Submitted by Steve Turner on
The National River Flow Archive has released an update of the WINFAP-FEH data files for use in flood estimation. The newly released files include updates of Annual Maxima (AMAX) and Peaks over Threshold (POT) time-series data at gauging stations across England, Wales & Northern Ireland, up to September 2014.
The updated data files also include five new peak flow stations in the West Midlands, Wessex and north-west England regions, broadening the reach of this key dataset of national importance.
In addition to the core peak flow data, a swathe of metadata updates have been included, which relate to FEH catchment descriptors and suitabilities, ratings and datums, missing and rejected data and station descriptions. This additional information about the gauging stations is provided to allow hydrologists to make informed judgements regarding use of the data.
Updated peak flow time series and metadata are now available to view on the NRFA website and can be found using the NRFA’s gauging station search tool. The new WINFAP-FEH files were produced on 12th May 2016 and reflect the NRFA data holdings at this point. Version 4 of the files is available for download here for use in the WINFAP-FEH software. This latest version of the files reflects the first major update to the peak flow database since stewardship was passed to the NRFA (with previous updates provided under the HiFlows-UK initiative).
The NRFA’s peak flow data service provides flood data from 959 river flow gauging stations around the UK. The data can be used with the flood estimation methods set out in the Flood Estimation Handbook (FEH), which is the basis for most current flood estimation in the UK . The peak flows database is calculated to provide net economic benefits of almost £5.4 million per year in terms of costs saved by environmental consultants and regulators (further information can be found here).
The Peak flows data which is provided through this service originates from gauging stations operated by a range of UK hydrometric measuring authorities as is the case with other NRFA data. Maintenance of the NRFA peak flow data, including the latest update, is carried out under a collaborative project between the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales, Northern Ireland Rivers Agency and Scottish Environment Protection Agency.
More information about the update can be found in the Version 4 release note.
