Unnamed tributary to Trapfall Brook at Harris Road in Ashby, Massachusetts, on October 1, 2021. The shallowness of water in the culvert could impede aquatic organism passage.
A Statewide Hydraulic Modeling Tool for Stream Crossing Projects in Massachusetts
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst (UMass Amherst), in cooperation with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP), began a series of studies in 2019 to develop a GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool and to provide preliminary culvert designs for stream-crossing replacement projects in Massachusetts on USGS StreamStats.
Map showing the approximately 25,000 river and stream crossings within the State of Massachusetts. Orange dots are Massachusetts Department of Transportation (2021a) selected municipal bridges, blue dots are Massachusetts Department of Transportation (2021b) culverts, and green dots are North Atlantic Aquatic Connectivity Collaborative (2021) stream crossings.
Many of the approximately 25,000 roadway crossing structures over rivers and streams in Massachusetts are undersized (Massachusetts Culverts and Small Bridges Working Group, 2020). Poorly-designed or undersized culverts and bridges can limit fish and wildlife movement, divide habitat continuity, and negatively affect aquatic organism passage, survival and population growth. (Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game, Division of Ecological Restoration, 2012). Additionally, undersized culverts can lack the resiliency needed to withstand large floods. Potential increases in flood magnitude and frequency from climate change may exacerbate these challenges over time. Improved designs for stream-crossing projects would provide better aquatic organism passage, stream continuity, and resiliency to future floods while minimizing adverse impacts such as upstream flooding, road flooding, road washouts, erosion, and degradation of rare species habitat.
To address these issues, MassDEP, in cooperation with the USGS and UMass Amherst, began a series of studies to develop a GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to create preliminary culvert designs for stream-crossing replacement projects in Massachusetts. This tool will help municipalities evaluate potential culvert designs and facilitate the permitting of stream-crossing projects to meet the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act Regulations. Furthermore, a preliminary evaluation of the hydrology, hydraulics and ecological conditions of the project sites will be provided.
Photographs showing Bronson Brook at Dingle Road in Worthington, Massachusetts, before (top) and after (bottom) a stream crossing replacement. The 2008 replacement culvert project was designed to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards. Click on images to enlarge. Photographs (top) by the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game, Division of Ecological Restoration, and (bottom) by Paul Nguyen. Photographs used with permission.
Phase I
- Evaluate the feasibility of developing a web-based statewide hydraulic modeling tool for preliminary culvert designs for stream crossings in Massachusetts
- A feasibility study for developing a statewide hydraulic modeling tool for preliminary culvert designs at stream crossings in Massachusetts (usgs.gov)
Phase II
- Develop a prototype of the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool for a pilot watershed, the Squannacook River Watershed in north-central Massachusetts
- Survey 16 stream crossings in the Squannacook River Watershed
- Incorporate automated scripts using GIS methods and lidar data into the hydraulic modeling tool to produce stream cross-section elevation data
- Use the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to create preliminary designs for box, arch, and pipe culverts to convey the 10- and 4-percent annual exceedance probability (AEP) flood flows and to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards
- Integrate the preliminary culvert designs into the USGS StreamStats web application
- Compare GIS-and field-based hydraulic models at 16 selected stream crossings in the watershed
- Assess the accuracy of the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool and to improve it based on these comparisons
- Hydraulic Models and Supplementary Data for Selected Stream Crossing Sites in the Squannacook River Basin, North-Central Massachusetts (ver. 1.1, July 2024) - ScienceBase-Catalog
- Massachusetts Stream Crossing Project Data Web Map Service - ScienceBase-Catalog
- Culvert release for Massachusetts StreamStats | U.S. Geological Survey (usgs.gov)
Phase IIA
- Survey 30 stream crossings across Massachusetts
- Use the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to develop preliminary culvert designs for box, arch, and pipe culverts to convey the 10-, 4-, 2-, and 1-percent AEP flood flows and to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards at 30 stream crossings across Massachusetts
- Integrate the preliminary culvert designs into the USGS StreamStats web application
- Compare the GIS- and field-based hydraulic models at the 30 stream crossings across Massachusetts
- Assess the accuracy of the hydraulic modeling tool and to improve it based on these comparisons
Phase III
- Use the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to develop preliminary culvert designs for box, arch, and pipe culverts to convey the 10-, 4-, 2-, and 1-percent AEP flood flows and to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards at stream crossings in the Deerfield, Hudson-Hoosic, and lower Housatonic watersheds, western Massachusetts
- Integrate the preliminary culvert designs into the USGS StreamStats web application
Phase IIIA
- Use the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to develop preliminary culvert designs for box, arch, and pipe culverts to convey the 10-, 4-, 2-, and 1-percent AEP flood flows and to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards at stream crossings in the Westfield and upper Housatonic watersheds, western Massachusetts
- Integrate the preliminary culvert designs into the USGS StreamStats web application
Phase IIIB
- Survey cross-section data in about 20 coastal river reaches in Massachusetts
- Develop regression equations to estimate hydraulic geometry (width, mean depth, and cross-sectional area) for coastal rivers in Massachusetts
- Incorporate the coastal hydraulic geometry equations into USGS StreamStats
Phase IV
- Develop updated regional regression equations to estimate peakflows in urban areas of Massachusetts
- Incorporated the urban peakflow equations into USGS StreamStats
- Use the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to develop preliminary culvert designs for box, arch, and pipe culverts culverts to convey the 10-, 4-, 2-, and 1-percent AEP flood flows and to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards at about 6,000 stream crossing in selected watershed across Massachusetts
- Integrate the preliminary culvert designs into the USGS StreamStats web application
Unnamed tributary to Trapfall Brook at Harris Road in Ashby, Massachusetts, on October 1, 2021. The shallowness of water in the culvert could impede aquatic organism passage.
