Web-Based Environmental Modeling: Prototypical Flow Routing Model for the Lower Rio Grande

The vision for future web-based models and the tremendous potential for an integration of the Internet and environmental modeling has driven this project. The objective is to investigate the feasibility of a web-based hydrologic model as applied to the Lower Rio Grande, Texas. The development of a web-based flow routing model is a fundamental step in that direction. Java programming, U.S. EPA Reach File 1 (RF1) GIS dataset for the Conterminous United States, Internet GIS applications (ArcIMS) and water quality data (Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission—TNRCC, now the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality — TCEQ) have been used in development efforts. In the course of the work done here, several issues came to light such as the need for Java Servlets, model interaction with ArcIMS, and the need for SQL databases. The results are presented in the form of a current architectural framework and a predicted setup. It was concluded that there is significant potential for web-based modeling in order to minimize the limitations of traditional modeling approaches.