Wilderness Areas | Boundaries of designated wilderness areas | - Identify current wilderness areas in relationship to other resources, like ecosystems.
- Identify opportunities to expand wilderness area designation to surrounding area.
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Wildland Fire Potential | Areas with potential for wildfire in the contiguous United States, from the US Forest Service | - Identify where there is a risk to forests or developments from wildfire.
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Wildland-Urban Interface | Shows where urban and suburban development encroach on wildland areas | - Identify where wildland areas are at risk from development.
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Woody Biomass | Emphasizes areas that project the way forests may appear 10 to 50 years from the present, as depicted by the Forest Inventory and Analysis National Program | - Identify the amount of woody biomass in an area for timber harvest, renewable energy feedstock, and other uses.
- Identify the amount of woody biomass in an area for fire risk, infestation, or other related hazards.
- Model carbon sequestration potential.
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