Description: The NOAA Coastal Change Analysis Program (C-CAP) produces national standardized land cover and change products for the coastal regions of the U.S. C-CAP products inventory coastal intertidal areas, wetlands, and adjacent uplands with the goal of monitoring changes in these habitats, on a one-to-five year repeat cycle. The timeframe for this metadata is reported as 1996-Era, but the actual dates of the Landsat imagery used to create the land cover may have been acquired a few years before or after each era. These maps are developed utilizing Landsat Thematic Mapper imagery, and can be used to track changes in the landscape through time. This trend information gives important feedback to managers on the success or failure of management policies and programs and aid in developing a scientific understanding of the Earth system and its response to natural and human-induced changes. This understanding allows for the prediction of impacts due to these changes and the assessment of their cumulative effects, helping coastal resource managers make more informed regional decisions. NOAA C-CAP is a contributing member to the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics consortium and C-CAP products are included as the coastal expression of land cover within the National Land Cover Database. Attributes for this product are as follows: 0 Background, 1 Unclassified (Cloud, Shadow, etc), 2 High Intensity Developed, 3 Medium Intensity Developed, 4 Low Intensity Developed, 5 Developed Open Space, 6 Cultivated Land, 7 Pasture/Hay, 8 Grassland, 9 Deciduous Forest, 10 Evergreen Forest, 11 Mixed Forest, 12 Scrub/Shrub, 13 Palustrine Forested Wetland, 14 Palustrine Scrub/Shrub Wetland, 15 Palustrine Emergent Wetland, 16 Estuarine Forested Wetland, 17 Estuarine Scrub/Shrub Wetland, 18 Estuarine Emergent Wetland, 19 Unconsolidated Shore, 20 Bare Land, 21 Open Water, 22 Palustrine Aquatic Bed, 23 Estuarine Aquatic Bed, 24 Tundra, 25 Snow/Ice, Recommended Citation. NOAA Coastal Change Analysis Program (C-CAP) Regional Land Cover Database. Data collected 1995-present. Charleston, SC: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Office for Coastal Management. Data accessed at coast.noaa.gov/landcover. Disclaimer: This product is for informational purposes only and may not be suitable for legal, engineering, or surveying purposes. It does not represent an official survey and represents only the approximate relative location of features and boundaries. Mapping may not necessarily reflect on-the-ground conditions. This product and those involved in its production make no claims as to the accuracy or reliability of the data, and neither assumes, nor will accept liability for their use.
Copyright Text: NOAA Coastal Change Analysis Program (C-CAP) Regional Land Cover Database