Forest Sciences: GIS Resources

Guide to information in forest sciences subject areas.

Geospatial Data Collections at UW

The Map Collection has digital geospatial data on CD-ROM, DVD and on servers for research and educational use.

Starting Point: Washington State Geospatial Data Archive (WAGDA)

Our collection focuses on the Puget Sound and State of Washington areas, but we also have national and international datasets. Examples of our data include:

digital orthophotos of Seattle and the Puget Sound area
U.S. Census data
Digital Raster Graphics (DRGs).

We also have datasets from the City of Seattle, King, Snohomish and other Washington counties. Information in these datasets includes street layers, bike paths, critical areas (e.g., potential slide areas), building outlines, and many more.

Center for Social Science Computing & Research (CSSCR)
As Geography students, you have free access to the CSSCR Geography/GIS Consultant!

Local, State & Regional Data Resources

City of Seattle GIS Data
(UWNetID required)

Suggested Starting Points:

Washington State - GIS Data on WAGDA
Washington Counties - GIS Data and Links on WAGDA
Washington Cities - GIS Data and Links on WAGDA

King County GIS Data
(UWNetID required)
Puget Sound Regional Council: Data and Resources
Download GIS shapefiles of regional planning boundaries, census tracts, and PSRC forecasting zones.
WA Dept. of Ecology GIS Data
GIS data and other free information available from the Department of Ecology of Washington State.
WA Dept. of Natural Resource GIS Data Center
From the Washington Dept. of Natural Resources, you can find resources relating to GIS Open Data and other free GIS software.
WSDOT Geodata Distribution Catalog
A centralized distribution site for GIS data produced at the Washington State Department of Transportation.

US Data Resources

Data.gov
A primary resource for geospatial data discovery, whether working at national, state, or local scales. Physical, environmental, social and cultural data with a geographical aspect are included.

Suggested Starting Point:

United States - GIS Data on WAGDA (UWNetID required)

The National Map
Interactive search and retrieval system for a wide variety of vector and raster data including: administrative boundaries, geology, hydrology, imagery and more.
USDA Geospatial Data Gateway
Natural resource and agricultural data for viewing, querying, and downloading (requires up-to-date java).
Explore Census Data
Population, housing, economic and geographic data from the US Census.

International Data Resources

Center for International Earth Science Information Network
CIESIN works at the intersection of the social, natural, and information sciences, and specializes in on-line data and information management, spatial data integration and training, and interdisciplinary research related to human interactions in the environment.

Suggested Starting Point:

World Countries - GIS Data on WAGDA

AfricaMap
Based on the Harvard University Geospatial Infrastructure (HUG) platform, and was developed by the Center for Geographic Analysis to make spatial data on Africa easier for researchers to discover and explore.
Topographic Information -- Natural Resources Canada
Canadian government GIS repository provided by the Earth Sciences Sector of Natural Resources Canada. Contains both physical and human geography datasets, vector and raster, for free. Most files are in Interchange Format (e00).