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All engineering use cases

Civil engineering site assessment data

Build an initial site constraints pack covering levels, ground conditions, planning and flooding. Compare listed sources, access requirements and evidence for civil engineering site assessment data.

4 sources · For civils engineers, GIS analysts, drainage engineers, flood risk consultants, planning consultants, ecologists, environmental consultants, flood consultants. Enrichment describes potential applications; review source evidence and limitations.

Desk study evidence needs walkover and survey verification before detailed civil design.

Discover sources with MCP

Add this server to an HTTP-compatible MCP client, then call get_source to inspect the first source. The tool call is shown separately from the client configuration. Review upstream access details before requesting data.

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "terramcp": {
      "url": "https://terramcp.earth/mcp"
    }
  }
}

// After connecting, call this discovery tool:
{
  "name": "get_source",
  "arguments": {
    "slug": "defra-data-services-platform-lidar"
  }
}

Listed sources

datasetGovernment / regulator
71.8/100Currency E

Defra Data Services Platform LiDAR ↗

Environment Agency England LiDAR digital terrain and surface models for flood modelling, drainage catchments, ground levels and civil engineering earthworks.

What's in it

Data offered llm-inferred
LiDAR terrain model · LiDAR surface model · other survey data
Coverage llm-inferred
England
Resolution
1 m (national composite; other survey resolutions available)
Formats
GeoTIFF · LAZ
Access
Open Government Licence terrain and surface model downloads; check acquisition dates for each survey tile.

Useful for

Use cases llm-inferred
Flood risk assessment: ground-level inputs for hydraulic model topography · Drainage strategy: surface levels for catchment and overland flow delineation · Civils design: existing ground model for earthworks and levels
Audience llm-inferred
flood consultants · drainage engineers · hydrologists · GIS analysts · civils engineers

Limitations

Constraints llm-inferred
No docs retrieved, so coverage, formats, resolution and access terms are unverified · Auth and licence not recorded in entry

Englandhealthy

datasetGovernment / regulator
73/100Currency E

BGS Geoindex ↗

British Geological Survey GeoIndex borehole records, geology and site investigation evidence for civil engineering ground conditions and geotechnical design.

What's in it

Data offered docs-verified
borehole records · earthquakes data · 1:50 000 scale bedrock geology (including faults) · interactive 3D models (London, Cardiff, Glasgow, Liverpool) · rock samples · photography · data products · hazard maps · geochemistry samples · non-coal mining plans
Coverage llm-inferred
onshore UK (per ENTRY regions: United Kingdom)
Resolution docs-verified
1:50 000 scale for the geology layer
Formats docs-verified
WMS
Access docs-verified
Free web map viewer (no API key documented). Data delivered under the Open Government Licence with a BGS acknowledgement; ENTRY licence field says 'BGS terms'.

Useful for

Use cases llm-inferred
Desk study: nearest borehole records for ground conditions at a site · Preliminary geology and fault screening from 1:50 000 bedrock mapping · Identifying non-coal mining plans and parent material as site constraints
Audience llm-inferred
geotechnical engineers · civils engineers · environmental consultants · GIS analysts · planners

Limitations

Constraints docs-verified
New GeoIndex v1.24.0 is in beta; professional and commercial users are advised to use the existing applications for now · Current onshore and offshore applications are due to be replaced, so the platform may change · Some data layers may be presented differently in the newer application · No warranty on quality, accuracy or completeness of the map data · 3D models are only available for London, Cardiff, Glasgow and Liverpool

United Kingdomhealthy

data apiGovernment / regulator
70.6/100Currency E

planning.data.gov.uk ↗

conservation area

Live via TerraMCP ↗

planning_entities

What's in it

Data offered docs-verified
planning and housing datasets (over 100) · conservation areas · listed buildings (with listed_building_grade) · brownfield land · planning applications (spec in development) · flood risk zones · Article 4 directions · green belt · scheduled monuments · SSSI · ancient woodland · heritage at risk · AONB · tree preservation zones · local planning authority boundaries
Coverage docs-verified
England
Formats docs-verified
JSON · GeoJSON · CSV · Parquet · WKT (geometry fields)
Access llm-inferred
No authentication (auth: none); licence OGL-3.0 per catalogue metadata

Useful for

Use cases llm-inferred
Planning constraint check for a site or property by UPRN or coordinate (conservation area, listed building, flood risk zone, Article 4) · Brownfield land and planning application screening within an LPA boundary for site appraisal · Heritage and environmental designation baseline for a property (listed buildings, SSSI, ancient woodland, scheduled monuments) · Portfolio planning-risk screening of multiple properties via bulk CSV/GeoJSON downloads
Audience llm-inferred
planning consultants · GIS analysts · flood risk consultants · ecologists · property developers

Limitations

Constraints docs-verified
Beta service; API may change · Planning applications spec in development; local planning authorities not required to share application data · No batch endpoint; one request per property · Absence of results does not mean no constraints; data coverage varies by area · Apply polite rate-limiting between requests

Englandpage reachable

datasetGovernment / regulator
90.1/100Currency E

Flood map for planning ↗

Environment Agency Flood Map for Planning Flood Zones 2 and 3, the statutory flood planning baseline for flood risk assessments in England.

Live via TerraMCP ↗

flood_zone_at_point

What's in it

Data offered
flood risk information for planning applications · printable flood map for planning · detailed flood risk data
Coverage
England
Update frequency docs-verified
Quarterly
Formats docs-verified
WFS · OGC API Features · GeoPackage
Access docs-verified
Open WFS and OGC API Features; national downloads and area-of-interest downloads through Defra DSP.

Useful for

Use cases
Screening whether a planning application needs a flood risk assessment in England · Pulling flood zone extents for a site's flood risk section of an FRA · Ordering detailed flood risk data for a drainage or flood risk baseline
Audience
flood risk consultants · planning consultants · drainage engineers · civils engineers

Limitations

Constraints docs-verified
National strategic screening data; a site-specific flood risk assessment may require detailed local modelling. · NaFRA2 accounts for flood defences; planning flood zones have a distinct statutory planning purpose.

Englandhealthy

Frequently asked questions

Which listed sources support Civil engineering site assessment data?

Start with Defra Data Services Platform LiDAR, BGS Geoindex, planning.data.gov.uk. Build an initial site constraints pack covering levels, ground conditions, planning and flooding.

What should I check before using these sources for civil engineering site assessment data?

Desk study evidence needs walkover and survey verification before detailed civil design.

How do I inspect Defra Data Services Platform LiDAR through MCP?

Connect an MCP client to https://terramcp.earth/mcp and call get_source with slug defra-data-services-platform-lidar. Review its provenance, access requirements and limitations before contacting the upstream service. Discovery does not make every listed source directly executable through the router.

Are these sources free and independently verified?

Access and licence terms belong to each upstream provider; some products require registration or payment. Open each listing for evidence, health status and enrichment provenance. A wrapper and its underlying API can refer to the same dataset and are not independent observations.