Abstract: The data represents the frost-free period in Alberta over the 30-year period from 1971 to 2000. A 30-year period is used to describe the present climate since it is enough time to filter out short-term fluctuations but is not dominated by any long-term trend in the climate. The frost-free period is the number of days between the last date of 00C in the spring and the first date of 00C in the fall. Frost free periods in Alberta vary from 125 days in the south to less than 85 days in higher elevation, non-agricultural areas.The frost-free period is presented as days above 0°C in the following classes: less than 85, 85 to 95, 95 to 105, 105 to 115, 115 to 125 and greater than 125. This resource was created using ArcGIS.
Metadata:
File identifier:
317457EC-75BB-4687-9753-307A9C4788B2
Language:
Language Code:
eng
Character set:
Character set code:
utf8
Hierarchy level:
Scope code:
dataset
Metadata author:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Economic Development, Government of Alberta
Position name:
Environmental Stewardship Branch, GIS Unit
Contact info:
Contact:
Phone:
Telephone:
Voice:
403-742-7901
Address:
Address:
Delivery point:
7000 – 113 St
City:
Edmonton
Administrative area:
Alberta
Postal code:
T6H 5T6
Country:
Country:
CA
Electronic mail address:
duke@gov.ab.ca
Hours of service:
08:00-17:00 Monday to Friday except for statutory holidays
Contact instructions:
Questions regarding the metadata for this data set submitted through electronic mail must include the
salutation “Attention: Geographic Information Systems Lead
(currently David Spiess, david.spiess@gov.ab.ca or in his absence: David Hildebrand,
david.hildebrand@gov.ab.ca; or Karen Raven, karen.raven@gov.ab.ca) – Frost Free Period”
Role:
Role code:
publisher
Date stamp:
2020-03-10
Metadata standard name:
NAP - Metadata
Metadata standard version:
1.2
Dataset URI:
https://www1.agric.gov.ab.ca/$department/deptdocs.nsf/all/agdex10304
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Reference system:
Reference system identifier:
RS Identifier:
Authority:
Citation:
Title:
EPSG Geodetic Parameter Registry
Date:
Date:
Date:
2016-07-13
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
OGP Geomatics Committee
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
custodian
Code:
3400
Code Space:
EPSG
Version:
8.6.2
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Data identification:
Citation:
Citation:
Title:
Frost Free Period 1971-2000
Date:
Date:
Date:
2005-09-01
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Economic Development, Government of Alberta
Position name:
Environmental Stewardship Branch, GIS Unit
Contact info:
Contact:
Phone:
Telephone:
Voice:
403-742-7901
Address:
Address:
Delivery point:
7000 – 113 St
City:
Edmonton
Administrative area:
Alberta
Postal code:
T6H 5T6
Country:
Country:
CA
Electronic mail address:
duke@gov.ab.ca
Hours of service:
08:00-17:00 Monday to Friday except for statutory holidays
Contact instructions:
Queries about the creation and/or characteristics of the data set submitted through electronic
mail must include the salutation "Attention: Geographic Information Systems Lead (currently
David Spiess, david.spiess@gov.ab.ca or in his absence: David Hildebrand,
david.hildebrand@gov.ab.ca; or Karen Raven, karen.raven@gov.ab.ca) – Frost Free Period”
Role:
Role code:
originator
Presentation form:
Presentation form code:
tableDigital
Abstract:
The data represents the frost-free period in Alberta over the 30-year period from 1971 to 2000. A 30-year
period is used to describe the present climate since it is enough time to filter out short-term fluctuations
but is not dominated by any long-term trend in the climate. The frost-free period is the number of days
between the last date of 00C in the spring and the first date of 00C in the fall. Frost free periods in
Alberta vary from 125 days in the south to less than 85 days in higher elevation, non-agricultural areas.The
frost-free period is presented as days above 0°C in the following classes: less than 85, 85 to 95, 95 to
105, 105 to 115, 115 to 125 and greater than 125. This resource was created using ArcGIS.
