The Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) Vegetation Subcommittee
has established a federal standard for vegetation
classification. This is the standard that the program uses to classify vegetation. The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a
member of the Vegetation Subcommittee and was instrumental in development the classification standard.
"Terrestrial Vegetation of the United States" is TNC's
documentation on the classification and contains useful information on the scientific background of the classification
and describes the classes.
Spatial Data Transfer Standard:
The FGDC has developed a spatial data transfer standard that is
designed to enable blind transfer of information between different hardware/software environments without loss of
contextual information. All program spatial data are available in this format.
Metadata:
Metadata are data about data; data that describes how the dataset was developed, what projection the dataset is in, what
the attributes mean, etc. It is a critical element of each spatial dataset. The program creates metadata files for each
spatial dataset that meets the FGDC metadata standard.
Positional Accuracy:
The spatial databases will have a horizontal positional accuracy that meets
National Map Accuracy Standards at the 1:24,000 scale.
This means that each well defined object in the spatial database will be within 1/50 of an inch of its actual location or
40 feet (12.2 meters).
Taxonomy:
The naming of plant species is a complex task and national standards must be used to ensure that plant names are
consistent and meet the highest scientific standards. The Integrated
Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) is an on-line, scientifically credible, list of biological names focusing on
the biota of North America. All plant names used in the development of the classification system are consistent with
ITIS standards.