Chapter 4

The GIS Project for the Geologic 

Assessment of In-Place Oil Shale 

Resources of the Piceance Basin, 

Colorado

By Tracey J. Mercier, Gregory L. Gunther, and Christopher C. Skinner

Chapter 4 of 7 

Oil Shale and Nahcolite Resources of the Piceance 

Basin, Colorado

By U.S. Geological Survey Oil Shale Assessment Team

U.S. Geological Survey Digital Data Series DDS–69–Y

U.S. Department of the Interior

U.S. Geological Survey

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U.S. Department of the Interior

KEN SALAZAR, Secretary

U.S. Geological Survey

Marcia K. McNutt, Director

U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2010

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Suggested citation:

Mercier, T.J., Gunther, G.L., Skinner, C.C., 2010, The GIS project for the geologic assessment of in-place oil shale 

resources of the Piceance Basin, Colorado: U.S. Geological Survey Digital Data Series DDS–69–Y, chp. 4, 1 p.

ISBN: 1–4113–2668–2
iii

Contents

Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................1

References Cited............................................................................................................................................1
Introduction

A geographic information system (GIS) focusing on the 

Piceance Basin of northwest Colorado was developed as an 

analysis tool for the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) 2009 

assessment of in-place oil shale resources in the Eocene Green 

River Formation. The Energy Resources Science Center of the 

USGS has also developed an internet mapping service (IMS)

to deliver the GIS data to the public. This mapping tool utilizes information from a database about the oil shale endowment of the Western United States and converts the data into 

geospatial layers for analysis. The ability to view and query 

geologic features on an interactive map facilitates understanding domestic oil shale resources for strategic planning, formulating economic and energy policies, evaluating lands under 

the purview of the Federal Government, and developing sound 

environmental policies. 

Several different types of data are included in the GIS 

project. Oil shale assessment unit models contain the oil shale 

zone boundaries, borehole locations, isopachs, oil shale assay 

results, and the resource assessment results in tabular and geospatial data formats. Specialized maps, created by the USGS 

Oil Shale Assessment Team, referred to as “raster maps” or 

“models,” illustrate the distribution of oil shale data and the 

richness of the oil shale for each assessment zone. Models 

for 17 oil shale zones are included in the Piceance Basin GIS 

Project. The IMS integrates these data with generic geospatial 

content or layers for geographic reference and context using 

a web service based architecture. The layers or map services 

available through ArcGIS Online (ESRI, 2009), may include 

themes formally named Imagery, Streets, Shaded Relief, and 

Topography. Each formal theme can contain additional geospatial content, examples of which include:

•	 Highways

•	 Major and minor roads

•	 Railways

•	 Water features

•	 Administrative boundaries

•	 Cities, parks, and landmarks

•	 Public Land Survey System (PLSS)

•	 Surface ownership

•	 Surface and outcrop geology

To access the IMS and to download spatial data that 

formed the basis of the GIS for the Piceance Basin, click on 

the following USGS Oil Shale Assessment Web site link: 

(http://energy.cr.usgs.gov/other/oil_shale/). Several data formats are provided, including Environmental Systems Research 

Institute (ESRI, 2006) shapefiles, cell-based GRIDs, and

Triangular Irregular Network (TIN) models. These data are 

also exposed as web services based on a variety of industrystandard encodings including Keyhole Markup Language 

(KML), Web Mapping Service (WMS), and ArcGIS Server 

REST. Additional encodings will be added based on technological need. Information for accessing these services is also 

available at the web site.

All content is well documented based on standard metadata requirements. Access to this metadata is provided in a 

variety of formats that are incorporated into the downloadable 

datasets and can be viewed using the IMS.

References Cited

Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI), 2006, 

ArcGIS, ver. 9.2: ESRI, Redlands, California., http://www.

esri.com/software/arcgis/index.html (last accessed August 

20, 2009).

Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI), 2009, 

ArcGIS Online. ESRI Website: ESRI, Redlands, California, 

http://resources.esri.com/arcgisonlineservices/ (last accessed 

August 20, 2009).

The GIS Project for the Geologic Assessment of In-Place 

Oil Shale Resources of the Piceance Basin, Colorado

By Tracey J. Mercier, Gregory L. Gunther, and Christopher C. Skinner
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