COS 36-4 - Exploratory Use of R to Synthesize NASIS VegPlot Data for ESD Development

Abstract: The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is the lead agency in the development and utilization of ecological site descriptions (ESDs) to describe ecosystem dynamics and ecological potential for a specific location within a given Land Resource Unit (LRU). Collaborative efforts with all cooperating partnerships within the National Cooperative Soil Survey (NCSS) is strategic to developing a sound and complete description. The scientific integrity of ESDs is achieved with a three-tiered intensity approach to data collection. Collection of ecological field data occurs within the established community phases (within each state), across the spatial extent for multiple years. A lack of database population standards and partner access has resulted in ecological data being collected and stored across many different platforms. Recent advances in population guidance and concurrent development of standardized mobile data collection techniques and data import methods for existing datasets will likely result in increased development and use of the National Soil Information System (NASIS) as an ecological data repository. The R program provides many options through existing packages, developed by individuals across the NRCS, to extract and synthesize vegetation data across multiple data platforms to import data into NASIS. The R packages function to synthesize the data from multiple sampling sites in NASIS to produce metrics that can be directly populated into the Ecosystem Dynamics Interpretive Tool (EDIT). EDIT is the national developer platform and warehouse for ESDs and ecological site groups (ESGs), available to the public and all potential ESD developers. A summary of the function and tools to incorporate data into the NASIS and EDIT databases will hopefully encourage further partnership contributions to ESD development. As the volume and quality of ecological data collection and ESD development increases across all collaborating partners, the methods to import, extract, synthesize, and incorporate data in a meaningful way is essential to the consistent and accurate production of ESDs. Advancement in the data-driven management tool of ESDs provides increased science-based land and ecosystem management decisions on the landscape.