ILRIS: surveyor benefits

Land surveyors are the last word in accuracy where geospatial geometry is concerned. Metes and bounds information - dimensions of property boundaries measured to sub-inch increments - is essential for conveyance of property. But most GIS applications do not require data of this accuracy.

Much of the benefit of a statewide, dynamic cadastral datalayer will accrue at planning scales, where land can be quantified, symbolized and characterized at the parcel level.

But this shouldn't be taken to mean that surveyors do not have a role in a statewide integrated land records information system. The composite of surveys should be available as a kind of reference frame for orienting the far inferior quality of planning level parcel data. The coverage of this layer would be extremely spotty to be sure, but over time it would begin to fill itself in and help to sew the overall fabric together.

If only this simple improvement were made - if all registered surveys were anchored to Maine's UTM Zone 19 NAD83 meters coordinate system and made readily available as a public, transparent and accessible resoource - the ILRIS exercise could be considered successful.