USGS Water Resources Discipline
Charleston, WV District office
Katherine Paybins
GIS data and projects
Mission statement
• USGS-- Science in the public interest
• Water Resources Discipline– water
resources monitoring and research
• Geographic extent of West Virginia District:
West Virginia and some surrounding areas
that drain into WV
Recent projects in the WV
District
• Bacteria source tracking in the Eastern
Panhandle.
• Ground water modeling for 4 study areas
along the Ohio river.
• Regional curve analysis of gaging stations.
• Effects of mountaintop removal mining on
stream flow in a small basin in southern
WV.
Recent projects continued..
• HSPF model parameter estimation and
optimization for WVDEP using BASINS
(ArcView 3.3, WinHSPF)
• Engineering surveys and flood modeling of
4 streams, plus DFIRM development for
Putnam County.
• Ground water borehole geophysics and
modeling of the Leetown Science Center.
GIS data for Ground water
modeling
• Inputs to the groundwater models along the Ohio
River, processing of outputs from Visual Modflow.
Data inputs included DRG’s and NED data for the
model areas Point Pleasant, Lubeck, Washington
Bottom, Parkersburg-Vienna.
Data outputs included calculated flow paths and
equipotential isolines, recharge rates, and
conductivity across each study area.
GIS used for surface water
modeling
• BASINS software from EPA using Arcview 3.3
• Canned datasets initially used in a data download
from EPA website
• Supplemented analysis with refined DEM with
hydro-correction and current land use
• Program produces the UCI file used in HSPF
modeling of surface flows and parameter
estimation for 8 CHIA project basins.
GIS data for FEMA project
• Putnam county study area, DFIRM production
plus incorporation of 4 new studies.
• DFIRM is a GIS of floodplains and floodways;
housed in Access Geodatabases, but also to be
available in shapefile, coverage, and MIF formats.
• Process is to scan, vectorize, and code data from
existing floodway and FIRM analysis maps–
issues include no projection information on the
paper maps, and maps at different resolutions, and
older studies layered over more current
orthophotos.
FEMA GIS continued
• ArcGIS 8.3 used, plus HEC GeoRas
extention for the DFIRM and 4 surveys.
• Initial baseline digitized, then cross sections
placed and stream distance markers
generated automatically.
• The columns of data created automatically
in the GeoRas model are very different from
the colums of data required in the DFIRM.
GIS data development
• Department of Interior High Priority project
• Targets data needs of DOI agencies
• 3 years of funding to the present time have gone
towards the remapping of basic information
(cultural features) and elevation update for about
45 1:24,000 maps in southern West Virginia.
Project includes higher resolution DRG’s and 10
meter DEMs for the same quads.
• Future DOI initiative funding going towards the
development of digital National Map data for
West Virginia
FY04 and beyond
• Possibly creating another countywide
DFIRM for WV.
• Ongoing support of a variety of surface and
ground water projects.