Eric D. Swain, Ph.D.
Eric Swain has lived in Miami for over 37 years and researched South Florida hydrology with the USGS since 1988. With over 130 publications in water resources and fluid mechanics, Eric has developed a variety of analyses and models to understand the hydrologic system and provide information for water management.
Dr. Swain is a research hydrologist at the Caribbean Florida Water Science Center office in Fort Lauderdale Florida. He has a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering along with a M.S. and two B.S. degrees all from the University of Miami. He has specialized in the development of numerical models of surface-water/groundwater flow as well as statistical analysis of hydrologic parameters and methodology for determining field parameters. Dr. Swain has developed models for use in predicting the effects of ecosystem restoration efforts and the interaction with biologic concerns. His most recent work has concerned the dynamic effects of sea-level rise and other climatic factors on coastal hydrology and ecology.
Hydrologist for U. S. Geological Survey, Water Resources Division from November 1988 to the present. Surface Water Specialist at USGS Miami Florida Subdistrict office.
Projects include:
Developing methodology for measurement of canal discharge from ultrasonic velocity measurements;
Coupling of ground-water and canal-network computational models with modifications to simulate seasonally inundated wetlands directly connected to a regulated canal system
Analysis and optimization of a ground-water measurement network;
Determine functionality and accuracy of a regional digital model utilized by water managers for decision-making in South Florida.;
Determination of surface-water outflows by hydraulic structure rating and numerical modeling;
Digitally compute two-dimensional surface-water flow and transport in the southern coastal area of Everglades National Park and Florida Bay. This model is coupled with a ground-water model to examine flow and salinity transport in both regimes. Using boundaries from a regional model allows the coupled model to be used by water managers for restoration decisions and for input to ecologic models;
Appling parameter-estimation code to numerical model to determine the water-delivery scheme to optimize salinity values in the coastal Everglades;
Incorporating heat-transport in the coupled model to provide heat-transport as well as other hydrologic information for ecological studies;
Numerical modeling of coupled hydrodynamic surface-water and ground-water flow and transport; development of FTLOADDS model;
Utilizing numerical techniques to evaluate sea-level rise effects on coastal landscapes.
Representing historic storm effects on coastal hydrology with numerical techniques.
Applying neural network techniques to represent the rainfall/runoff process in Puerto Rico.
Modeling seepage flow in coastal areas with heat as a tracer.
Determining regional flood-frequency atribution.
Developing processes for the National Hydrologic Model (NHM)
Taught Fluid Mechanics at the University of Miami Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering from Fall 1999 through fall 2004.
Topics included: Fluid statics, fluid flow concepts, dynamics of inviscid and viscous fluids, closed and open channel
Science and Products
Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN)
Potential for Increased Inundation in Flood-Prone Regions of Southeast Florida in Response to Climate and Sea-Level Changes in Broward County, Florida, 2060–69
CFWSC Science Highlights
How will Florida’s Biodiversity Respond to Climate Change?
PRMS simulator used to assess rainfall, runoff, and river flow for the National Hydrologic Model (NHM) Puerto Rico
Digital Elevation Model (DEM) at 50 m resolution for the Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN)
MODFLOW simulator used to assess groundwater flow for the Whiting Field Naval Air Station, Milton FL
Attributions for nonstationary peak streamflow records across the conterminous United States, 1941-2015 and 1966-2015
o FTLOADDS (combined SWIFT2D surface-water model and SEAWAT groundwater model) simulator used to Repurpose a Hindcast Simulation of the 1926 Great Miami Hurricane using the South Florida Peninsula for the Biscayne and Southern Everglades Coastal Transport
FTLOADDS (combined SWIFT2D surface-water model and SEAWAT groundwater model) simulator used to assess proposed sea-level rise response and water-resource management plans for the hydrologic system of the South Florida Peninsula for the Biscayne and Southe
Model Data Sets for 1DTempPro and VFLUX simulation experiments to Determine Groundwater Seepage in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida
Representation of surface-water flows using Gradient-Related Discharge in an Everglades Network
The Everglades Depth Estimation Network interpolates water-level gage data to produce daily water-level elevations for the Everglades in south Florida. These elevations were used to estimate flow vectors (gradients and directions) and volumetric flow rates using the Gradient-Related Discharge in an Everglades Network (GARDEN) application developed by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with
Insight into sources of benzene, TCE, and PFOA/PFAS in groundwater at Naval Air Station Whiting Field, Florida, through numerical particle-tracking simulations
Forecasting water levels using machine (deep) learning to complement numerical modelling in the southern Everglades, USA
Insight into Hurricane Maria peak flows from the development and application of the Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System (PRMS): Including Río Grande de Arecibo, Puerto Rico, 1981–2017
Groundwater chemistry, hydrogeologic properties, bioremediation potential, and three-dimensional numerical simulation of the sand and gravel aquifer at Naval Air Station Whiting Field, near Milton, Florida, 2015–20
The Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN) surface-water interpolation model, version 3
Repurposing a hindcast simulation of the 1926 Great Miami Hurricane, south Florida
The hydrologic system of the south Florida peninsula—Development and application of the Biscayne and Southern Everglades Coastal Transport (BISECT) model
Potential for increased inundation in flood-prone regions of southeast Florida in response to climate and sea-level changes in Broward County, Florida, 2060–69
Using heat as a tracer to determine groundwater seepage in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida, April–November, 2017
Implications of refining vertical resolution of hydraulic conductivity in the numerical modeling of groundwater flow to surface water, NAS Whiting Field, Florida
Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN)—A decade of serving hydrologic information to scientists and resource managers
GARDEN - A flow vector tool for EDEN
EDEN
This package provides a set of functions for the Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN).
