Environmental Data on Maps

Natural Resources, Environmental, and Conservation Map Layers

In Maps of Outdoor Recreation, you were introduced to the NH GRANIT website, which is a great place to start for finding up-to-date map layers from authoritative sources, such as government agencies and well-established NGOs.

Using NH GRANIT’s New Hampshire Geodata Portal, you can search for layers by keyword, or use their Category and Agency galleries to find relevant data layers thematically. Some helpful galleries to explore, which include environmental data layers managed by various state agencies include:

• Environment Apps
• New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES)
• New Hampshire Fish and Game Department (NHF&G); and
• New Hampshire Department of Natural & Cultural Resources

Conservation lands in many cases are protected from development because they have unique natural, cultural, and recreational significance. The NH Conservation and Public Lands dataset shows public and conserved lands in New Hampshire, including those that are protected with conservation easements. This layer can help you understand the full picture of land conservation and connectivity within your community and recreational assets. This dataset is also available in the GRANITView application.

Considering Local Conditions

Layers that represent the natural features of a site are helpful for estimating local conditions that will guide a recreation project.

• Wetlands - Wetlands are important physical and ecological landscapes. There are regulatory, sustainability, and ecological considerations when planning a recreation project around wetlands.
  • National Wetlands Inventory Plus for New Hampshire
• Streams and Water - Streams and waterbodies layers will help you understand where flowing and open water exists on your site. These features are often shown on basemaps, but having additional, more detailed layers for water is helpful especially for identifying the right location for water-based recreational infrastructure and understanding infrastructural needs to keep people’s feet dry during land-based recreation!
  • Streamlines from the National Hydrography Dataset for New Hampshire
  • River areas from the National Hydrography Dataset for New Hampshire
  • Waterbody areas from the National Hydrography Dataset for New Hampshire
• Flooding Risk - Designated floodplains and sea level rise projections for coastal communities offer important insights about potential flooding risks for recreation projects that are proposed in low lying areas. These layers can provide guidance for planning where and how to build recreational assets on a site.
  
  There are regulatory implications for working in FEMA’s designated floodplains. Keep in mind, just because a site is outside of a FEMA flood zone does not mean there is zero flood risk. The data are helpful for identifying primary areas of flood risk and planning around flood zones. Find out more about flood maps from FEMA’s website.
  • FEMA Flood Hazard Layer (National Viewer)
  • FEMA Map Service Center - Flood Maps and Floodplain Data Download
  Sea Level Rise data are developed for different scenarios, from one foot to eight feet of sea level rise. Some datasets also include river flood scenarios alongside sea level rise to show combined flooding potential. These data were developed by the University of New Hampshire Earth Systems Research Center.
  • Sea Level Rise Scenario layers on NH GRANIT
  • Stafford Region Sea Level Rise Impacts Viewer
• Soils and Geology- The ground beneath your feet has a significant impact on how a planned project can be constructed and managed sustainability. For example, a trail built over poorly drained soils may require greater investment in boardwalks or bridging and long-term erosion maintenance. Soils and geological layers can help you understand the physical characteristics of your site.
  • Soils and geology layers in NH GRANIT
• Aerial Photography - Aerial photography, or aerial imagery, is a picture of the earth from above. This is often called a “satellite” view. Aerial images have been taken regularly over the years and can provide a snapshot of the site at different times. The aerial images in common mapping applications like Google Maps and Google Earth can be helpful for more closely assessing local conditions and features at your project sites.
  • Aerial imagery on NH GRANIT
• Land Cover - Land cover is a mapping term used to describe what the land looks like from an aerial perspective. Land cover classes differentiate between vegetation types, developed areas, agricultural areas, and open water. Land cover is widely used to understand and delineate wildlife habitats. This information will continue to build an understanding of your site.
  • NH Wildlife Action Plan Habitat Land Cover
  • National Land Cover Database

Exploring Specialized Data Layers

Numerous state agencies and non-profit organizations have developed map layers and mapping applications that draw from many of the data layers noted above in order to better understand environmental conditions, concerns, or values. These combined data layers can many times help users easily make the most of the knowledge that has been developed. Some particularly useful data layers are provided below with descriptions.

• Planning Trails for Wildlife and People - This data layer was developed by the NH Fish and Game Department to show the relative impact of trails (or potential trails) on wildlife habitat. You can use this layer to guide your trail development based on where a trail would have the least or most impact on wildlife habitat in your community. This data is available to view in the GRANITView application, or available for download and use with GIS software.
• NH Ecosystem Services Map - This is a regional scale map layer developed by the NH Natural and Cultural Resources Department that brings together datasets representing water, wildlife, resilient and connected landscapes, and conserved and public lands. You can use this layer to understand where in your community natural landscapes provide important functions for people and wildlife. This information can help you identify how your recreation assets or proposed projects relate to these landscapes.
• The Nature Conservancy Resilient Lands Tool and Conservation Dashboard - These tools are helpful for understanding the current state of the landscape and the value of conservation in and around your community. You can use these tools to illustrate the connections between your recreational assets and broader conservation goals.

The layers listed in the above sections are examples of useful data available to help you understand and plan. NH GRANIT has other map data not listed here that you might find while exploring the website.

Please remember, all digital map layers are developed at different scales and for different purposes. Some layers are developed at a scale suitable for regional planning, while others can be used to assess more local conditions. When browsing these resources, be sure to take a little extra time to read more about how these data layers were created, when they were created and last updated, and for what purposes. If you have further questions, please contact the publishers of the data. They are usually glad to hear from you, because they want the data they produce to be useful.

Digging Deeper

Some Regional Planning Commissions have environmental and natural resources layers developed for their regions. These layers may be available through NH GRANIT, through the RPC websites, or by contacting your regional RPC directly. See the Outdoor Recreation Activities and Asset Inventory tool to learn more about the GIS services offered by NH’s RPCs.

Some critical habitat and wildlife data is not publicly available. It may be important to know whether threatened and endangered species, rare and exemplary ecological communities, and sensitive wildlife will be impacted by your recreation project. The Natural Heritage Bureau (NHB) maintains map data and provides the information in several ways, depending on your needs. See the NHB website for more details.

• A Landowner Request - The Natural Heritage Bureau will check its database and provide you with a list of rare species or exemplary natural communities on your property.
• The DataCheck Tool - This tool is provided by the NH Department of Environmental Services (NHDES). The public can screen a proposed project for known locations of rare species and exemplary natural communities. The output of the tool is an official document that satisfies a regulatory requirement of permit and grant applications in New Hampshire.
• A Data Sharing Agreement (DSA) - For those who are looking at larger areas for regional recreational planning, the NHB can provide an agreement that grants a specific user access to some of NHB’s data for a specific purpose for one year. There are restrictions on how the data can be used and shared.

Where to Go Next

This tool identifies some of the key sources of environmental data that help provide context for your recreation planning projects. These datasets can be helpful when viewed on their own, but they become even more impactful when viewed in the context of your recreational assets or proposed project. Review the Maps of Outdoor Recreation tool for possible solutions to make your own local maps that integrate this information.