GeoWEPP is a Landscape-based Environmental System Analysis & Modeling (LESAM) Laboratory research project located within the Department of Geography / National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis (NCGIA) / MCEER, University at Buffalo – The State University of New York (SUNY), Buffalo, New York
supported and partially funded by
The Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP) – a partnership of six Federal wildland and fire and research organizations
U.S. Department of Agriculture – Forest Service (USDA-FS), Rocky Mountain Research Station -
Moscow Forestry Sciences Laboratory, Moscow, Idaho
U.S. Department of the Interior – Bureau of Land Management (BLM), National Science & Technology Center, Denver, Colorado
U.S. Department of Agriculture – Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS), National Soil Erosion Research Laboratory (USDA-NSERL), West Lafayette, Indiana
U.S. Department of Agriculture – CSREES, Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA), Midwest Partnership for Watershed Management Decision Support Systems, Region 5, Chicago, Illinois
System Requirements
ArcGIS 9.0 or higher (works with 9.0, 9.1, and 9.2; can be used with 9.3, but not fully tested)
Spatial Analysis Extension
Most Recent version of WEPP
~250 MB hard disk space – This will increase if example sets are used (approx. 50MB for each set)
If you are interested in using GeoWEPP please, contact us and we will send you the download link. Please tell us your Name, Organization, Why and How you intend to use GeoWEPP, and the version of ArcGIS you are using (9.0, 9.1, or 9.2).
Screen shots of GeoWEPP for ArcGIS 9.x
Documents
We have finished writing the manual. The manual includes a discussion on the various tools, how to use them and when. It also provides a tutorial that will guide you through all of the functions of GeoWEPP from loading your data to completing your project. We also included a new “What About My Data?” section that guides you step-by-step how to convert your raw data into GeoWEPP data files using the ArcTools in ArcGIS; this data preparation also reintroduces the concepts discussed in “Advanced GeoWEPP Tools” involving the purpose and creation of the parameter text files. We have included the raw data used in the data preparation section so you can follow along with the steps.
The manual was designed in a way to answer roughly 95% of the questions you may have. You can always contact us if need something expanded on or are unable to find an answer to your problem.
GeoWEPP Manual for ArcGIS 9.x (10MB Bookmarked PDF)
Data used in Data Preparations Section (52MB Zip File)
We also have available two example exercises for you to play with; these are the same example exercise we distributed at the BLM WEPP/GeoWEPP workshop earlier this year in Phoenix, Arizona. These examples are slightly out dated (we made a few changes that eliminated some of the steps listed), but they should give you a good idea of the how GeoWEPP for ArcGIS 9.x works.
Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) Exercise
Cumulative Watershed Effects (CWE) Exercise
Once you get the hang of the features in GeoWEPP, try experimenting on the other example data sets.
History
March 28, 2008 - The final version of GeoWEPP has been released. This version corrects some minor bugs and some cosmetic changes to PRISM and GeoWEPP.
One important bug that was correct with this release involves rerunning GeoWEPP. When prompted, GeoWEPP asks you to provide a new T-Valur for the new GeoWEPP run. Due to a bug, the T-Value used was always the value used for the “Remapping with New T-Value” tool; it either used the value previously entered in this tool or 1.0 (the default value). This has been correct. The only effect this had was how the resulting layer was displayed. It DID NOT have an effect on the results in the tables or the absolute values.
We have also completed the manual; you can follow the links above to download the manual.
November 12, 2007 - An update was left out of the current install of GeoWEPP; this update DOES NOT affect GeoWEPP or any of the simulations. The update only corrects a bug that prevents the user from selecting their climate at the appropriate screen. If you have not already downloaded GeoWEPP, this update has been included in the current install. If you have GeoWEPP already, all you need to do is click here and save the program (climport.exe) into the Required_Files folder in GeoWEPP. You will also need to copy and paste this program into all of the projects you have run for the update to take affect in these projects. THIS WILL NOT AFFECT ANY SIMULATIONS YOU HAVE ALREADY DONE.