Purpose:
Provides users with representation of the frost-free period as the number of days between the last date of 00C
in the spring and the first date of 00C in the fall. The data is suitable for indexing and analysis
purposes. The frost-free provides a measure of the period during which plant growth should occur
uninterrupted by frost, and it provides a way to compare growing conditions within the province. When
selecting new crop types and varieties, producers consider climate characteristics including the length of
the frost-free period and the expected date of fall frost. It is important information for producers for
planning purposes, indication where the advantages of growing a particular crop may outweigh the risk of
occasional frost damage. The yield potential of some crops is closely related to the growing season length.
Generally, for the production of marketable grain crops, the frost-free period to be greater than 100 days.
Status:
Progress code:
completed
Resource maintenance:
Maintenance information:
Maintenance and update frequency:
Maintenance frequency code:
asNeeded
Descriptive keywords:
Keywords:
Keyword:
Alberta
Type:
Keyword type code:
place
Descriptive keywords:
Keywords:
Keyword:
Meteorology
Keyword:
Weather
Keyword:
climate
Keyword:
freezing
Keyword:
growing period
Type:
Keyword type code:
theme
Thesaurus name:
Citation:
Title:
Agrovoc
Date:
Date:
Date:
2016-01-21
Date type:
Date type code:
revision
Cited responsible party:
missing
Descriptive keywords:
Keywords:
Keyword:
Downloadable Data
Thesaurus name: uuidref: 723f6998-058e-11dc-8314-0800200c9a66
Resource constraints:
Legal constraints:
Use constraints:
Restriction code:
license
Other constraints:
Your use of this information will be governed by the terms of the Open Government Licence - Alberta, in
force as of the date you accessed the information , found at http://open.alberta.ca/licence
Resource constraints:
Legal constraints:
Access constraints:
Restriction code:
otherRestrictions
Other constraints:
To access the data you must agree to the terms of the Open Government Licence - Alberta found at
http://open.alberta.ca/licence
Resource constraints:
Legal constraints:
Use limitation:
Distribution Liability: Under the terms of the Open Government Licence - Alberta, the Information is
licensed as is, and the Information Provider excludes all representations, warranties, obligations, and
liabilities, whether express or implied, to the maximum extent permitted by law. The Information
Provider is not liable for any errors or omissions in the Information, and will not under any
circumstances be liable for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, consequential, or other loss,
injury or damage caused by its use or otherwise arising in connection with this licence or the
Information, even if specifically advised of the possibility of such loss, injury or damage.
Resource constraints:
Security constraints:
Classification:
Classification code:
unclassified
User note:
UNRESTRICTED under Government of Alberta Security Classification System
Classification system:
Government of Alberta Security Classification System
Handling description:
https://imtpolicy.sp.alberta.ca/standards/pdf/Data-and-Information-Security-Classification-Standard.pdf
Spatial representation type:
Spatial representation type code:
vector
Spatial resolution:
Resolution:
Equivalent scale:
Representative fraction:
Denominator:
3000000
Language:
Language Code:
eng
Character set:
Character set code:
utf8
Topic category:
Topic category code:
farming
Topic category:
Topic category code:
climatologyMeteorologyAtmosphere
Environment description:
Microsoft Windows 7 Version 6.1 (Build 7601) Service Pack 1; Esri ArcGIS 10.3.1.4959
Extent:
Extent:
Geographic element:
Geographic bounding box:
Extent type code:
true
West bound longitude:
-120.50134
East bound longitude:
-109.50517
South bound latitude:
47.601134
North bound latitude:
61.39605
Temporal element:
Temporal extent:
Extent:
Time period:
Begin date:
1971-01-01T00:00:00
End date:
2000-01-01T00:00:00
Extent:
Extent:
Geographic element:
Geographic bounding box:
Extent type code:
true
West bound longitude:
-120.902378
East bound longitude:
-108.443844
South bound latitude:
48.894852
North bound latitude:
60.097731
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Distribution:
Distribution format:
Format:
Name:
SDE Raster Dataset
Version:
10.3.1
Distribution format:
Format:
Name:
FGDB
Version:
ArcGIS 10.3.1
Distributor:
Distributor:
Distributor contact:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Economic Development, Government of Alberta
Position name:
Environmental Stewardship Branch, GIS Unit
Contact info:
Contact:
Phone:
Telephone:
Voice:
403-742-7901
Address:
Address:
Delivery point:
7000 – 113 St
City:
Edmonton
Administrative area:
Alberta
Postal code:
T6H 5T6
Country:
Country:
CA
Electronic mail address:
duke@gov.ab.ca
Hours of service:
08:00-17:00 Monday to Friday except for statutory holidays
Contact instructions:
Queries about the distribution of the data set may be addressed to Geographic Information Systems
Lead (currently David Spiess, david.spiess@gov.ab.ca or in his absence: David Hildebrand,
david.hildebrand@gov.ab.ca; or Karen Raven, karen.raven@gov.ab.ca
Role:
Role code:
distributor
Distribution Order Process:
Standard order process:
Ordering instructions:
A PDF of the map can be downloaded from Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Economic Development website
at https://open.alberta.ca/publications/agricultural-land-resource-atlas-of-alberta-2nd-edition
There are also KML and SHP files available for download through the online transfer options listed.
