I2: Oral Presentation C Thursday, 2:00 – 2:30 pm C Lake Superior Ballroom MN

National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) Development Activity in Minnesota

Mark Olsen
Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
520 Lafayette Road
St. Paul, MN  55155
mark.olsen@pca.state.mn.us

Susanne Maeder
Minnesota Planning Land Management Information Center
300 Centennial Building
658 Cedar Street
St. Paul, MN  55155 

The National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) data model has been applied at the federal level to create a nationwide 1:100,000-scale surface water database. Federal agencies are now interested in working with states to create a high resolution NHD database. Several agencies have been involved in creating a 1:24,000-scale NHD data set for Minnesota. Coordination for this effort has been provided through the Hydrography Committee of the Governor’s Council on Geographic Information.

Minnesota, through the Pollution Control Agency, has entered into an agreement with the USGS to create 1:24,000-scale NHD for eight of the state’s 81 major watersheds. Other agencies have also been involved or have shown interest in furthering this effort. To provide the necessary background information, the Governor’s Council sponsored a week long training session in June on the NHD data development process. Training was provided by USGS staff.

The enhanced NHD creation process involves matching 1:100,000-scale NHD linework to 1:24,000-scale DNR-enhanced Mn/DOT Basemap hydrography linework. The process adds NHD data attributes in a multi-step procedure requiring much checking and manual intervention. As of July, three major Minnesota watersheds are completed and available for testing.