The 1997 Monterey County land use survey data set was developed by DWR through its Division of Planning and Local Assistance (DPLA). This survey is unique in that three site visits were completed in the area. Each of the three site visits was digitized as a separate survey, the Salinas Valley in the spring, the entire county in the summer, and the Salinas Valley in the fall. The data was gathered using aerial photography and extensive field visits, the land use boundaries and attributes were digitized, and the resultant data went through standard quality control procedures before finalizing. The land uses that were gathered were detailed agricultural land uses, and lesser detailed urban and native vegetation land uses. The data was gathered and digitized by staff of DWR’s San Joaquin District. Quality control procedures were performed jointly by staff at DWR’s DPLA headquarters and San Joaquin District. The finalized data includes one countywide shapefile, two Salinas Valley shapefiles (land use vector data) and JPEG files (raster data from aerial imagery). Important Points about Using this Data Set: 1. The land use boundaries were either drawn on-screen using developed photoquads, or hand drawn directly on USGS quad maps and then digitized. They were drawn to depict observable areas of the same land use. They were not drawn to represent legal parcel (ownership) boundaries, or meant to be used as parcel boundaries. 2. For the Salinas Valley portion of Monterey County, the survey was not a "snapshot" in time, but incorporated three field visits for agricultural areas. The land use attributes of each delineated area (polygon) were based upon the surveyor’s observations in the field at those times. For the DWG and shapefiles, the attributes in the files are the observations, not the interpreted results. 3. For the area of Monterey County outside of the Salinas Valley, the survey was a "snapshot" in time (summer). The indicated land use attributes of each delineated area (polygon) were based upon what the surveyor saw in the field at that time, and, to an extent possible, whatever additional information the aerial photography might provide. For example, the surveyor might have seen a cropped field in the photograph, and the field visit showed a field of corn, so the field was given a corn attribute. In another field, the photograph might have shown a crop that was golden in color (indicating grain prior to harvest), and the field visit showed newly planted corn. This field would be given an attribute showing a double crop, grain followed by corn. The DWR land use attribute structure allows for up to three crops per delineated area (polygon). In the cases where there were crops grown before the survey took place, the surveyor may or may not have been able to detect them from the field or the photographs. For crops planted after the survey date, the surveyor could not account for these crops. Thus, although the data is very accurate for that point in time, it may not be an accurate determination of what was grown in the fields for the whole year. If the area being surveyed does have double or multicropping systems, it is likely that there are more crops grown than could be surveyed with a "snapshot". 3. If the data is to be brought into a GIS for analysis of cropped (or planted) acreage, two things must be understood: a. The acreage of each field delineated is the gross area of the field. The amount of actual planted and irrigated acreage will always be less than the gross acreage, because of ditches, farm roads, other roads, farmsteads, etc. Thus, a delineated corn field may have a GIS calculated acreage of 40 acres but will have a smaller cropped (or net) acreage, maybe 38 acres. b. Double and multicropping must be taken into account. A delineated field of 40 acres might have been cropped first with grain, then with corn, and coded as such. To estimate actual cropped acres, the two crops are added together (38 acres of grain and 38 acres of corn) which results in a total of 76 acres of net crop (or planted) acres. 4. Water source and irrigation method information were not collected for this survey. 5. Not all land use codes will be represented in the survey.

The 1997 Monterey County land use survey data set was developed by DWR through its Division of Planning and Local Assistance (DPLA). This survey is unique in that three site visits were completed in the area. Each of the three site visits was digitized as a separate survey, the Salinas Valley in the spring, the entire county in the summer, and the Salinas Valley in the fall. The data was gathered using aerial photography and extensive field visits, the land use boundaries and attributes were digitized, and the resultant data went through standard quality control procedures before finalizing. The land uses that were gathered were detailed agricultural land uses, and lesser detailed urban and native vegetation land uses. The data was gathered and digitized by staff of DWR’s San Joaquin District. Quality control procedures were performed jointly by staff at DWR’s DPLA headquarters and San Joaquin District. The finalized data includes one countywide shapefile, two Salinas Valley shapefiles (land use vector data) and JPEG files (raster data from aerial imagery). Important Points about Using this Data Set: 1. The land use boundaries were either drawn on-screen using developed photoquads, or hand drawn directly on USGS quad maps and then digitized. They were drawn to depict observable areas of the same land use. They were not drawn to represent legal parcel (ownership) boundaries, or meant to be used as parcel boundaries. 2. For the Salinas Valley portion of Monterey County, the survey was not a "snapshot" in time, but incorporated three field visits for agricultural areas. The land use attributes of each delineated area (polygon) were based upon the surveyor’s observations in the field at those times. For the DWG and shapefiles, the attributes in the files are the observations, not the interpreted results. 3. For the area of Monterey County outside of the Salinas Valley, the survey was a "snapshot" in time (summer). The indicated land use attributes of each delineated area (polygon) were based upon what the surveyor saw in the field at that time, and, to an extent possible, whatever additional information the aerial photography might provide. For example, the surveyor might have seen a cropped field in the photograph, and the field visit showed a field of corn, so the field was given a corn attribute. In another field, the photograph might have shown a crop that was golden in color (indicating grain prior to harvest), and the field visit showed newly planted corn. This field would be given an attribute showing a double crop, grain followed by corn. The DWR land use attribute structure allows for up to three crops per delineated area (polygon). In the cases where there were crops grown before the survey took place, the surveyor may or may not have been able to detect them from the field or the photographs. For crops planted after the survey date, the surveyor could not account for these crops. Thus, although the data is very accurate for that point in time, it may not be an accurate determination of what was grown in the fields for the whole year. If the area being surveyed does have double or multicropping systems, it is likely that there are more crops grown than could be surveyed with a "snapshot". 3. If the data is to be brought into a GIS for analysis of cropped (or planted) acreage, two things must be understood: a. The acreage of each field delineated is the gross area of the field. The amount of actual planted and irrigated acreage will always be less than the gross acreage, because of ditches, farm roads, other roads, farmsteads, etc. Thus, a delineated corn field may have a GIS calculated acreage of 40 acres but will have a smaller cropped (or net) acreage, maybe 38 acres. b. Double and multicropping must be taken into account. A delineated field of 40 acres might have been cropped first with grain, then with corn, and coded as such. To estimate actual cropped acres, the two crops are added together (38 acres of grain and 38 acres of corn) which results in a total of 76 acres of net crop (or planted) acres. 4. Water source and irrigation method information were not collected for this survey. 5. Not all land use codes will be represented in the survey.