Idaho lies about 350 miles inland from the Pacific and has 80 recognized mountain ranges, so its climate varies widely: maritime in the north and west, continental in the east. Weather in the mountains is unpredictable and often brings hazards — severe thunderstorms and lightning that lead to flooding, landslides and wildfires. Managing rivers, streams and forests, and infrastructure and construction, matters greatly to the state's economy.
Much of that work depends on lidar (light detection and ranging): laser surveys that build a highly detailed 3D model of the ground and everything on it. Idaho joined the U.S. Geological Survey's 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) in 2016 with its first project, whose success led to the Idaho Statewide Lidar Plan.
Idaho by the numbers
| Expected annual benefits | $6.12 million (a conservative estimate) |
| Estimated cost to complete quality level 2 coverage | $0.73 million (quality levels 0 and 1 cost extra) |
| Payback | 0.12 year |
Status of 3D Elevation Program baseline lidar data in Idaho as of September 2023. Map: U.S. Geological Survey.
The estimate comes from the National Enhanced Elevation Assessment (Dewberry, 2012), which surveyed what users need.
| Rank | Business use | Annual benefits |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Agriculture and precision farming | $1.71 million |
| 2 | Natural resources conservation | $1.63 million |
| 3 | Infrastructure and construction management | $1.03 million |
| 4 | Geologic resource assessment and hazard mitigation | $0.62 million |
| 5 | Flood risk management | $0.46 million |
| 6 | Forest resources management | $0.41 million |
| 7 | Aviation navigation and safety | $0.08 million |
| 8 | Renewable energy resources | $0.06 million |
| Other | $0.12 million |
Status
Quality level 1 collections were being planned for parts of central and southern Idaho, most likely in the 2023 collection cycle, followed in the 2024 cycle by collections along the Idaho–Montana border in parts of central and northern Idaho. The USGS LidarExplorer shows and serves what is available.
How Idaho uses lidar
Rivers and streams. Lidar sharpens hydrologic and hydraulic models, floodplain maps, ecosystem management, stream buffers and stormwater quality management. It helps find restoration opportunities, gauges stream health, and lets cities and counties check developers' plans for controlling runoff — making government more efficient and saving the public money.
Flood risk. The Idaho Department of Water Resources uses lidar to set drain elevations for groundwater models, for flood hazard mapping and flood investigations, and — through its Water Resource Board — to assess water infrastructure projects. Ada County Emergency Management backs lidar under its Multi-Hazard Mitigation Plan for floods, wildfires and landslides, and has used bathymetric lidar to model flooding on the Boise River, for public outreach maps and for emergency response planning.
Forests and wildfire. The Idaho Department of Lands manages the State Trust Lands, oversees forestry and some mining there, and provides fire protection. A department program manager, Geoff Klein, reported that it has collected lidar across state endowment lands since 2015 to help state foresters decide, to engineer forest roads into harvest areas, and to build canopy height models and estimates of stand volume and other inventory measures.
Geology and hazards. Lidar makes mapping mineral deposits and geologic hazards faster and more accurate, cutting costly fieldwork. The Idaho Geological Survey's maps of faults, folds, landslides and rock units are a base for further exploration. Idaho's mineral extraction was worth $185 million in 2019, with gem-quality garnet, jasper and opal among its products. Ada County's emergency planner, Paul Marusich, noted that terrestrial lidar collected across the Boise foothills goes into wildfire hazard maps used in landslide risk assessments.
About 3DEP
The USGS runs 3DEP for federal, state, tribal, territorial, local and other partners. Its goal is the first-ever national baseline of consistent, high-resolution elevation data from lidar (IfSAR radar in Alaska): bare-earth elevation models and 3D point clouds.
| Quality level | Vertical error (RMSEz) | Pulse spacing | Pulse density |
|---|---|---|---|
| QL0 (highest) | ≤5 cm | ≤0.35 m | ≥8.0 per m² |
| QL1 | ≤10 cm | ≤0.35 m | ≥8.0 per m² |
| QL2 | ≤10 cm | ≤0.71 m | ≥2.0 per m² |
Baseline 3DEP data are quality level 2 or better — at least two points per square meter and vertical error no more than 10 cm — with 1-meter or finer elevation models, meeting Lidar Base Specification 1.2 or newer. The data go into The National Map and are free, with no use restrictions (download).
The program cites economies of scale, predictable federal investment, consistent coverage across jurisdictions and watersheds, and simplified contracting. Nationally, it estimates conservative benefits of $690 million a year, with potential for $13 billion a year more.
Government and private partners can join through an annual Broad Agency Announcement, either funding USGS-managed projects or receiving cooperative funds to run their own, and may contribute existing data that meets 3DEP requirements (3DEP collaboration).
Sources
Based on "The 3D Elevation Program—Supporting Idaho's economy," U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet 2023–3035; a work of the United States government in the public domain. The map is reproduced from the fact sheet.
Licence: CC0 1.0 (public domain) · Adapted from pubs.usgs.gov
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