Conduit Flow Process (CFP): A Program to Simulate Turbulent or Laminar Groundwater Flow Conditions
Conduit Flow Process (CFP) allows simulation of laminar and turbulent flow within a standard MODFLOW layer and/or simulation of a hybrid model (one-dimensional pipe network coupled to MODFLOW).
Science and Products
Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN)
Potential for Increased Inundation in Flood-Prone Regions of Southeast Florida in Response to Climate and Sea-Level Changes in Broward County, Florida, 2060–69
CFWSC Science Highlights
How will Florida’s Biodiversity Respond to Climate Change?
PRMS simulator used to assess rainfall, runoff, and river flow for the National Hydrologic Model (NHM) Puerto Rico
Digital Elevation Model (DEM) at 50 m resolution for the Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN)
MODFLOW simulator used to assess groundwater flow for the Whiting Field Naval Air Station, Milton FL
Attributions for nonstationary peak streamflow records across the conterminous United States, 1941-2015 and 1966-2015
o FTLOADDS (combined SWIFT2D surface-water model and SEAWAT groundwater model) simulator used to Repurpose a Hindcast Simulation of the 1926 Great Miami Hurricane using the South Florida Peninsula for the Biscayne and Southern Everglades Coastal Transport
FTLOADDS (combined SWIFT2D surface-water model and SEAWAT groundwater model) simulator used to assess proposed sea-level rise response and water-resource management plans for the hydrologic system of the South Florida Peninsula for the Biscayne and Southe
Model Data Sets for 1DTempPro and VFLUX simulation experiments to Determine Groundwater Seepage in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida
Representation of surface-water flows using Gradient-Related Discharge in an Everglades Network
The Everglades Depth Estimation Network interpolates water-level gage data to produce daily water-level elevations for the Everglades in south Florida. These elevations were used to estimate flow vectors (gradients and directions) and volumetric flow rates using the Gradient-Related Discharge in an Everglades Network (GARDEN) application developed by the U.S. Geological Survey in cooperation with
Insight into sources of benzene, TCE, and PFOA/PFAS in groundwater at Naval Air Station Whiting Field, Florida, through numerical particle-tracking simulations
Forecasting water levels using machine (deep) learning to complement numerical modelling in the southern Everglades, USA
Insight into Hurricane Maria peak flows from the development and application of the Precipitation-Runoff Modeling System (PRMS): Including Río Grande de Arecibo, Puerto Rico, 1981–2017
Groundwater chemistry, hydrogeologic properties, bioremediation potential, and three-dimensional numerical simulation of the sand and gravel aquifer at Naval Air Station Whiting Field, near Milton, Florida, 2015–20
The Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN) surface-water interpolation model, version 3
Repurposing a hindcast simulation of the 1926 Great Miami Hurricane, south Florida
The hydrologic system of the south Florida peninsula—Development and application of the Biscayne and Southern Everglades Coastal Transport (BISECT) model
Potential for increased inundation in flood-prone regions of southeast Florida in response to climate and sea-level changes in Broward County, Florida, 2060–69
Using heat as a tracer to determine groundwater seepage in the Indian River Lagoon, Florida, April–November, 2017
Implications of refining vertical resolution of hydraulic conductivity in the numerical modeling of groundwater flow to surface water, NAS Whiting Field, Florida
Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN)—A decade of serving hydrologic information to scientists and resource managers
GARDEN - A flow vector tool for EDEN
EDEN
This package provides a set of functions for the Everglades Depth Estimation Network (EDEN).
Conduit Flow Process (CFP): A Program to Simulate Turbulent or Laminar Groundwater Flow Conditions
Conduit Flow Process (CFP) allows simulation of laminar and turbulent flow within a standard MODFLOW layer and/or simulation of a hybrid model (one-dimensional pipe network coupled to MODFLOW).