FLORIDA GEOGRAPHIC DATA LIBRARY DOCUMENTATION
VERSION 2003, RELEASED NOVEMBER, 2002.
SPECIAL FLOOD HAZARD AREAS 1996
Geodataset Name: SFHA Geodataset Type: Shape Geodataset Feature: Polygon
GENERAL DESCRIPTION:
This data set is a digital representation of certain features of Flood
Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs) published by Federal Emergency Management
Agency(FEMA).
DATA SOURCE(s): FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY SCALE OF ORIGINAL SOURCE MAPS: 1:24000 DATE OF AUTOMATION OR SOURCE: Source 1990, Automated 1996 GEODATASET EXTENT: State of Florida; with the exception of the following counties: BRADFORD, COLUMBIA, DIXIE, GILCHRIST, HAMILTON, JEFFERSON, LAFAYETTE, MADISON, OKEECHOBEE, TAYLOR, UNION.
FEATURE ATTRIBUTE TABLES
Datafile Name: SFHA.DBF
ITEM NAME WIDTH TYPE PRECISION AREA 18 Decimal 5 PERIMETER 18 Decimal 5 FEMA96_ 11 Decimal 0 FEMA96_ID 11 Decimal 0 FIPS 5 Character - COMMUNITY 4 Character - FIRM_PANEL 11 Character - QUAD 8 Character - ZONE 5 Character - FLOODWAY 5 Character - COBRA 9 Character - SFHA 3 Character - SYMBOL 11 Decimal 0 PANEL_TYP 4 Character - DESCRIPT 50 Character -
FEATURE ATTRIBUTE TABLES CODES AND VALUES:
Item Item description
FIPS - Standard 5-digit State and County FIPS codes. Definition source is from Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS), National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST); first 2 digits for state, last 3 digits for county.
COMMUNITY - Identifies a county, city, or other community responsible for flood plain management. Numeric value assigned by FEMA,(0..9999).
FIRM_PANEL - Eleven-digit alpha-numeric code identifies portion of community covered or not covered by a FIRM panel. Code comprises a unique alpha-numeric sequence based on FIPS and FEMA Community and Panel identification.
QUAD USGS - 7.5-minute quadrangle identifier.
ZONE - Flood hazard zone designation. Multiple Codes refer to "Q3 Flood Data Specifications"
VALUES DESCRIPTION
V An area inundated by 100-year flooding with velocity hazard (wave action); no Base Flood Elevation (BFEs) have been determined. VE An area inundated by 100-year flooding with velocity hazard (wave action); BFEs have been determined. A An area inundated by 100-year flooding, for which no BFEs have been determined. AE An area inundated by 100-year flooding, for which BFEs have been determined. AO An area inundated by 100-year flooding (usually sheet flow on sloping terrain), for which average depths have been determined; flood depths range from 1 to 3 feet. AOVEL An alluvial fan inundated by 100-year flooding (usually sheet flow on sloping terrain), for which average flood depths and velocities have been determined; flood depths range from 1 to 3 feet. AH An area inundated by 100-year flooding (usually an area of ponding), for which BFEs have been determined; flood depths range from 1 to 3 feet. A99 An area inundated by 100-year flooding, for which no BFEs have been determined. This is an area to be protected from the 100-year flood by a Federal flood protection system under construction. D An area of undetermined but possible flood hazards. AR An area inundated by flooding, for which BFEs or average depths have been determined. This is an area that was previously, and will again, be protected from the 100-year flood by a Federal flood protection system whose restoration is Federally funded and underway. X500 An area inundated by 500-year flooding; an area inundated by 100-year flooding with average depths of less than 1 foot or with drainage areas less than 1 square mile; or an area protected by levees from the 100-year flooding. X An area that is determined to be outside the 100- and 500-year floodplains. 100IC An area where the 100-year flooding is contained within the channel banks and the channel is too narrow to show to scale. An arbitrary channel width of 3 meters is shown. BFEs are not shown in this area, although they may be reflected on the corresponding profile. 500IC An area where the 500-year flooding is contained within the channel banks and the channel is too narrow to show to scale. An arbitrary channel width of 3 meters is shown. FWIC An area where the floodway is contained within the channel banks and the channel is too narrow to show to scale. An arbitrary channel width of 3 meters is shown. BFEs are not shown in this area, although they may be reflected on the corresponding profile. FPQ An area designated as a "Flood Prone Area" on a map prepared by USGS and the Federal Insurance Administration. This area has been delineated based on available information on past floods. This is an area inundated by 100-year flooding for which no BFEs have been determined.
FLOODWAY - Channel, river or watercourse reserved for flood discharge. Multiple Codes refer to "Q3 Flood Data Specifications".
COBRA - Undeveloped Coastal Barrier Area. Multiple Codes refer to "Q3 Flood Data Specifications".
SFHA - In/Out of flood zone designation, determined from data topology.