Is it really important to copy climport.exe folder to all the projects? No. If you have already ran the simulation once, the climate screen will not appear again unless you start a new watershed. Once you save the new file to the Required_Files folder, all future projects will have the updated program.
October 25, 2007 - Slight modification to GeoWEPP. We noticed that the header still said “Beta Version”; this was replaced with “Version 10.2007.1″. The current Installer contains the corrected version of the modified section. If you wish to have the corrected version, just click here. Select save and replace the old ArcGeoWEPP.exe with the new one you just downloaded.
October 19, 2007 – GeoWEPP for ArcGIS 9.x has been upgrade from Beta Testing to Fully Available.
Important Notes
- TOPAZ will not work if there is a space in any of the ArcGeoWEPP folders. ArcGeoWEPP will prevent you from using spaces in any folder except in the installation or if you manual change a folder name. DO NOT USE SPACES IN ANY FOLDER NAME.
- If focus is changed from the load status window, the window goes blank. ArcGeoWEPP is still loading, but the progress info will not be visible. This has no effect on the load process.
- Important Note for users with Windows 7, 64-bit computers: WEPP will not run properly when installed in the “Program Files (x86)” folder; please install WEPP in a different directory. Sometimes an error occurs with GeoWEPP.exe; you should set the Compatibality so that it “Runs as an Administrator”.
FAQ
1. How do I report bugs? Send an e-mail to Dr. Chris Renschler with the subject ArcGeoWEPP Bug. Describe what you were trying to do, what was the error that came up, what kind of data you were using, and did you start from a new GeoWEPP run or was this from a saved GeoWEPP run. We will review you report and determine the cause. We may need to contact you to obtain more information.
One important note about bugs: If you receive an error while working with GeoWEPP, the best course of action is to exit GeoWEPP, delete the project folder you were working in, and start again. If the error occurs again, then e-mail us about the issue. We have noticed that we can run the same simulation a large number of times and then, suddenly one of the simulations has an error. We would start over and we would receive an error. This could be the result of any number of factors beyond GeoWEPP (like a read/write lag on the hard drive).
2. Who do I contact to make suggestions or comments, or criticize ArcGeoWEPP? We look forward to all comments, suggestions, and criticizes; these help us improve GeoWEPP. You can e-mail Dr. Chris Renschler.
3. I don’t have the .NET Framework, can I still use GeoWEPP? No. Several of the components that GeoWEPP uses are built into VB.NET executable files. At this time, you need to have the .NET framework installed on your computer. Microsoft has a free download that will install this for you, just click here and follow the directions.
4. I don’t have the .NET Framework, how do I get it? Microsoft has a free download that will install the .NET Framework for you, just click here and follow the directions.
5. I received a “Unable to locate dll. The dynamic link library <insert dll here> could not be found in the specified path” error. What does that mean? Your computer does not have the .NET framework installed on it. Without the .NET Framework, GeoWEPP will not run. Microsoft has a free download that will install the .NET Framework for you, just click here and follow the directions.
6. I have tried a number of CSA and MSCL combinations, but GeoWEPP says a network can’t be create. What do I do know? The TOpographic PArametriZation software (TOPAZ) used to delineate the stream channels will not be able to create a network if there are “holes” in the DEM. TOPAZ classifies a “hole” as being any cell that has an elevation value less than 1 and greater than 9999. GeoWEPP analyzes your DEM and fills in any “holes” it finds (and reports to you where these were found). Sometimes, TOPAZ still finds holes; these are more like phantom holes since there doesn’t appear to be a hole in the DEM.
To determine if this is the case, open the folder that contains your current project’s files (for example, C:\ArcGeoWEPP\Project\My_Project2). Right-click on the file “DEDNM.RPT” and open with notepad. If there is an error, it will be located at the end of the file. If the report states that a value that is not between 1 and 9999 as been found, you have a hole.
To fix this, reduce the size of your DEM. In most cases, you actually have a much larger DEM than you need. Clip the DEM so that only or mostly contains your study area. Convert the DEM to ASCII and try GeoWEPP again.
