Improvement of flood-frequency estimates for selected small watersheds in eastern Kansas using a rainfall-runoff model

The U.S. Geological Survey rainfall-runoff model was used to estimate model parameters for 13 small watersheds in eastern Kansas with drainage areas of less than 11 square miles. Model parameters and rainfall data from three long-term rainfall stations were used in the model to synthesize long-term records of simulated annual peak discharge, which were fitted to a log-Pearson Type III distribution. Final estimates of T-year floods, which were computed by combining weighted estimates of the synthesized and observed T-floods, represent the most reliable estimates based on observed and long-term synthesized records of peak discharges. (USGS)