Best Management Practices
Best management practices installed in the Rathbun Lake Watershed have reduced contaminants to Rathbun Lake.
Sediment Control Basins
A sediment basin is a man-made structure designed to hold stream water to allow sediment and pollutants time to settle. The water eventually flows out of the basin into downstream waterways. Click here to watch construction.
Terraces
Buffers and Filter Strips
Grass buffers and filter strips remove sediment and other pollutants from runoff. The narrow strips of vegetation also slow the rate of runoff, which reduces erosion and sediment delivery to Rathbun Lake.
Grade Stabilization Structures
A grade stabilization structure is commonly referred to as a pond; however the purpose of the structure is to stabilize channel grade and control erosion to prevent the formation of gullies. Click here to view aerial of structure.
What is GIS?
Geographic information system (GIS) technology can be used for scientific investigations resource management, and development planning. A GIS computer system is capable of capturing, storing, analyzing, and displaying geographically referenced information; that is, data identified according to location. Practitioners also define a GIS as including the procedures, operating personnel, and spatial data that go into the system.
How does GIS Technology work?
The power of a GIS comes from the ability to relate different information in a spatial context and to reach a conclusion about this relationship.
If the data to be used are not already in a form the computer can recognize, various techniques can capture the information. Maps can be digitized by hand-tracing with a computer mouse on the screen or on a digitizing tablet to collect the coordinates of features. Electronic scanners can also convert maps to digits or coordinates from Global Positioning System (GPS) receivers can also be uploaded into a GIS.