Another reason why this may occur is that you have installed GeoWEPP within a folder with a space in the name (for example: “My GeoWEPP”). TOPAZ uses DOS to execute all of its commands and, like most older DOS programs, it doesn’t like spaces in the pathnames. The most common occurrence of this is when GeoWEPP folder is located on the Desktop. All you need to fix this is to move the entire folder to a new location.
7. When I run the “flowpath method” or the “watershed and flowpath method”, I get a “soil type not defined at row _ and column __ ” error or a “management type not defined at row _ and column __ ” error and the program hangs, crashes, or no results are displayed. If I run the “watershed only method” on my study site, I get results and no problems. Why does this occur? What can I do to correct this? The short answer is that you watershed is too large; use a smaller watershed. The long answer involves the flowpaths within the watershed and the amount of RAM your computer has. During the “flowpath method” portion of the run, GeoWEPP and WEPP simulate every possible flowpath with in the watershed and compile the results. This takes a lot of memory; if you run out of memory you get the error and the results can not be compiled.
Well, how many flowpaths can I have in my watershed before it becomes a problem? Unknown. The amount of memory used depends on the number and the length of the flowpaths. I ran a simulation on a 1m DEM; when I had just over 10,000 flowpaths, GeoWEPP would crash. If I had under 10,000 flowpaths, I would get results (My computer has 512MB of RAM). This value will change depending on the number of other programs are running at the same time; the more programs running, the less flowpaths you can run.
What should I do? There are two ways you can handle this, depending on your personality. If you are the type that wants a definite answer, has plenty of time, and doesn’t mind pulling your hair out, then you can try running simulation after simulation to determine what the maximum size watershed you can use for your current study. If you are like everyone else, the best way is to run the “watershed only method” on your study area to determine where your problem areas are within your watershed. They run GeoWEPP simulation on those areas; since these will be smaller areas, your flowpath runs should work fine.
Will this get fix? Part of the problem is the memory intensive functions involved; there is not much that can be done with this. We are currently working on a solution that will allow a user to run GeoWEPP on larger watersheds that will bypass this problem, but we are still in the initial development phase of this procedure.
8. I have just selected my outlet point. A DOS window appears and begins to repeat the same thing over and over again. What is wrong? How do I fix it?
Once you have selected an outlet point, GeoWEPP sends that points location to TOPAZ to create the subcatchments within the watershed. This point can not be located at the beginning of a channel or at a converging point, or TOPAZ will not be able to create the subcatchments. When one of these points are selected, TOPAZ will find the error and run a continuous loop stating the error. To stop this loop, close the DOS window. Then go to your current working directory and delete the “NotDone2.txt” file. This will stop the process. You can now select another point.
Steps have been made to prevent this from occurring by analyzing the point you select before it is passes on to TOPAZ, but some points do slip by for some reason. We are currently looking into why this occurs and should have a solution in the future.
9. After I select my climate, GeoWEPP states “User Canceled Run. WEPP Run Canceled.” What’s going on here?
It appears that the Translator will only read text files that are in ANSI format, not in Unicode-8. Double check how your text files were create. If they are in UNICODE-8, either convert it or try to rewrite it.
10. I have installed and tried to run GeoWEPP. When I either finish inputting my own ASCII data or after I click the example set I wish to use, GeoWEPP does some stuff and then stops. What happened? In most cases, your pathways for ArcGIS are not set up properly. Here is a simple test: Go to the project folder you just created (either the example folder in the Example_Sets folder or you own folder in the Projects folder). Find the ArcGeoWEPP.mxd file and double click on it. Once the MXD opens, click OK in the message box. Most likely, you’ll see a number of error messages and only have a topographic image layer. If this is the case, the pathway is set up incorrectly.
To solve this, all you need to do is 1) determine the correct pathway for ArcGIS (in would be the folder that contains ArcToolbox), 2) delete GeoDirInfo.txt, and 3) start GeoWEPP. When prompted, enter the correct pathway. The defaults given are the default installs for ArcGIS and for WEPP.
