Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Welcome to Essex County GIS Department! Our GIS staff builds and maintains spatial datasets and applications, conducts GIS projects, and publishes GIS maps. Tools used in this work include GIS software by Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) including ArcInfo, ArcSDE, ArcGIS Server, and ArcIMS.

What is Geographic Information Systems (GIS)?

GIS (Geographical Information System) is a computer system capable of capturing, storing, analyzing, and displaying geographically referenced information; that is, data identified according to its location.

About County of Essex GIS Department

The County of Essex GIS Department originated in 2000 with the creation of a 911 map manual.  The GIS system has expanded to include over 15 websites, various municipal applications as well as 13 databases.

Our Mission Statement…

The mission of the County of Essex GIS Department is to promote, and develop a geographic information system resource for local decision makers and the general public. In pursuing its mission, the GIS must be designed to:

• Provide user-friendly, public access to GIS data.
• Provide robust user applications for municipal and County staff.
• Improve efficiency in government by utilizing the common spatial elements that link the business processes of departments.
• Maintain data in compliance with standards and compatible with other GIS in the region.
• Continually improve applications and data and thriftily evolve with the advances in technology.
• Protect sensitive information that needs to be secure for privacy or public safety reasons.

Now that you know more about the County of Essex GIS department, please take some time to interact with our maps and data, learn about our projects and new undertakings in Essex County.