Pearl Hill Brook at Mill Creek Drive in Ashby, Massachusetts on October 1, 2021. The drop at the outflow of the culvert would impede aquatic organism passage.
Unnamed tributary to Trapfall Brook at Harris Road in Ashby, Massachusetts, on October 1, 2021. The shallowness of water in the culvert could impede aquatic organism passage.
Pearl Hill Brook at Mill Creek Drive in Ashby, Massachusetts on October 1, 2021. The drop at the outflow of the culvert would impede aquatic organism passage.
Pearl Hill Brook at Mill Creek Drive in Ashby, Massachusetts on October 1, 2021. The drop at the outflow of the culvert would impede aquatic organism passage.
Geonarrative: Feasibility of Developing a GIS-Based Hydraulic Modeling Tool for Stream Crossing Projects in Massachusetts
This interactive geonarrative presents information on how feasible it is to develop a GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool for preliminary culvert designs for stream crossings in Massachusetts.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst (UMass Amherst), in cooperation with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP), began a series of studies in 2019 to develop a GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool and to provide preliminary culvert designs for stream-crossing replacement projects in Massachusetts on USGS StreamStats.
Map showing the approximately 25,000 river and stream crossings within the State of Massachusetts. Orange dots are Massachusetts Department of Transportation (2021a) selected municipal bridges, blue dots are Massachusetts Department of Transportation (2021b) culverts, and green dots are North Atlantic Aquatic Connectivity Collaborative (2021) stream crossings.
Many of the approximately 25,000 roadway crossing structures over rivers and streams in Massachusetts are undersized (Massachusetts Culverts and Small Bridges Working Group, 2020). Poorly-designed or undersized culverts and bridges can limit fish and wildlife movement, divide habitat continuity, and negatively affect aquatic organism passage, survival and population growth. (Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game, Division of Ecological Restoration, 2012). Additionally, undersized culverts can lack the resiliency needed to withstand large floods. Potential increases in flood magnitude and frequency from climate change may exacerbate these challenges over time. Improved designs for stream-crossing projects would provide better aquatic organism passage, stream continuity, and resiliency to future floods while minimizing adverse impacts such as upstream flooding, road flooding, road washouts, erosion, and degradation of rare species habitat.
To address these issues, MassDEP, in cooperation with the USGS and UMass Amherst, began a series of studies to develop a GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to create preliminary culvert designs for stream-crossing replacement projects in Massachusetts. This tool will help municipalities evaluate potential culvert designs and facilitate the permitting of stream-crossing projects to meet the Massachusetts Wetlands Protection Act Regulations. Furthermore, a preliminary evaluation of the hydrology, hydraulics and ecological conditions of the project sites will be provided.
Photographs showing Bronson Brook at Dingle Road in Worthington, Massachusetts, before (top) and after (bottom) a stream crossing replacement. The 2008 replacement culvert project was designed to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards. Click on images to enlarge. Photographs (top) by the Massachusetts Department of Fish and Game, Division of Ecological Restoration, and (bottom) by Paul Nguyen. Photographs used with permission.
