The GEMAS dataset is based on low density geochemical sampling of agriculture (Ap) and grassland (Gr) soils across 34 European countries. Sample density covering an area of 5.6 million km2 of 1 site each, arable land (0-20 cm) and land under permanent grass cover (0-10 cm), per 2500 km2. The Geochemical Mapping of Agricultural and Grazing Land Soil comprises more than 70 chemical elements and parameters determined on more than 4000 soil samples. The geochemistry of European agriculture and grazing soils are depicted graphically on maps of the GEMAS geochemical atlas. In 2016 the Geological Survey of Ireland as a European partner contributes to GEMAS and EGDI (European Geological Data Infrastructure) with provision of a GIS spatial data classification and publication of WMS geochemical web mapping services to support European data interoperability of EGDI web portal. The GIS GEMAS sample classification were constructed in ArcGIS 10.1 and the original GEMAS dataset is available as ESRI shapefile format.

The Cairngorms National Park was established in March 2003 under The Cairngorms National Park Designation, Transitional and Consequential Provisions (Scotland) Order 2003. The boundary was extended as part of the Cairngorms National Park Designation, Transitinal and Consequential Provisions (Scotland) Order 2003 Modification Order 2010. In the designation Order, the boundary is defined by the line on the deposited maps. This dataset represents that line. The aim of Scotland's National Parks is to deliver better management of areas of outstanding natural and cultural heritage. They aim to: conserve and enhance the natural and cultural heritage, promote the sustainable use of natural resources of the area, promote understanding and enjoyment (including enjoyment in the form of recreation) of the special qualities of the area by the public and promote sustainable social and economic development of the communities of the area.

Land Cover Scotland (LCS) 1988 was the first ever national (air-photo) census of land cover in Scotland to describe the principal features and characteristics of the countryside. It was produced by The Macaulay Land Use Research Institute (now the James Hutton Institute) on behalf of Scottish Government to assist in the development and monitoring of policies affecting the state of the Scottish countryside. It was intended that the 1988 LCS be used as a baseline for monitoring change. The classification system allows for 126 land cover types to be identified as point, line or area features. An important aspect of the classification system is that it allows for mosaics of the land cover types to be identified, where the pattern of cover types was so complex that individual types could not, at the selected interpretation scale, be separated. Over 1300 mosaics are identified in the LCS dataset.

Beach areas are designated under the Bathing Waters Directive (76/160/EEC) to protect the environment and public health at locations where bathing is not prohibited and is traditionally practised by a large number of bathers. The Directive requires that water quality at all designated bathing waters must meet specific microbiological requirements in order to protect the health of those that bathe there. The waters are designated on the basis of significant use, taking into account varying population densities and visitor numbers. There are currently 86 site designations contained in this dataset.

Data zones are the core geography for dissemination of results from Scottish Neighbourhood Statistics (SNS). The data zone geography covers the whole of Scotland and nests within local authority boundaries. Data zones are groups of Census output areas which have populations of between 500 and 1,000 household residents, and some effort has been made to respect physical boundaries. In addition, they have compact shape and contain households with similar social characteristics. Data zones are a stable geography and can be used to analyse change over time. There are 6,505 data zones across Scotland, and each have been assigned an individual code that follows the Scottish Government's standard naming and coding convention. The code prefix is S01, which has been assigned to designate data zones. In some cases, data zones have also been assigned a name. To date, Local Authorities that have named their data zones include Eilean Siar (Western Isles), Falkirk, Fife, Highland, Moray, Shetland, South Lanarkshire, Stirling and West Lothian.

Intermediate zones are a statistical geography that sit between data zones and local authorities, created for use with the Scottish Neighbourhood Statistics (SNS) programme and the wider public sector. Intermediate zones are used for the dissemination of statistics that are not suitable for release at the data zone level because of the sensitive nature of the statistic, or for reasons of reliability. Intermediate Zones were designed to meet constraints on population thresholds (2,500 - 6,000 household residents), to nest within local authorities, and to be built up from aggregates of data zones. Intermediate zones also represent a relatively stable geography that can be used to analyse change over time, with changes only occurring after a Census. Following the update to intermediate zones using 2011 Census data, there are now 1,279 Intermediate Zones covering the whole of Scotland.

The areas the boundaries show relate to specially identified areas for hill farming.

Intermediate zones are a statistical geography that sit between data zones and local authorities, created for use with the Scottish Neighbourhood Statistics (SNS) programme. Intermediate zones are used for the dissemination of statistics that are not suitable for release at the data zone level because of the sensitive nature of the statistics, or for reasons of reliability. Intermediate Zones were designed to meet constraints on population thresholds (2,500 - 6,000 household residents), to nest within local authorities (as they were in 2001), and to be built up from data zones. The aim was also to build intermediate zones by grouping together data zones with similar social characteristics, to have fairly compact shape and to take into account physical boundaries. Intermediate zones are a stable geography and can be used to analyse change over time. There are 1,235 intermediate zones across Scotland, and each have been assigned an individual code that follows the Scottish Government's standard naming and coding convention. The code prefix is S02, which has been assigned to designate intermediate zones. In most cases, intermediate zones were also been assigned a name by the relevant Community Planning Partnership. From time to time Local Authorities may choose to update these names, and this dataset will be updated to reflect these changes.

Intermediate zone centroids are point features that represent the population weighted centre of intermediate zones - the geography used for the dissemination of results from Scottish Neighbourhood Statistics (SNS) that unsuitable for release at data zone level. Centroids were calculated from a population weighted sum of data zone centroids that fall within an intermediate zone. Eastings and northings for each data zone were multiplied by their population, summed based upon the intermediate zone in which they fell, and then divided by the total population of the intermediate zone. These centroids are in turn used to link intermediate zones to other (higher) geographies via a spatial join, producing a 'best-fit' match between intermediate zones and other SNS geographies. There are 1,235 intermediate zones across Scotland, and each have been assigned an individual code that follows the Scottish Government's standard naming and coding convention. The code prefix is S02, which has been assigned to designate intermediate zones. In most cases, intermediate zones were also been assigned a name by the relevant Community Planning Partnership. From time to time Local Authorities may choose to update these names, and this dataset will be updated to reflect these changes.

Data zones are the key geography for the dissemination of small area statistics in Scotland and are widely used across the public and private sector. Composed of aggregates of Census Output Areas, data zones are large enough that statistics can be presented accurately without fear of disclosure and yet small enough that they can be used to represent communities. They are designed to have roughly standard populations of 500 to 1,000 household residents, nest within Local Authorities, have compact shapes that respect physical boundaries where possible, and to contain households with similar social characteristics. Aggregations of data zones are often used to approximate a larger area of interest or a higher level geography that statistics wouldn’t normally be available for. Data zones also represent a relatively stable geography that can be used to analyse change over time, with changes only occurring after a Census. Following the update to data zones using 2011 Census data, there are now 6,976 data zones covering the whole of Scotland.