The Turks and Caicos Islands Government’s Survey and Mapping Department in conjunction with the Physical Planning Department and the Land Registry, are engaging current private sector and former surveyors, as well as other stakeholder agencies, to join in a workshop to review draft National Standards for Land Surveying in the Turks and Caicos Islands on today, Thursday, 18th May 2015.
It is envisioned that the Survey and Mapping Department will gain valuable input in reforming and modernising the Land Survey Ordinance, the procedures and the technology currently employed in the Land Surveying Industry here in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
Draft National Land Surveying Standards are set to replace the varying methods of land surveying with a single uniformed methodology that will provide professional Land Surveyors with a common approach to boundary definition and encourage the use of emerging technology in surveying practises.
The one-day workshop will see presentations from the Acting Director of the Survey and Mapping Department, Mr James Fritz and other members from his team. The presentations will focus on standards for positional and computation accuracies, field data acquisition methods, field survey operations and procedures, capturing elevation as part of the standard surveying procedures, among other things.
The Hon. Attorney General, Mrs Rhondalee Braithwaite Knowles under whose purview this department fall, said of the workshop; “Establishing National Standards is a key component of the Department’s plan to position the Turks & Caicos Land Surveying System for the future and are designed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the System for all stakeholders.
“It presents a valuable opportunity for public/private sector engagement and invites the full participation of members of the surveying industry and other interested stakeholders to ensure that the exercise produces comprehensive and relevant standards for the Islands.”
Note for Editors:
The Survey and Mapping Department, is one of the departments which forms part of the Attorney Generals Lands, and works very closely with the other three departments (Land Registry, Crown Land Unit and Valuation Department) under the Lands Division. Strategic oversight is provided by the Commissioner of Lands, Mrs. Tatum Clerveaux.
The Survey and Mapping Department aims to maintain an up-to-date record of all land surveying information and spatial data for the Turks and Caicos Islands. It also ensures that all surveys that are executed by authorized land surveyors (government and private), are in accordance with the Land Survey Ordinance and the Registered Land Ordinance.
The services of this department are not limited to surveying but also extend to map production. The department provides mapping services including but not limited to the production of cadastral maps, aerial maps, block plans and site plans both digitally and printed.