Design and Implementation of an Advanced Spill Management Information System for Surface Waters

Abstract

This research involved the development of a new information system to improve inland waterway spill response. A review of current decision-support tools used to aid in spill response suggested that improvements were needed. Based on an evaluation of demands faced by both water quality management and spill response personnel, an enhanced system design was developed and implemented, one that utilizes advanced modeling capabilities and provides information in a visual manner. The resulting product, Spill Management Information System, version 2.0 (SMIS 2.0), combines state-of-the-art hydrodynamic and spill impact models with a geographic information system (GIS) interface to create a user-friendly tool to assist in predicting spill propagation and the location of spill response resources. The system is successfully demonstrated in a case study application in which several spill scenarios are simulated on the Kentucky Lake portion of the Tennessee River.