Assessment of Availability and Use of Hydrodynamic, Runoff, and Fate and Transport Models
Client: HydroQual, Inc., Mahwah, New Jersey
Funding: Water Environment Research Foundation, Alexandria, VA
In order to assist its member subscribers in making the appropriate
choice of water quality modeling tools for their specific problems, the
Water Environment Research Federation provided funding for a study to
assess the availability and use of hydrodynamic, runoff, and fate and
transport models. AQUA TERRA Consultants teamed with HydroQual and
Camp, Dresser and McKee to perform a comprehensive evaluation of
currently available models.
The Project Team made an initial review of the literature and other
sources of information concerning mathematical models, including the
Internet, and prepared a candidate list of models or computer codes in
each of the following categories: hydrodynamic models, runoff models,
water quality models, groundwater models, and toxics fate and transport
models. AQUA TERRA's primary responsibility focused on runoff and
receiving water models (both water quality and toxics fate and
transport models). The list of candidate models was provided to the
WERF Project Manager and Project Subcommittee (PSC) members for their
review, in order to ensure that the Project Team did not overlook any
candidate models.
Upon approval of the final list of models for evaluation, a set of
evaluation criteria and a standardized evaluation form were established
for each model group. Models were characterized in terms of such
attributes as media of concern, analysis level(s), methods, temporal
representation, dimensional capability, source/release types, sources,
assessment extent, applicability to water body types, type of
chemicals, critical processes, model uses, resource requirements, model
use features, model support, and model availability.
The results of the evaluation were presented in a final report; in
addition, AQUA TERRA developed a Visual Basic application called the
WERF Model Selection Tool that considers all of the approximately 150
models identified jointly by the Project Team and the WERF PSC. AQUA
TERRA also provided an instructor for a WERF-sponsored workshop that
offered an overview of available models and training on using the model
selection tool to attendees of the WEFTEC 2000 Conference in Anaheim,
California (October 2000).
