The Geospatial Advisory Committee

The mission of the Forest Service is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. Geospatial data is an important source of resource information that is used by land managers to map and monitor the condition of our National Forests and Grasslands.

The Forest Service has used geospatial data to manage and care for the land since the creation of the agency in 1905. Over time, the format of this data and the way it is applied has changed. Maps, once the primary means of recording needed geographic data, have been supplemented by aerial photography, satellite imagery, digital spatial data, and tabular databases. Technologies such as geographic information systems (GIS), global positioning systems (GPS), remote sensing, automated cartography, and advanced database environments have allowed for new and innovative ways of gathering, using, and viewing geographic data to support natural resource management applications.

Geographic data, in digital and map form, is an essential part of the Forest Service corporate information resource. Managers, resource specialists, scientists, and others use geographic information daily for a range of vital applications, from ecosystem management and Forest planning to advanced bio-research, transportation planning, and fire modeling.

The Forest Service has established a Geospatial Executive Board to provide oversight and coordination of agency geospatial programs and activities.  The Geospatial Executive Board provides a corporate vision for an enterprise-wide Forest Service geospatial environment supported by a Geospatial Advisory Committee representing a broad spectrum of Forest Service unit.