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GeoJSON import and export

GeoJSON is Siter's preferred interchange format for ad-hoc data movement. Imports and exports both round-trip cleanly, making GeoJSON the right format when you need to script transformations, move data through QGIS, or hand off a layer to a developer who'll work with it programmatically.

Learning objectives

By the end of this lesson you should be able to:

  • Export a GeoJSON file from a project
  • Import a GeoJSON file into an existing project
  • Recognize the geometry and attribute conventions Siter expects

Why GeoJSON over shapefile​

GeoJSONShapefile
File countOneFour-plus sidecars in a zip
Attribute namesNo length limit10-character limit
EncodingUTF-8 alwaysEncoding-dependent (.cpg)
Coordinate systemEmbedded in the fileSeparate .prj sidecar
Human-readableYes (it's JSON)No (binary)
Round-trip in SiterCleanestLossy on attribute names

For anything Siter-to-Siter or Siter-via-script, prefer GeoJSON. Shapefile remains relevant only for legacy interop with tools that don't speak GeoJSON.

Export​

[TODO: FILL IN — GeoJSON export UI flow: layer or project scope → export menu → file save. Note whether the export includes Siter-specific extensions (custom properties for type code, attributes, explosives) and whether those survive a round-trip.]

A Siter GeoJSON export typically includes:

  • Geometry per feature
  • Type code as a property
  • Attributes as properties (one per attribute)
  • Explosives as nested properties (one entry per hazard division)
  • Relationship metadata where applicable

[TODO: FILL IN — exact property naming conventions Siter uses on export and whether any data is dropped vs. preserved.]

Import​

[TODO: FILL IN — GeoJSON import UI flow: layer panel or import menu → file picker → preview → confirm. Note the layer flavor default and any attribute-mapping step.]

After import:

  1. Verify the layer flavor matches your intent (see QD-visible vs background layers)
  2. Confirm type codes and attributes survived the import correctly
  3. Run analysis to verify the features participate as expected

Round-trip fidelity​

A GeoJSON exported from Siter and re-imported into Siter should round-trip cleanly:

  • Geometry is preserved exactly
  • Type codes survive
  • Attributes survive
  • Explosives survive
  • Relationships within the export survive (relationships to features outside the export are dropped)

This is the format to use when you want the destination Siter project to look identical to the source project's relevant subset.

CRS conventions​

GeoJSON is conventionally in WGS84 (EPSG:4326) latitude/longitude. Siter expects this — if your source data is in a projected coordinate system, transform to WGS84 before importing.

[TODO: FILL IN — Siter's exact CRS expectations for GeoJSON, and any tolerance for non-WGS84 inputs.]

Try it​

Round-trip a layer:

  1. Export a QD-visible layer from one project as GeoJSON
  2. Open the exported file in a text editor and inspect the structure — note the type codes and attributes as JSON properties
  3. Import the same file into a different project
  4. Confirm the imported features have the same type codes, attributes, and explosives as the source