Prototype hydroinformatics-based system for supporting decision making in culvert design and monitoring

<p>The current guideline for culverts design account for hydrologic, hydraulic, and geomorphological conditions at the construction site. Less attention is given to the assessment of the potential for sedimentation within and in the culvert vicinity. Sedimentation becomes an increasing concern for regions where the soil erodibility is historically high (such as the US Midwest) as the recent changes in the land use and climate exacerbate the problem. Culvert design is based on a wide variety of data sources typically stored in various formats in multiple data provider repositories. Assembly of the data needed for design as currently conducted is time consuming and inefficient while the wealth of information garnered through post-construction monitoring is not used to inform the construction of new culverts in the same geographical area.</p> <p>This thesis presents a solution to the issues above using Hydroinformatics approaches. The end product of the thesis is a geo-platform designed to achieve automated culvert design, sediment mitigation design, and digital culvert inspection. The platform has two primary workflows: culvert design and culvert monitoring. All the functions and tools inside the platform are developed using information and GIS technologies. The platform is web assessable, light weighted, and user friendly.</p>