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Cooperative Institute for Research to Operations in Hydrology

Using Streamflow Forecasts to Produce Flood Impact Forecasts

Using Streamflow Forecasts to Produce Flood Impact Forecasts

Day 1 Session 2 (1:30PM)

Presenters:

Joseph Gutenson, Follum Hydrologic Solutions
Mike Follum, Follum Hydrologic Solutions

With recent advancements in streamflow forecasting, informatics, and software, it is now possible to anticipate the economic consequences that floods may have on the built environment. By transforming streamflow forecasts into forecasted flood-inundation maps, we can better predict how flooding will impact communities and infrastructure. In this workshop, we will introduce attendees to a practical workflow for converting streamflow forecasts into building-level flood-impact forecasts. This newly developed workflow integrates streamflow predictions, automated inundation mapping, and impact assessment tools to estimate potential flood damage. It can be deployed anywhere within the continental United States.

Workshop Slides

Learning Outcomes:

  • Familiarize themselves with data and workflows necessary to forecast flood inundation maps and the economic consequences that floods have on buildings in the United States.
  • Understand the contemporary means by which economic impacts of floods are estimated.
  • Expand their ability to connect hydrologic and hydraulic modeling to socio-economic modeling and impacts.
  • Increase their awareness of multi-discipline flood forecasting.

Prerequisites:

  • Prior knowledge – Participants are expected to have:
    • A working knowledge of the Python programming language.
    • Experience using Miniconda environments.
    • Experience using Docker containers.
  • Software & data – To ensure the workshop runs smoothly, participants must complete the following before attending:
    • Navigate to the GitHub Repository: https://github.com/jlgutenson/nencarta
    • Set up and install NenCarta using the instructions provided in NenCarta’s GitHub README:
    • Download the workshop test data prior to the workshop:
      https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1tnp8eFu44VGlXeuq26kA-Sz_t6CsEZTr?usp=sharing
    • The Workshop Slides describe what we will be doing during the workshop (see Slide 13 in the Workshop Slides). Feel free to work ahead if you have everything successfully installed and downloaded.
    • Participants who arrive without the required software installed or test data downloaded may not be able to complete the workshop exercises. If you experience issues accessing the repository or downloading the test data, please contact joseph@follumhydro.com before the workshop.