The National Map

The National Map is an effort by the USGS to ensure that the Nation has access to current, accurate, and nationally consistent digital data and topographic maps derived from those data. The result of The National Map initiative is a seamless, continuously maintained set of public domain geographic base information that will serve as a foundation for integrating, sharing, and using other data easily and consistently. The National Map depends on local level government contributions to keep the data up-to-date.

Through National Spatial Data Infrastructure (NSDI) Cooperative Agreement Program (CAP) grants, CGIS has become Maryland’s portal to the National Map . The CGIS role is to help organizations in Maryland publish data to The National Map. CGIS provides assistance with two main concerns that organizations may have with sharing data. The first is political, relating to conflicting policies at various levels of government that impede contributions to The National Map. The second issue is technical, where hardware, software, and other technical requirements may hinder contributions to The National Map.

On behalf of the Maryland State Geographic Information Committee (MSGIC), CGIS is currently involved in the following projects.

The Maryland Cooperative Centerline Program

Assist Maryland State Highway Administration (SHA) with data preparations and publishing centerline data to The National Map.

Assess and inventory the readiness and completeness of SHA transportation data for incorporation into The National Map relative to current FGDC, ISO, and OGC standards.

Assist SHA with database development and documentation to prepare the data for The National Map.

Create appropriate Web Map Services for Maryland roads, consistent with FGDC, ISO, and OGC standards.

Publish relevant metadata records to the Maryland Mapping Resource Guide (MMRG), which will be accessible to the Geospatial One-Stop.

Create a white paper resource for Maryland agencies called “Deploying Maryland Data to The National Map.”

Maryland Large-Scale Digital Orthophoto Data for The National Map

Inventory existing large-scale digital orthophotography data for incorporation into The National Map. Assessment includes compliance with FGDC, ISO, and OGC standards.

Assist Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and Eastern Shore Regional GIS Cooperative (ESRGC) with database development and documentation to prepare the data for The National Map.

Work with the contributing jurisdictions to accommodate their particular data distribution policies when posting data to The National Map.

Create appropriate Web Map Services for Maryland imagery, consistent with FGDC, ISO, and OGC standards.

Publish relevant metadata records to the Maryland Mapping Resource Guide (MMRG), which will be accessible to the Geospatial One-Stop.

Invitation to Partner with Maryland for The National Map

Memorandum of Understanding Sharing Data to The National Map