The Sediment Calculator is an on-line tool to estimate sediment load reductions within the Paw Paw River Watershed of southwest Michigan. The calculator allows users to delineate an area within the watershed using the mapping interface, specify a land cover change or best management practice (BMP), and estimate a subsequent reduction in annual sediment loading to nearby streams.

Zoom to an area of interest and utilized the tabs below to get started.

Draw an area of land-cover change or a best-management practice (BMP) to see how erosion and/or sediment loading may change when compared to a best estimate of the current condition.

Digitizer:   Acres:

Land cover / BMP:

alfalfa grass forest pasture row-crop agriculture (generic) wetland buffer strip grass waterway no-till mulch-till conventional-till no-till with cover crop mulch-till with cover crop conventional-till with cover crop

Optional parameters  + ? RUSLE C-Factor: ? RUSLE K-Factor: ? RUSLE LS-Factor: ? RUSLE R-Factor: ? Surface roughness (Manning's n): ? Delivery ratio:

Estimated time to calculate:

Results: Seconds elapsed:

Draw an area to see how erosion and/or sediment loading may change between two different land cover scenarios.

Digitizer:   Acres:

Scenario 1 Scenario 2 LC Change/BMP: ALF (alfalfa) GRA (grass) FOR (forest) PAS (pasture) RCA (row-crop agriculture) WET (wetland) BUF (buffer strip) GRW (grass waterway) NTL (no-till) MTL (mulch-till) CTL (conventional-till) NCC (no-till with cover crop) MCC (mulch-till with cover crop) CCC (conventional-till with cover crop) ALF (alfalfa) GRA (grass) FOR (forest) PAS (pasture) RCA (row-crop agriculture) WET (wetland) BUF (buffer strip) GRW (grass waterway) NTL (no-till) MTL (mulch-till) CTL (conventional-till) NCC (no-till with cover crop) MCC (mulch-till with cover crop) CCC (conventional-till with cover crop)

Optional parameters  + Scenario 1 Scenario 2 ? RUSLE C-Factor: ? RUSLE K-Factor: ? RUSLE LS-Factor: ? RUSLE R-Factor: ? Surface roughness (Manning's n): ? Delivery ratio:

Estimated time to calculate:

Results: Seconds elapsed:

Search for a location
Address  Lat./Lon.
	address or intersection:

Click on a map layer name for a description.

The Sediment Calculator was developed by the Institute of Water Research at Michigan State University for The Nature Conservancy.

How the tool's models work.

Frequently asked questions about the tool (coming soon).

Version 1.1

Release Date 6/29/2012