Identification Information

Title US Forest Service Region 3 Wilderness Areas

Date 2012-08-27

Date Type Publication

Cited Responsible Party

Organization Name USDA Forest Service, Southwestern Regional Office

Role identify

Presentation Form vector digital data

Abstract This file contains a feature class depicting National Forest System land parcels that have a Congressionally designated boundary. Examples include National Wilderness Area, Primitive Area, or Wilderness Study Area. This dataset is derived from the USFS Southwestern Region ALP (Automated Lands Program) data Project. This is one of six layers derived from ALP for the purpose of supplying data layers for recourse GIS analysis and data needs within the Forest Service. The six layers are Surface Ownership, Administrative Forest Boundary, District Boundary, Townships, Sections, and Wilderness. There were some gaps in the ALP data so a small portion of this dataset comes from CCF (Cartographic Feature Files) datasets and the USFS Southwestern Region Core Data Project. ALP data are developed from data sources of differing accuracy, scales, and reliability. Where available they are developed from GCDB (Geographic Coordinate Data Base) data. GCDB data are maintained by the Bureau of Land Management in their State Offices. GCDB data are mostly corner data. Not all corners and not all boundaries are available in GCDB so ALP also utilizes many other data sources like CFF data to derive its boundaries. GCDB data are in a constant state of change because land corners are always being resurveyed. The GCDB data used in this dataset represents a snapshot in time when the GCDB dataset was published by the BLM and may not reflect the most current GCDB dataset available. The Forest Service makes no expressed or implied warranty with respect to the character, function, or capabilities of these data. These data are intended to be used for planning and analyses purposes only and are not legally binding with regard to title or location of National Forest System lands.

Purpose The reason for the feature class is to depict USFS administrative and ownership boundaries in the National Forest to be used in conjunction with management activities.

Supplemental Information The National Wilderness Preservation System was created on September 3, 1964, when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed The Wilderness Act, and was to contain those lands, already owned by the American people, that were "untrammeled by man." They were to be managed "for the use and enjoyment of the American people in such manner as will leave them unimpaired for future use and enjoyment as wilderness..." No roads or structures were to be built. Vehicles and other mechanical equipment were not to be used. The minimum size was set at 5,000 acres, with certain exceptions. The Wilderness Act also put 9.1 million acres of national forest land into the new system. A process was created for congressional designation of future acreage in the national forests, parks, and wildlife refuges. In 1976, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act set forth a process for adding Bureau of Land Management (BLM) areas to the National Wilderness Preservation System. These four sets of public lands total 623 million acres, about 26 percent of our country.

Status Complete

Point of Contact

Individual Name

Organization Name USDA Forest Service, Southwest Regional Office

Position Name Land Staff

Role Point of contact

Voice 505-842-3292

Facsimile 505-842-3855

Address

Delivery Point 333 Broadway SE
City Albuquerque
Administrative Area New Mexico
Postal Code 87102
Country USA

Electronic Mail Address Mailroom_R3@fs.fed.us

Maintenance and Update Frequency As needed

Descriptive Keywords boundaries, Administrative Boundaries, Sections, Ranger District Boundaries, United States Forest Service, Proclaimed Boundary, Surface Ownership, Townships, Wilderness, Wild Scenic River, Military Reserve, Other National Designation, Special Interest Management Area, Grassland, Region

Access Constraints None.

Use Constraints Comparison with other datasets for the same area from other time periods may be inaccurate due to inconsistencies resulting from changes in photo interpretation, rounding of decimal coordinates during conversion, and mapping conventions over time. Any hard copies utilizing these datasets shall clearly indicate their source. If the user has modified the data in any way, they are obligated to describe the types of modifications they have performed on the hardcopy map. The user specifically agrees not to misrepresent these datasets, nor to imply that changes made were approved by the USFS.

Language English

Topic Category boundaries

Extent

Geographic Bounding Box

West Bound -109.061762
East Bound -107.674144
North Bound 33.63615
South Bound 32.925561

Temporal Extent

DateTime 2012-03-01

Data Quality Information

Attribute Accuracy Report

Report Accuracy and completeness was checked by manually comparing this dataset with other datasets of similar subject with on-screen review.

