Rivers, lakes and streams geospatial data is managed and maintained by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources(WDNR). 24K hydro is the shorthand name for these data, and references the 1:24,000 scale of the source USGS topo maps. When the public views 24K hydro, they often notice that water features do not line up with the underlying aerial photography. The hydro database is also structured around many siloed applications that result in data duplication and data gaps. With the development a statewide LIDAR-derived DEM, the WDNR has an opportunity to improve the spatial accuracy of 24k hydro and develop more efficient workflows. The challenges include maintaining links to legacy 24k hydro information and coordinating update efforts among diverse stakeholders. This presentation will present the results of the WDNR's needs assessment for updating 24k hydro and outline next steps.
The state of Wisconsin includes over 100,000 HUC16 catchments which hold a vast array of lakes and stream reaches. Catchments can be dissolved into their larger upstream drainage basins to fully encapsulate the characteristics of the water and land that may drain into a specific point on the landscape. It is important to understand the variable characteristics of a basin in order to discern or predict what water quality and stream dynamics may be like - as they are functions of the surrounding landscape and land use. While there are many basin-wide factors that may affect the water quality and stream dynamics at any given point in a system, the gridded-Soil Survey Geographic Database (gSSURGO) from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) holds readily available soil information in a gridded format that can be used to answer some of the questions as to why a stream reach is the way it is.
Luke Beringer and Aaron Fisch work for the Water Quality Bureau at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources as a GIS Technician, and Water Quality Modeler, respectively.Using their backgrounds in GIS, data modelling and data analysis; they have utilized and developed ways to... Read More →
Water Resources Management Specialist Advanced, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Aaron Fisch (Ruesch) is a Water Resources Modeler at the Wisconsin Dept. of Natural Resources (WDNR). At WDNR, his work spans a variety of topics such as quantifying the sources of nutrient/algae pollution, characterizing the effects of soils and landuse on water quality in river... Read More →
Thursday February 20, 2020 2:30pm - 3:00pm CST
Green Bay
GIS staff at the Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey constructed a preliminary 4-county 3-D lithologic model of Crawford, Monroe, Richland, and Vernon Counties. The model was constructed from data that had been refined for several WGNHS projects.
Over the last decade, WGNHS staff geocoded WDNR Well Construction Reports (WCRs) from digital and analog sources. In a GIS, the points representing water well boreholes were inspected, edited, and assigned a location confidence. Next, the land surface elevation for each well was extracted from a DEM. The land surface elevation was then used to “hang” each well’s downhole lithology. By displaying and exaggerating the data in ESRI ArcScene, the different lithologies were selected and classified into a very general stratigraphy. Structural surfaces for each lithologic unit’s base elevation were interpolated and inspected to identify outliers in the point data. After many rounds of editing, all obvious outliers had been edited or removed.
The relief of the preliminary topography of the lithologic contacts reveal that there is relief on the on all of underlying bedrock units. The relief of these rock layers may be influencing, if not guiding, the flow of water at and below the land surface. The topography of the lithologic units may be influencing long-term erosion.
A simplified lithologic model constructed from well records using ESRI ArcGIS is only one of the steps to creating a geologic map. Geologic maps can inform decision making about land use and land practices, land conservation, zoning, planning, and the construction & engineering of roads. WGNHS personnel will continue to add and interpret new information into our current 3-D lithologic data.