Transfer options:
Digital transfer options:
Online:
Online Resource:
Linkage:
URL:
https://geospatial.alberta.ca/titan/rest/services/agriculture/Agricultural_Land_Resource_Atlas/MapServer/
Protocol:
HTTPS
Name:
REST
Online:
Online Resource:
Linkage:
URL:
https://geospatial.alberta.ca/titan/services/agriculture/agricultural_land_resource_atlas/MapServer/WMSServer
Protocol:
HTTPS
Name:
WMS
Online:
Online Resource:
Linkage:
URL:
https://extranet.gov.ab.ca/srd/geodiscover/srd_pub/AG_FOR/LandResourceAtlas/Frost_Free_Period_1971-2000.zip
Protocol:
FTP
Name:
Contains TIF and KMZ for Frost Free Period 1971-2000 dataset
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Data quality:
Scope:
Scope:
Hierarchy level:
Scope code:
dataset
Lineage:
Lineage:
Statement:
This information was originally published within the Agricultural Land Resource Atlas of Alberta.
Process step:
Process step:
Description:
The data collected by Environment Canada and the United States National Climate Data Center weather
stations, over the 30 years period, was interpolated across the province and converted in to vector
format. Frost-free of Alberta, 1971 to 2000, is found in the Agroclimatic Atlas of Alberta, 1971 to
2000 (Chetner and the Agroclimatic Atlas Working Group, 2003). The map was based on 1971 to 2000
data from Environment Canada, Alberta Environment and the United States National Climate Data
Center. These agencies collect data from over 1200 climate stations in Alberta and 1400 stations in
neighboring provinces, territories and states. The stations collect daily temperature and
precipitation information. Environment Canada receives the majority of the data from the federal and
provincial networks and performs quality control on the data. Data from the United States stations
is provided by the U.S. National Climate Data Center.
The temperature data collected was used to derive frost dates and, in turn, the frost-free period.
Temperature data collected at climate stations was interpolated between stations and rolled up to a
township. In order to avoid the blocky appearance of townships on the map, a township generalization
was produced using smoothing procedures of computer graphics software for final presentation on the
map.
Date and time:
2003-01-01T00:00:00
Source:
Source:
Description:
Information on the Frost-free Period of Alberta
Source citation:
Citation:
Title:
Agroclimatic Atlas of Alberta, 1971 to 2000
Date:
Date:
Date:
2003-09-09
Date type:
Date type code:
publication
Identifier:
Identifier:
Code:
Agdex 071-1
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Organisation name:
Alberta Agriculture and Food
Contact info:
Contact:
Address:
Address:
City:
Edmonton
Administrative area:
Alberta
Role:
Role code:
publisher
Cited responsible party:
Responsible party:
Individual name:
Chetner, S. and the Agroclimatic Atlas Working Group
Contact info:
missing
Role:
Role code:
author
Other citation details:
Paper copies (Agdex 071-1) are available from the AF Publications office in Edmonton by calling
(780) 427-0391, or 1-800-292-5697 toll-free in Canada.
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Maintenance information:
Maintenance and update frequency:
Maintenance frequency code:
notPlanned
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