VALUES DESCRIPTION
IN An area designated as within a "Special Flood Hazard Area" (or SFHA) on a FIRM. This is an area inundated by 100-year flooding for which no BFEs or velocity may have been determined. No distinctions are made between the different flood hazard zones that may be included within the SFHA. These may include Zones A, AE, AO, AH, A99, AR, V, or VE. OUT An area designated as outside a "Special Flood Hazard Area" (or SFHA) on a FIRM. This is an area inundated by 500-year flooding; an area inundated by 100-year flooding with average depths of less than 1 foot or with drainage areas less than 1 square mile; an area protected by levees from 100-year flooding; or an area that is determined to be outside the 100- and 500-year floodplains. No distinctions are made between these different conditions. These may include both shaded and unshaded areas of Zone X. ANI An area that is located within a community or county that is not mapped on any published FIRM. UNDES A body of open water, such as a pond, lake ocean, etc., located within a community's jurisdictional limits, that has no defined flood hazard.
SYMBOL - Polygon shade symbols for graphic output, based on
polygon codes. Multiple Codes refer to "Q3 Flood Data
Specifications"
PANEL_TYP - Type of FIRM panel represented.
Multiple Codes refer to "Q3 Flood Data Specifications".
DESCRIPT - Based on SFHA
USER NOTES:Data is missing for several counties in Florida. The database will be updated when the data becomes available.
These data are designed to provide a guidance and a general proximity of the locations of Special Flood Hazard Areas(SFHA) and zones of possible risks associated with food inundation. In addition to locational and topological information, features contained in the data set include 1%(100 year) and 0.2% (500 year) annual chance flood plain boundaries, flood insurance zone designations (including Velocity zones), flood way boundaries(when available), political boundaries(State, county and community), community and map panel identification number, FIRM panel neat lines, USGS 7.5-minute (1:24,000 scale) topographic map quadrangle neat lines, and Coastal Barrier Resource Act(COBRA) areas.
The digital Q3 Flood Data are designed so serve FEMA's needs for disaster response activities, National Flood Insurance Program activities, risk assessment, and flood plain management. The data are expected to be used for a variety of planning applications including broad-based reviews for flood plain management, land-use planning, commercial siting analysis, insurance target marketing, natural resource/environmental analysis, and real estate development and targeting.
Caution: The digital Q3 Flood Data product was not designed to make strict in/out flood risk determinations. The data are designed to provide guidance and a general proximity of the location of applications such as detailed site design and development plans or flood risk determinations. The digital Q3 Flood Data cannot be used to determine absolute delineations of flood boundaries, but instead should be seen as portraying zones of uncertainty and possible risks associated with flood inundation. Users must apply considerable care and judgment in applying this product. Users should refer to the "Users Guide" and "Specifications" for further information.
FGDL QUALITY ASSURANCE STATUS:
-Reprojected data to FGDL Albers -Set Precision to DOUBLE -Set Tolerances to FGDL Standards -Added DESCRIPT item based on Special Flood Hazard Area
REFERENCES:
Please see the FEMA Q3 Flood Specification (FEMASPEC.TXT) and User Guide (FEMAUG.TXT) located in the REFERENC folder of this CD. [CDROM_DRIVE_LETTER]:\FGDLDOCS\METADATA\REFERENC Or in the FGDLDOCS folder on your hard drive.
For more information consult: http://www.fema.gov/nfip/
DATA LINEAGE SUMMARY:
This data set was made from a query of the fema96 data. This subset shows areas where SFHA = "IN".
This data set also known as Q3 Flood Data was produced by either scanning and vectoring or manually digitizing a hard copy version of the graphic materials andattribution was performed along or after that process.
MAP PROJECTION PARAMETERS:
Projection ALBERS Units METERS Datum HPGN Spheroid GRS1980 1st standard parallel 24 0 0.000 2nd standard parallel 31 30 0.000 central meridian -84 0 0.000 latitude of projection's origin 24 0 0.000 false easting (meters) 400000.00000 false northing (meters) 0.00000
DATA SOURCES CONTACT(S):
Name: FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY Abbr. Name: FEMA Address: Federal Emergency Management Agency, Mitigation Directorate Q3 Flood Data Program 500 C Street, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20472 Phone: 1-800-358-9691 (inquiries and ordering) (617) 354-2614 (technical questions) Web site: http://www.fema.gov Contact Person: Operator will direct you Phone 1-800-358-9691
FGDL CONTACT:Name: FLORIDA GEOGRAPHIC DATA LIBRARY Abbr. Name: FGDL Address: Florida Geographic Data Library 431 Architecture Building PO Box 115706 Gainesville, FL 32611-5706 Web site: http://www.fgdl.orgContact FGDL:
Technical Support: http://www.fgdl.org/fgdlfeed.html FGDL Frequently Asked Questions: http://www.fgdl.org/fgdlfaq.html FGDL Mailing Lists: http://www.fgdl.org/fgdl-l.html For FGDL Software: http://www.fgdl.org/software.html