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New England Lidar-Derived Hydrography Project

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By New England Water Science Center September 23, 2022

High-quality light detection and ranging (lidar) data from USGS 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) has unlocked the potential to derive new and innovative hydrography datasets such as the USGS next generation 3D Hydrography Program (3DHP) that can be used for many hydrologic and hydraulic (H&H) modeling applications. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) mapping partners require elevation and hydrography data for H&H modeling input when conducting Base Level Engineering (BLE) for regulatory floodplain hazard mapping. The new 3DHP will provide high-resolution hydrography data that can be leveraged for FEMA BLE to produce model-backed approximate floodplain maps based on the most current topographic data sources. 

Lidar-derived hydrography image
Sources/Usage: Public Domain. View Media Details
Lidar derived hydrography image displaying part of the Western Massachusetts.

 

Objectives:

1. Release USGS software and tools to derive hydrography layers and attributes from USGS 3DEP data.
 
2. Publish USGS workflows for deriving hydrography layers and attributes for USGS 3DEP.
 
3. Publish lidar-derived hydrography data into the official USGS next generation 3D Hydrography Program (3DHP).
 
4. Continue research and development for using 3DHP data for FEMA BLE modeling.
 
 

 

 

For more information on USGS 3DHP please visit the following links:

 
 
 

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)

High-quality light detection and ranging (lidar) data from USGS 3D Elevation Program (3DEP) has unlocked the potential to derive new and innovative hydrography datasets such as the USGS next generation 3D Hydrography Program (3DHP) that can be used for many hydrologic and hydraulic (H&H) modeling applications. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) mapping partners require elevation and hydrography data for H&H modeling input when conducting Base Level Engineering (BLE) for regulatory floodplain hazard mapping. The new 3DHP will provide high-resolution hydrography data that can be leveraged for FEMA BLE to produce model-backed approximate floodplain maps based on the most current topographic data sources. 

Lidar-derived hydrography image
Sources/Usage: Public Domain. View Media Details
Lidar derived hydrography image displaying part of the Western Massachusetts.

 

Objectives:

1. Release USGS software and tools to derive hydrography layers and attributes from USGS 3DEP data.
 
2. Publish USGS workflows for deriving hydrography layers and attributes for USGS 3DEP.
 
3. Publish lidar-derived hydrography data into the official USGS next generation 3D Hydrography Program (3DHP).
 
4. Continue research and development for using 3DHP data for FEMA BLE modeling.
 
 

 

 

For more information on USGS 3DHP please visit the following links:

 
 
 

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)