Statewide Seamless 0.5m Lidar DEM, Minnesota, 2025

This data is a seamless representation of Lidar derived Digital Elevation Model (DEM) for the state of Minnesota. The data represented was collected between 2021 and 2023. The data was collected on Lidar Acquisition Block (LABs) levels which are further broken down into work units within some LABs, please see the "Areas Covered" section of https://www.mngeo.state.mn.us/chouse/elevation/lidar_2021-2024.html for additional information about LABs or work units.<br/><br/>Data collection was guided by the Minnesota Lidar Plan, collaborative effort led by the Minnesota Geospatial Advisory Council’s 3D Geomatics Committee and the Minnesota Geospatial Information Office (MnGeo), with support from federal partners such as USGS and FEMA. It outlines a comprehensive strategy to acquire new, high-resolution lidar data across the state to replace outdated datasets collected over a decade ago. The plan is driven by the need for more accurate elevation data to support a wide range of applications, including hydrologic modeling, infrastructure planning, forest resource assessment, and environmental monitoring. Minnesota’s current lidar data, collected between 2008 and 2012, no longer meets modern standards (classified as QL3) and fails to reflect significant landscape changes due to natural events and human development. The new data will meet or exceed USGS Quality Level 1 (QL1) standards, offering higher point density and improved accuracy.<br/><br/>The seamless 0.5m Lidar is made up data only final vertical accuracy (FVA) checked Lidar data and are organized by standards developed and accepted by Minnesota's 3D Geomatics Committe. The DEMs received from contractors were blended to remove overlaps that occured between LABs and in some cases within LABs and reaggregated using GDAL tools and ArcGIS Pro. Please see Lineage for details.<br/><br/>