HIFLD OPEN PAD-US Protection Mechanism Category (Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US) 4.0)

The Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US) is the official inventory of public parks and other protected open space. PAD-US is published by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Science Analytics and Synthesis (SAS), Gap Analysis Project (GAP). GAP produces data and tools that help meet critical national challenges such as biodiversity conservation, recreation, public health, climate change adaptation, and infrastructure investment. See the GAP webpage for more information about GAP and other GAP data including species and land cover.PAD-US aggregates data for known protected areas whose primary purpose is biodiversity conservation, as well as lands and waters that provide public access to nature. Other PAD-US feature and tile layers are available at PAD-US Web Service. This content describes the PAD-US dataset which is in the public domain. It is intended for use with the PAD-US Data Explorer. Users are obligated to follow the terms of use of the PAD-US Data Explorer and any accompanying content.Key attribution includes:CategoryOwner TypeOwner NameLocal OwnerManager TypeManager NameLocal ManagerDesignation TypeLocal DesignationUnit NameLocal NameAggregator SourceGIS SourceGIS Source DatePublic AccessGAP Status Code - Status 1, 2, 3 or 4GAP Status DescriptionDate of EstablishmentIUCN Category - International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Description - I: Strict Nature Reserve, II: National Park, III: Natural Monument or Feature, IV: Habitat/Species Management Area, V: Protected Landscape/Seascape, VI: Protected area with sustainable use of natural resources, Other conservation area, Unassigned