Quantitative Attribute Accuracy Assessment

Attribute Accuracy Value
Attribute Accuracy Explanation

Horizontal Positional Accuracy Report

Report Based on accuracy statements made for USGS topographic quadrangle maps. Targeted to National Standard for Spatial Data Accuracy (NSSDA). The National Map Accuracy Standards for 7.5 minute 1:24,000 quadrangles applies to this feature class, which state that a feature will be within approximately 40 feet of its true position.

Quantitative Horizontal Positional Accuracy Assessment

Horizontal Positional Accuracy Value
Horizontal Positional Accuracy Explanation

Logical Consistency Report Polygon topology present.

Completeness Report Dataset is complete.

Lineage

Source Information

Source Citation

Source Scale Denominator 24000

Type of Source Media electronic bulletin board

Source Time Period of Content

Beginning Position 1996
Ending Position 2000
Source Currentness Reference Most current data available within the stated time period.

Source Citation Abbreviation Unknown

Source Contribution Unknown

Source Information

Source Citation

Source Scale Denominator 24000

Type of Source Media electronic bulletin board

Source Time Period of Content

DateTime 2007-03-01
Source Currentness Reference Most current data available within the stated time period.

Source Citation Abbreviation Not provided.

Source Contribution Unknown

Source Information

Source Citation

Source Scale Denominator 24000

Type of Source Media electronic bulletin board

Source Time Period of Content

DateTime 2000
Source Currentness Reference Most current data available within the stated time period.

Source Citation Abbreviation NA

Source Contribution Unknown

Process Step

Process Description These seven layers were derived from ALP: Administrative Boundary, Proclaimed Boundary, District Boundary, Surface Ownership, Sections, Townships, and Wilderness. Data for six of the seven feature classes were loaded from individual ALP coverages for each Forest using ArcCatalog. The ALP coverages for the forests break on township lines rather than forest boundaries. Although the ALP coverages were edge matched, some additional edge matching was required. Topology rules were created for editing, using "Must not Overlap" and "Must not have gaps" rules. 1. Forest Administrative Boundaries were created by dissolving the Ranger District Boundaries. 2. Townships and Sections were merged with "Union" in a separate Geodatabase before loading into the final Geodatabase. Sections and Townships were edited together. Townships were dissolved from Sections after editing. 3. The Prescott data came from the more recent Prescott Pilot Project. All other data came primarily from ALP. The Prescott Pilot originates from more recent GCDB data. The edge of the Prescott with the Kaibab, Coconino, and Tonto did not edge match. Edge matching was done along the outside edge of the Prescott boundary making it a clean dataset. 4. District Boundaries for the Prescott Project were missing. Prescott District Boundaries were derived from the most recent CFF data using the same version of CFF that was used to fill gaps in the Prescott Project. 5. District Boundaries on the Gila were incomplete in ALP. The District Boundaries that existed in ALP for the Gila were wrong, particularly in the Wilderness District. District Boundaries for the Gila were derived from vintage 11 CFF, the same CFF used in ALP to fill data gaps. 6. Wilderness Areas for the Prescott were derived from a combination of Prescott Project data and recent cartography data. The cartography data come from close examination of the actual wilderness legal descriptions. 7. Sycamore Canyon Wilderness has many conflicts in its descriptions. Two of the larger conflicts are labeled as Proposed Wilderness in this dataset. The one on the Kaibab is in ALP, but may be wrong (Jacks Canyon). The other one on the Coconino was not in ALP and may not actually be Congressionally designated Wilderness yet, but apparently is managed as wilderness by the Coconino. This one was mapped by cartography data in the RO. 8. The boundary between the Gila and Apache Forests along the Arizona and New Mexico border did not edge match. This probably is because the two states have different GCDB datasets. In our dataset that line was edge matched using the Arizona or Apache ALP data. 9. The Gila has three locations where Townships overlap each other; some of them by as much as a half mile. The overlaps were left as overlaps for both Townships and Sections on the Gila for this dataset. The was clearly an error in the GCDB data that have never been resolved. There were no conflicts with Surface Ownership because as a result. 10. Surface Ownership was derived by linking to the ALP database using the ALP CN numbers. There were a small hand full of polygons that did not link to ALP, primarily because they were missing CN numbers. Ownership for these parcels was derived by comparing with other ownership data layers including older versions of ALP. 11. Most of the Grassland units did not link to ALP. The ALP data for these units appears to be missing. Ownership for these units was derived from somewhat older ALP data than the rest. The exception to this was the "Black Kettle" Grass Land unit where a link to ALP was made. 12. Many of the ALP coverages had small slivers and gaps. These slivers and gaps primarily were found using the topology rules "Must Not Have Gaps" and Must Not Overlap." An example of these slivers is where the corner of a rectangular metes and bounds parcel barely crossed over a section line leaving a very small triangular sliver. These slivers were sometimes missed in the editing the coverages in ALP, but became obvious in Geodatabase with topology rules. In most cases it was clear in which parcel the sliver belonged, so these slivers were merged with their appropriate parcel. 13. Some ALP data had overlaps in Surface Ownership and Section polygons. I almost all cases this was only an editing error and the overlap had the same attributes. In only a few cases the overlap needed reconcilation. All overlaps were eliminated except for those in Sections and Townships on the Gila mentioned above. 14. The "Escudilla Wilderness" on the Apache N.F. was not in ALP. The boundary of this wilderness was derived from vintage 11 CFF data. 15. The "Bear Willow Wilderness" on the Apache was not in the wilderness feature class in the ALP coverage, except for the line work. The Wilderness area was created from line work. 16. The "Columbine-Hondo Wilderness Study Area" on the Carson was not was not in ALP. This wilderness study area was added using Southwestern Regional GIS code data. 17. There is a gap in Townships and Sections on the "Magdalena" ranger district on the Cibola. This gap also appears in Surface Ownership. The gap was filled as "USFS" owned land. 18. District and Forest Boundary for the "Mountanair" district of the Cibola N.F. were depicted differently in two different feature classes in ALP. The boundary in the ranger_district feature class was clearly wrong so the boundary in surf_own was used. 19. Some last minute land status changes were made on the Santa Fe National Forest because Lands is still working on entering data into the tabular ALP. These parcels do not have CN numbers yet although the line work is from ALP and the ownership is correct. 20. ALP was not consistent with private ownership within wilderness areas. In some areas the private land extracted from the wilderness and in others it was not. In this dataset we made it consistent by extracting all private land out of wilderness. There is one place on the "Kachina Wilderness" on the Coconino where this was not reconciled.

