ISWS Floodplain Model Data Inventory

Background and Information

About the Model Sources

The primary source of the floodplain hydraulic model data at the Illinois State Water Survey (ISWS) is the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Most of the collection is source material for FEMA's Flood Insurance Studies (FISs) for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), in the following formats:

FEMA's Engineering Study Data Package (ESDP) archives for each community FIS revision. FIS revision means publication of an FIS with a new effective date (including the first FIS for a community). Each ESDP is a collection of FIS study materials and correspondence; however, the product does not contain all the materials that the FEMA repository has for a study. The ESDPs have been distributed mainly in microfiche or CD format.
Hydraulic model printouts sent by FEMA after an ESDP archive was compiled. These are primarily undocumented and uncommented paper printouts for flood profiles first published in an FIS prior to 1986. Some of this model data is still effective, even in subsequent FIS revisions.
Selected hydraulic model input files of similar vintage, from the IDNR Office of Water Resources archive. While mostly undocumented, many are likely to be versions of FIS models.

Not all FIS data are available at the ISWS. FEMA maintains its own national archive, which is the primary source of all study materials and documentation used to produce the FEMA floodplain maps.
Updated model data associated with map revisions (LOMRs) or accepted restudies prior to their incorporation in an actual FIS revision are not available at ISWS. Those data usually must be requested directly from FEMA. For further information, call FEMA's Map Assistance Center at (877) FEMA-MAP.
FEMA discontinued distribution of FIS models to ISWS in 2001.

Data Disclaimers

The model inventory list presented here is NOT a list of currently effective regulatory FIS models. Data, maps, and data requirements for regulatory floodplain management and flood insurance applications change over time. The data contained in the identified models is not guaranteed to represent the currently effective FEMA floodplain model or the current physical conditions at any given reach or site. The Illinois State Water Survey and/or the Illinois Department of Natural Resources give no warranty, express or implied, as to the accuracy, reliability, utility, or completeness of this information.

In no case can the floodplain engineering data or documentation at ISWS be interpreted as the total available information from a floodplain study. It is the requester’s responsibility to seek all the study data needed from various possible sources. The Illinois State Water Survey and/or the Illinois Department of Natural Resources shall not be held liable for improper or incorrect use of data or data descriptions.

Additional conditions for the use of this website apply (see the ISWS website legal statement).

Scope of the ISWS Floodplain Model Service

The ISWS engineering data copy service includes:
		Searching for applicable hydraulic models in the ISWS inventory
		Reviewing model output for general agreement with the most recent FIS floodway table and discharge table
		Searching available information at ISWS to identify possible post-FIS restudies or revisions
The ISWS engineering data copy service does NOT include:
		Verifying the existence of superseding LOMRs or restudies
		Searching for all study documentation possibly accompanying model data
		Searching ESDP archives with large volumes of uncatalogued models
		Ordering revision documents not already at ISWS
		Ordering any backup data from FEMA on your behalf
		Providing complete hydrologic study material
		Providing topographic maps
		Providing a technical analysis of any past or present engineering study or model run

Proceed to the Floodplain Model Data Inventory

To order a model from ISWS:

Fax a written request, that includes a map and description specifically identifying your reach limits, to:

	Bill Saylor, Illinois State Water Survey
	Fax: (217) 333-2304

You will receive a more specific description of available materials to confirm your order. Charges apply.

| Center for Watershed Science |

State of
Illinois

University of
Illinois

Department of
Natural Resources

All files and information © 2008 Illinois State Water Survey. Terms of use.
email wsaylor@sws.uiuc.edu with comments or corrections
Last Modified: August 07, 2008