Geodetic Control over Time and Space in California
Interview with Scott Martin, Chief of Geodetic Control and GNSS Surveys, California DoT
Matteo Luccio: Scott, what is your relevant background and what is your current role?
Scott Martin: I’m a state employee with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), in the Office of Land Surveys, Sacramento, working as Chief, Geodetic Control and GNSS Surveys. My job requires active participation in state and national issues involving geodesy and geodetic control affecting transportation.
I am currently the NGS-recognized geodetic coordinator for California, appointed through my affiliation with the California Spatial Reference Center (CSRC), which is based out of UC San Diego, where I currently serve as the vice chair of the CSRC Executive Committee.
I am also the chair of the Western Region Height Modernization Consortium, a group that covers 11 Western states. We were formed in 2014 with the support of the National Geodetic Survey (NGS) to create a networking opportunity for folks dealing with height-related issues in the Western United States.
In addition, I chair the California Geodetic Control Work Group (GCWG), one of several core spatial data workgroups supporting the California GIS community. In June 2016, the California GIS Council approved the “California Spatial Data Infrastructure Report Card for Geodetic Control,” prepared by the GCWG, with a goal being to ensure long-term geodetic control access in support of the California Spatial Data Infrastructure.
I’ve been a licensed land surveyor in California for 30 years. I’ve done a lot of boundary and other surveying work in my professional career, but the last 15 years have been focused more on geodesy. I was the chief of the geodetic branch for the California Department of Water Resources for almost ten years prior to coming to Caltrans five years ago. [Scott is also editor of xyHt’s newsletter, Field Notes.]