Phase I
- Evaluate the feasibility of developing a web-based statewide hydraulic modeling tool for preliminary culvert designs for stream crossings in Massachusetts
- A feasibility study for developing a statewide hydraulic modeling tool for preliminary culvert designs at stream crossings in Massachusetts (usgs.gov)
Phase II
- Develop a prototype of the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool for a pilot watershed, the Squannacook River Watershed in north-central Massachusetts
- Survey 16 stream crossings in the Squannacook River Watershed
- Incorporate automated scripts using GIS methods and lidar data into the hydraulic modeling tool to produce stream cross-section elevation data
- Use the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to create preliminary designs for box, arch, and pipe culverts to convey the 10- and 4-percent annual exceedance probability (AEP) flood flows and to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards
- Integrate the preliminary culvert designs into the USGS StreamStats web application
- Compare GIS-and field-based hydraulic models at 16 selected stream crossings in the watershed
- Assess the accuracy of the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool and to improve it based on these comparisons
- Hydraulic Models and Supplementary Data for Selected Stream Crossing Sites in the Squannacook River Basin, North-Central Massachusetts (ver. 1.1, July 2024) - ScienceBase-Catalog
- Massachusetts Stream Crossing Project Data Web Map Service - ScienceBase-Catalog
- Culvert release for Massachusetts StreamStats | U.S. Geological Survey (usgs.gov)
Phase IIA
- Survey 30 stream crossings across Massachusetts
- Use the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to develop preliminary culvert designs for box, arch, and pipe culverts to convey the 10-, 4-, 2-, and 1-percent AEP flood flows and to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards at 30 stream crossings across Massachusetts
- Integrate the preliminary culvert designs into the USGS StreamStats web application
- Compare the GIS- and field-based hydraulic models at the 30 stream crossings across Massachusetts
- Assess the accuracy of the hydraulic modeling tool and to improve it based on these comparisons
Phase III
- Use the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to develop preliminary culvert designs for box, arch, and pipe culverts to convey the 10-, 4-, 2-, and 1-percent AEP flood flows and to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards at stream crossings in the Deerfield, Hudson-Hoosic, and lower Housatonic watersheds, western Massachusetts
- Integrate the preliminary culvert designs into the USGS StreamStats web application
Phase IIIA
- Use the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to develop preliminary culvert designs for box, arch, and pipe culverts to convey the 10-, 4-, 2-, and 1-percent AEP flood flows and to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards at stream crossings in the Westfield and upper Housatonic watersheds, western Massachusetts
- Integrate the preliminary culvert designs into the USGS StreamStats web application
Phase IIIB
- Survey cross-section data in about 20 coastal river reaches in Massachusetts
- Develop regression equations to estimate hydraulic geometry (width, mean depth, and cross-sectional area) for coastal rivers in Massachusetts
- Incorporate the coastal hydraulic geometry equations into USGS StreamStats
Phase IV
- Develop updated regional regression equations to estimate peakflows in urban areas of Massachusetts
- Incorporated the urban peakflow equations into USGS StreamStats
- Use the GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool to develop preliminary culvert designs for box, arch, and pipe culverts culverts to convey the 10-, 4-, 2-, and 1-percent AEP flood flows and to meet the Massachusetts Stream Crossing Standards at about 6,000 stream crossing in selected watershed across Massachusetts
- Integrate the preliminary culvert designs into the USGS StreamStats web application
Unnamed tributary to Trapfall Brook at Harris Road in Ashby, Massachusetts, on October 1, 2021. The shallowness of water in the culvert could impede aquatic organism passage.
Pearl Hill Brook at Mill Creek Drive in Ashby, Massachusetts on October 1, 2021. The drop at the outflow of the culvert would impede aquatic organism passage.
Unnamed tributary to Trapfall Brook at Harris Road in Ashby, Massachusetts, on October 1, 2021. The shallowness of water in the culvert could impede aquatic organism passage.
Unnamed tributary to Trapfall Brook at Harris Road in Ashby, Massachusetts, on October 1, 2021. The shallowness of water in the culvert could impede aquatic organism passage.
Pearl Hill Brook at Mill Creek Drive in Ashby, Massachusetts on October 1, 2021. The drop at the outflow of the culvert would impede aquatic organism passage.
Pearl Hill Brook at Mill Creek Drive in Ashby, Massachusetts on October 1, 2021. The drop at the outflow of the culvert would impede aquatic organism passage.
Geonarrative: Feasibility of Developing a GIS-Based Hydraulic Modeling Tool for Stream Crossing Projects in Massachusetts
This interactive geonarrative presents information on how feasible it is to develop a GIS-based hydraulic modeling tool for preliminary culvert designs for stream crossings in Massachusetts.