A new approach for a Windows-based watershed modeling system based on a database-supporting architecture

A stand-alone Windows-based watershed modeling system, Loading Simulation Program in CCC (LSPC) is introduced to support simulation of watershed processes and address both point and nonpoint source concerns. The system integrates GIS tools, data management capabilities, a postprocessor, and a dynamic watershed model within a common Windows environment. Great flexibility for user manipulation and customization is offered due to the system’s underlying database-supporting architecture. The database, as the backbone of the system, builds a linkage among users’ inputs, model data management, and the numerical model by implementing a set of dynamic database queries. This open architecture provides an efficient way for a modeler to customize the system without modifying user interface software. The simulation algorithms of hydrology and water quality are based on the Hydrological Simulation Program – FORTRAN (HSPF). Due to its architecture, the system has proven successful in large-scale watershed modeling efforts that require a high level of resolution, record keeping, and technical transfer.