The 3D Elevation Program: summary for Maryland

Introduction

Elevation data are essential to a broad range of applications, including forest resources management, wildlife and habitat management, national security, recreation, and many others. For the State of Maryland, elevation data are critical for agriculture and precision farming, natural resources conservation such as the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed, flood risk management, urban and regional planning, infrastructure and construction management, water supply and quality, coastal zone management, and other business uses. Today, high-density light detection and ranging (lidar) data are the primary sources for deriving elevation models and other datasets. Federal, State, Tribal, and local agencies work in partnership to (1) replace data that are older and of lower quality and (2) provide coverage where publicly accessible data do not exist. A joint goal of State and Federal partners is to acquire consistent, statewide coverage to support existing and emerging applications enabled by lidar data.

The National Enhanced Elevation Assessment (NEEA; Dewberry, 2011) evaluated multiple elevation data acquisition options to determine the optimal data quality and data replacement cycle relative to cost to meet the identified requirements of the user community. The evaluation demonstrated that lidar acquisition at quality level 2 (table 1) for the conterminous United States and quality level 5 ifsar data (table 1) for Alaska with a 6- to 10-year acquisition cycle provided the highest benefit/cost ratios. The 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) initiative (Snyder, 2012a,b) selected an 8-year acquisition cycle for the respective quality levels. 3DEP, managed by the U.S. Geological

3DEP in Maryland by the Numbers 3D Elevation Program

Survey (USGS), the Office of Management and Budget Circular A–16 lead agency for terrestrial elevation data, responds to the growing need for highquality topographic data and a wide range of other 3D representations of the Nation’s natural and constructed features.

3D Elevation Program Benefits

Benefits of a Funded National Program

for Maryland

The top 10 Maryland business uses for 3D elevation data, which are based on the estimated annual conservative benefits of the 3DEP initiative, are shown in table 2. The NEEA survey respondents in the State of Maryland estimated that the national 3DEP initiative would result in at least $2.73 million in new benefits annually to the State. The cost for such a program in Maryland is approximately $3.5 million, resulting in a payback period of 1.3 years and a benefit/cost ratio of 6.3 to 1 over an 8-year period. Because monetary estimates were not provided for all reported benefits, the total benefits of the 3DEP to Maryland, especially for flood risk management, are likely much higher. On the basis of the NEEA survey results, all levels of government and many organizations in Maryland could benefit from access to statewide high-resolution elevation data.

For Maryland, approximately 65 percent of the identified business use requirements will be met in agriculture and precision farming, natural resources conservation, and flood risk management uses alone, as shown in table 2. The status of publicly available lidar data in Maryland is shown in figure 1. By enhancing coordination between 3DEP and various government and private organizations in Maryland, it may be possible to realize more than the cited conservative benefits and attain the higher potential benefits for many business uses.

Figure 1. Map of Maryland showing the areal extent and quality levels of planned and existing publicly available light detection and ranging (lidar) data in August 2013. Quality level 2 or better lidar data meet 3DEP requirements. See table 1 for quality level information.

The following examples highlight how 3DEP data can support business uses in Maryland: (1) Enhanced elevation data could enable State, regional, and local governments to more effectively implement natural resources conservation practices by providing elevation models and by enhancing tools for decisionmaking while providing additional cost savings to the public. (2) If consistent high-resolution lidar data were available regionally, Maryland public and private organizations would expand their use of lidar for planning and site-level engineering to reduce field work for conservation projects such as grade stabilization, ponds, grassed waterways, terracing, accurately calculating runoff, identifying historic wetlands (drained), and wetland restoration (fig. 2); for 3D structure modeling by combining lidar with Maryland statewide 6-inch resolution leaf-off orthoimagery; and for identifying previously unknown prehistoric and historic earthworks and mounds and other cultural and sensitive sites.

References Cited

Dewberry, 2011, Final report of the National Enhanced Elevation Assessment (revised 2012): Fairfax, Va., Dewberry, 84 p. plus appendixes, http://www.dewberry.com/Consultants/GeospatialMapping/FinalReport-Nation alEnhancedElevationAssessment.

Snyder, G.I., 2012a, National Enhanced Elevation Assessment at a glance: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2012–3088, 2 p., http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2012/3088/.

Snyder, G.I., 2012b, The 3D Elevation Program—Summary of program direction: U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2012–3089, 2 p., http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2012/3089/.

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