CadNSDI Montana
Data and Documentation
Montana PLSS CadNSDI Data Download
The CadNSDI represents the cadastral components of the Public Land Survey System (PLSS). Generally published annually, the data are provided as geodatabase and shapefile formats in the NAD 83 (2011) projection. Previous publications of the CadNSDI are available as Related Records.
Public Land Survey System Web Map Service
The Montana Public Land Survey System comprises townships, sections, section subdivisions, and special surveys.
A handbook for GIS users of the CadNSDI Publication data set published by the FGDC Cadastral Subcommittee PLSS Work Group
A discussion site for national parcel and cadastral data to support the Cadastral NSDI.
Landing page for federal land records resources.
About
CadNSDI Montana is the current, authoritative source for the most accurate GIS representation of the PLSS. The name “CadNSDI” comes from the FGDC’s Cadastral Subcommittee. In the spring of 2014, the Montana State Library (MSL) assumed the management and publication of the Montana CadNSDI. In partnership with MSL and Premier Data Services, Inc., the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) continues its stewardship of the Montana CadNSDI on federal lands.
Improvements to the CadNDSDI
The CadNSDI is published with new adjustments on an annual basis according to FGDC Cadastral Publication Standards. It makes use of Montana’s Mapping Control Framework as the basis of its coordinates in areas where mapping control is available. Grants are available from the Montana Geospatial Information Act grant program to collect survey control to be used in future CadNSDI adjustments. The Mapping Control theme lead accepts survey control on an ongoing basis, and if applicable, this control will be used in future adjustments to improve the accuracy of the CadNSDI.
The CadNSDI supports the development of Montana’s Cadastral Framework, Administrative Boundaries Framework, and other Montana framework datasets built upon the PLSS geography. Below is an example of improved Cadastral parcel data following an adjustment of the CadNSDI in that area.
Adjusting Your Data to the CadNSDI
If your own data partially aligns to the CadNSDI, you may want to adjust your data to the latest publication. In addition to the applications described in the section below, you can use the following services in ArcMap or in ArcGIS Online to visualize and query where adjustments have taken place across the state as well as the status of current and future adjustments.
Montana CadNSDI Projects - a map of proposed, in progress, and completed adjustment projects
CadNSDI Adjustment L inks - vectors representing the distance between PLSS Points from the previous and current years
Metadata at a Glance - a web service comprising townships attributed with a Revised Date field indicating the date of adjustment for each township
Via the Data Download, access multiple resources to aid in adjusting your data. These include:
- Customized conflation tools for semi-automated adjustments
- PLSS Points in the State Plane Coordinate System for 2016 and 2017 CadNSDI publications to use in conflation
- Adjustment links representing the movement between the past and current year's CadNSDI to use with the conflation tools
- Sample materials and exercises to guide you through different adjustment processes
Applications
Explore completed areas of adjustment, learn about how the CadNSDI is adjusted, and discover how other datasets rely on its accuracy.
Published by the PLSS Work Group, this story map provides an overview of the PLSS and its components.
The map below shows Public Land Survey townships in Montana where CadNDSI accuracy improvements have been proposed, are in progress, or have been completed, as well as where mapping control is available. Improvements to the CadNSDI occur through adjustments using survey control data. To contribute survey control to be used in future adjustments or to propose a new area for adjustment, email geoinfo@mt.gov.
Theme Lead
Jeff Hedstrom
Montana State Library
jhedstrom@mt.gov
(406) 444-5371
