A review of the Oregon Geospatial Data Portal

We as the authors of this blog have been honored to review many state, national, and international GIS data portals throughout the years.  The state portals have included Texas, Utah, Maryland, and Indiana, and ranking among these great portals is the one from Oregon.  Named “The Oregon Spatial Data Library, at the time of this writing, the library lists 908 data items–an impressive number, but even more impressive is its simple, modern interface with the ability to browse by collection, format, sources, topics, and keywords–all listed on the left side.   The data sources include downloadable zip files but also streaming data services which as we have pointed out here, are rapidly becoming the preferred option for many users and uses.

The library is also linked to another fabulous resource– The Oregon Explorer, with its own mapping interface and information about fascinating places to visit, but also information about natural hazards and other themes of concern to residents and visitors of the state.  Thus, it is a tool for the visitor and general public, but also a research tool.  Through the library, one can also access the Communities Reporter, a resource for community planners and researchers with access to extensive data and maps.

Interestingly, the Oregon Community Foundation is listed as a partner, an organization that creates charitable funds for worthy causes in the state.  To have a resource such as a geospatial data library be considered a worthy cause brings me great joy!

I highly recommend investigating the Oregon Spatial Data Library.  I congratulate and salute all those involved in setting it up and maintaining this excellent resource.

The Oregon Spatial Data Library, with investigation to discover land use land cover data. 

–Joseph Kerski