Create expanded WCGBTS spatial grid dataset with covariates

[Curt-Whitmire-NOAA]

As requested by @kellijohnson-NOAA and @chantelwetzel-noaa, @Curt-Whitmire-NOAA will create an expanded spatial grid, based on the WCGBTS grid parameters, but expanded north, ideally to the northern tip of British Columbia. Reference california_current_grid.rda in {FishStatUtils}. The grid will have a geographic coordinate system (WGS84) and include the following attributes / covariates:

• Centroid latitude and longitude (in decimal degrees)
• Min, max, mean water depth (in meters / fathoms), based on the NCEI Coastal Relief Model and GEBCO 2022 grid
• Proportion of cell area on land
• Proportion of cell area within Cowcod Conservation Area
• Proportion of cell area within other MPAs of interest
• Proportion of cell area comprised of hard seafloor substrate
• Proportion of cell area comprised of mixed seafloor substrate
• Proportion of cell area comprised of soft seafloor substrate
• Data quality of seafloor induration layer
• Others?

Curt will also provide a FGDC compliant metadata record (in .xml format), describing the grid and defining each attribute / covariate.

Related to this request, there is a need for shapefiles (.rda format) for the following areas:

• Southern CA Bight offshore islands
• Cowcod Conservation Area

[kellijohnson-NOAA]

@ElizabethMPhillips can you comment on how far north the acoustic trawl survey goes such that we could create a prediction grid that would work for the hake survey as well?

[ElizabethMPhillips]

The hake acoustic-trawl survey transects are designed to extend to the northern British Columbia/Alaska border (Dixon Entrance). We don't always survey that far north (depends on how far north hake are observed), but we design the transects to be surveyed if/when hake are up there. Does this help @kellijohnson-NOAA ? Do you need actual latitude?

Also, Chu/EchoPro outputs a spatial grid of hake biomass for mapping; I can dig up one of those shapefiles from a survey when hake were up north, if it's helpful.

[kellijohnson-NOAA]

Thanks @ElizabethMPhillips this is helpful. I don't think that we need anything additional, just knowing that you could go as far as the BC/Alaska border is all we need.