1. Access and Use of FIA Data Through FIA Spatial Data Services
Elizabeth LaPoint

2. Why am I Here?
Facilitate access to FIA data without violating the law - revealing plot location or ownership information
Connect customers’ GIS layers or imagery with FIA plots
Summarize data over a given area
Assist by providing information or knowledge
I assist people with using the FIA data spatially without violating the privacy law.
Work with GIS and imagery in conjunction with the plots.
I do custom summaries for people.
Answer any questions that users may have – or find them answers if I don’t know them.
I serve the FIA customers.
The point is that I am here to help.

3. The Law
FY 2000 Appropriations Bill modified the Food Security Act of 1985 (7 U.S.C. 2276(d))
Data must be in an aggregate form so that the landowner’s identity cannot be determined
Violation of the law can result in fines up to $10,000 and/or 1 year in jail
Food Security Act of 1985 was modified and made it illegal to reveal ownership information.
Previously FIA treated ownership and plot location confidentiality but it wasn’t a law.
Don’t want multiple visits to plots.
Don’t want people thinking that management plans have been altered to treat plot area differently and thereby affect the FIA reports.
Don’t want landowners harassed.
Don’t want to get involved or have landowners think we are involved with any type of taxation or regulation issues.
FIA depends on landowner cooperation.

4. Who Makes Requests? Academia - #1 Customer
Federal Agencies –USGS, EPA, BLM
Forest Service – NFS, Researchers
State Agencies
FIA – between Units; within Units
NGO – The Nature Conservancy
Academia is the biggest customer.
I will do a data request for anyone who contacts me – individual landowner, researcher, state forester anyone.

5. Data Requests by Organization
Demonstrates where the requests have been coming from. FY2004 end of 2nd quarter.
Fully 1/3 from Academia and another 1/3 from federal government – excluding FIA

6. Request Process Initial contact
Review & explain the law and security policy
Protecting the landowner’s privacy & plot location is #1 concern
Refine the idea – What question do they really want answered?
Focus the request
No charge for requests
People contact me by or phone.
I go over the law and our security policy with them to impress upon them the seriousness of the law.
Many times the requestor’s original idea is a bit vague because they are not that familiar with FIA data.
We have to focus the request and get it down to what they really need.
This is period when we put in the most time – and all the time and effort we put in here pays off in the end.

7. Regional Data Requests
If a data request falls entirely into a single FIA Unit then the request may be handled by the FIA Unit itself
The individual FIA Units may decide to handle data requests that fall entirely within their Unit.
For example, North Central has established a regional Spatial Data Services center to handle requests that are entirely within their region.

8. Request Process
Limitations of the data – GPS, gaps in coverage, differences between states
Does FIA data answer their question?
Can we modify the request so it does?
Present plan to Program Manager(s)
Many of the requestor’s are not familiar with FIA’s data – I have to point out the warts.
Some, but not all, plots have GPS coordinates. That is changing.
We do not have plots in some places – although that is changing – west Texas.
There are differences in the data collection times between states, the plot design used, data collected. Between states never mind between the FIA units themselves.
With all of that in mind – does FIA data address and answer the question?
Can we modify things so FIA data will help?
Once we have a method for doing the request – keeping in mind the security issues involved – I present the plan to the Program Manager(s) involved. The Program Manager for the Unit who’s data is involved must approve the request.

9. Request Process Approve – I handle request
Approve – FIA Unit involved does request
Deny – I work with requestor to figure out alternative that will work
Do the analysis
Final security review
Product is shipped
Program Managers can approve and have me do the request.
They can approve and have their own Unit do the request.
They can deny the request – at which point I’d work with the requestor to come up with an alternative plan.
I am here to focus on multi-regional requests but I do requests that fall entirely within a single region also.
Do the analysis/production work.
Final Security Review.
Ship the product.

10. Examples
Wood Basket – Circular retrieval. 150 miles around a given location. Return growth within area.
Accuracy assessment of imagery classification. Return classes with plot information.

11. How Busy Have I Been? In FY2004 70 new requests made so far
24 active requests currently
11 active national requests
Estimated wait time - about 4-8 weeks
67% completed within 4 weeks in FY2003
Almost 5.5 requests per month completed – more than 1 per week.
Wait time is based on completing all requests before taking on any new projects.
Requestors are frequently reminded that I am an “Army of 1”

12. Fuzzing & Swapping FIADB will have coordinates again .….BUT…..
There is some good news….

13. First the Fuzzing Coordinates will be fuzzed
The coordinates will be altered or ‘fuzzed’.
This shows a 1 mile buffer around the plots – the fuzzed location will be somewhere in that circle.
This is to prevent locating the plot on the ground.

14. Then Swapping Up to 20% of privately owned plots “swapped”
Similar plots have their data swapped
Plot A’s data assigned to Plot B’s location
Similarity is determined by each FIA Unit and may differ between Units
Swapped plots will remain within the geographic reporting unit – county or supercounty
Swapping is to protect landowner’s privacy.

15. What Does This Mean?
Customers may choose to download the fuzzed & swapped data to use
Refine their ideas using fuzzed & swapped data and then call me
The fuzzed and swapped data may be sufficient for some data requests.
If not it is still useful for people to familiarize themselves with the data or refine their idea before making request of me.
I’m still available to help with using fuzz/swap data and I will do requests using fuzz/swap data if appropriate.
Even if they are not using FIA data at all I’ll still here to help.

16. Fuzzed/Swapped Data Available
Data available from the publicly accessible web site as of 4/5/2004 that has fuzzed/swapped coordinates. I’m going to show the most recent survey data for each state that is there.
The numbers represent the number of panels out of 5 total that are done for the state in the annual survey – those without numbers do not yet have annual data available.
West Virginia was a Periodic survey completed in 2001 – the data is available and has been fuzzed and swapped.
OH 2001 is a single panel of annual data.
NJ, DE and MD were all 1999 periodic surveys.
CT, RI and MA were all 1998 periodic surveys.
VT and NH are 1997 surveys – also, periodic.
NY is a periodic survey from 1993.

17. Fuzzing and Swapping Future
Available now on FIADB web site
dump/fiadb17_dump.htm

18. FIA National Spatial Data Services Northeastern Research Station
Elizabeth LaPoint
FIA National Spatial Data Services
Northeastern Research Station
Newtown Square, PA