Process Date 2007-02-26

Process Time

Process Contact

Individual Name

Organization Name USFS Southwestern Regional Office

Position Name Geographic Information and Engineering, USDA GIS Analyst

Role Point of contact

Voice 505-842-3855

Facsimile 505-842-3800

Address

Delivery Point 333 Broadway SE
City Albuquerque
Administrative Area New Mexico
Postal Code 87102
Country USA

Electronic Mail Address rdcrawford@fs.fed.us

Process Step

Process Description Theses five feature classes were refreshed from the original ALP data. Administrative Boundary, Proclaimed Boundary, District Boundary, Surface Ownership, and Wilderness Surface Ownership were updated using an Intersect process to make the changes. The other four feature classes were refreshed with a visual method to indentify changes.

Process Date 2008-08-05

Process Time

Process Contact

Individual Name

Organization Name USFS, Southwestern Region

Position Name GIS Analyst

Role Point of contact

Voice (505) 842-3855

Facsimile (505) 842-3800

Address

Delivery Point 333 Broadway SE
City Albuquerque
Administrative Area New Mexico
Postal Code 87102
Country USA

Electronic Mail Address rdcrawford@fs.fed.us

Process Step

Process Description Shapefile reprojected to WGS84.

Process Date 2012-08-09

Process Time

Process Contact

Individual Name

Organization Name Earth Data Anlaysis Center

Position Name Clearinghouse Manager

Role Point of contact

Voice 505-277-3622 ext. 230

Facsimile 505-277-3614

Address

Delivery Point MSC01 1110, Bandelier West 118
Delivery Point 1 University of New Mexico
City Albuquerque
Administrative Area New Mexico
Postal Code 87131-0001
Country USA

Electronic Mail Address

US Forest Service Region 3 Wilderness Areas

Metadata from the RGIS Metadata Repository

Identification Information

Distribution Information

Spatial Reference Information

Data Quality Information

Metadata Reference Information