Rapid response tools and datasets for predicting erosion in the Great Lakes

Session: Poster session

Mary Miller, Michigan Tech Research Institute, [email protected]

Abstract

A partnership between Michigan Tech Research Institute, NASA and the USDA Forest Service has led to the creation of the Rapid Response Erosion Database (RRED, http://rred.mtri.org/rred/).  RRED was designed to support post-fire remediation by allowing users to upload soil burn severity maps which are combined with land cover and soils data to generate model inputs for predicting post-fire erosion and run-off.  To expand the utility of RRED an interactive drawing tool allows users to select an area of interest within the continental US and within minutes download all the inputs needed for the Water Erosion Prediction Project (WEPP). Spatially-explicit process-based models like WEPP are both difficult to set up and require spatial inputs that include digital elevation models (DEMs), soil, climate and land cover.  RRED delivers either a 10 or 30m USGS DEM, soil data derived from SSURGO and STATSGO, and land cover data from LANDFIRE.  The spatial layers are projected into UTM coordinates and pre-registered for modeling.  WEPP soil parameter files are created for both agricultural and forestry applications. Our goal is to make process-based models more accessible so modelers can focus on addressing issues such as sediment and nutrient transport within the Great Lakes. 

1. Keyword
modeling

2. Keyword
GIS

3. Keyword
data acquisition

4. Additional Keyword
erosion

5. Additional Keyword
hydrology

6. Additional Keyword
database